Lauren Jackson is keeping a close eye on those following in her footsteps.
Whether it's the Australian women thriving in the WNBA, the continued growth of the WNBL - both leagues she dominated in - or the grassroots level, Jackson's either involved with or adjacent to it all.
A Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer and inarguably Australia's most accomplished basketball player of all time - arguably the country's most decorated athlete ever - Jackson's latest role is as an ambassador for the NBA Rising Stars Invitational, which takes place in Singapore from June 25-29.
The event is the NBA's first regional high school basketball tournament, featuring boys' and girls' schools from 11 countries across the Asia-Pacific. That includes two schools representing Australia - Berwick College (boys) and Flinders Christian Community College (girls) - in an event that will also feature a camp element.
"The career I had in the WNBA, obviously to go and be a representative of the WNBA is hugely important," Jackson told ESPN.
"And, I think around the Asia Pacific as well, just that representation of a female athlete, basketball player from around here is good to have. I'm happy to be that person, and I'm looking forward to getting to Singapore."
Jackson will be joined by current NBA players - Sacramento's Domantas Sabonis, as well as Phoenix's Ryan Dunn and Oso Ighodaro - and fellow Hall of Famer, Yao Ming, on the event's panel of mentors.
"Essentially my role is as an ambassador," Jackson said. "We do get out, we're running camps. We're visible in mentoring some of the kids that are there, from the schools around the region. And also, Yao Ming's gonna be there, and we all know I love Yao Ming, so I can't wait to catch up with him.
"[It's exciting] being back in an elite environment. That's what I'm looking forward to the most. Nobody, globally, does it better than the NBA and WNBA, so, for me, being part of this and being able to represent the WNBA, it's really special. That's what I'm looking forward to the most.
"These are all high school kids. It's gonna be so much fun. It's gonna be such a great environment, and thanks to the Singapore government for ensuring that this could happen."
'She's unstoppable': High praise for Aussie WNBA duo
Jackson was sure to laud every Australian currently competing in the WNBA. She loves Alanna Smith's all-round dominance with the Minnesota Lynx, Sami Whitcomb's signature shooting exploits with the Phoenix Mercury, and how Bec Allen is fitting in with the Chicago Sky.
Then, of course, there's Ezi Magbegor, who's excelling for the very Seattle Storm team Jackson dominated with.
In her time with the Storm, Jackson earned three WNBA MVPs, one WNBA Finals MVP, two WNBA Championships, a Defensive Player of the Year award, seven All-WNBA First Team selections, and was the league's scoring champion three times. Her No. 15 jersey has since been retired by the franchise; such was her excellence in the jersey.
Magbegor is now in her sixth season with the Storm and, while she still has a ways to go to come close to Jackson's accolades, there's one statistic she's slowly-but-surely creeping up on.
Jackson is No. 1 on the Storm's all-time blocks list with 586; second on that list is Magbegor, who has 286 and counting.
"She's gonna get more," Jackson said. "She'll get more than what I did... Ezi's doing incredible things. From the Olympics, in that bronze medal game, we saw what she's capable of doing. Her athleticism, the way she moves, the way she plays defence, she's intimidating. She can block shots. She's so smooth to watch, and she's such an incredible athlete. When she's on, man, she's unstoppable.
"The WNBA is really good for her - obviously it's the best league in the world - so, to be the best she can possibly be, she has to be there, she has to be dominating, and she does that defensively night in and night out."
Another Olympic teammate Jackson had high praise for was Jade Melbourne, who's currently in the midst of a career year with the Washington Mystics, averaging 6.9 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 2.6 assists per game.
"Jadeo is so, so young, and she's got the world ahead of her," Jackson said. "Obviously her passion for the game and her energy definitely makes her so special, and sort of separates her from a lot of other players. After playing with her, I don't think I've ever been around someone as energetic as her, and has so much joy and love for the game. She just oozes it. That comes out in the way she plays. When she's on the break, you can't stop the girl. She's going full steam ahead, she can shoot, and her game's just getting better and better.
"With the Australian team, she's gonna have to be a very good facilitator, and be able to run a team on the court; as a point guard, she's definitely learning how to do that. It's gonna be fun to watch her learn and develop over the next few years, especially while the talent pool in the WNBA keeps lifting, as will our girls' games."
'We've always had a great product': What's next for the WNBL
Jackson's dominance in the WNBA is perhaps only superseded by her immense accomplishments in Australia's domestic league, the WNBL.
Some of her accolades - primarily playing for the Canberra Capitals - include seven WNBL titles, four WNBL MVP awards, and four WNBL Grand Final MVPs, which made it a no-brainer for the league to bring the now-44-year-old as a 'special advisor'.
Along with the WNBL's new ownership - Larry Kestelman's NBL Group and Robyn Denholm's Wollemi Capital Group Syndicate - and its new CEO, Jennie Sager, Jackson aims to play a role in what is hopefully a new and improved chapter for the league.
"The vision is a really important one, and that's to make the league, the WNBL, the best league in the world at that point in time for the athletes," Jackson said, praising the league's new ownership.
"What they're trying to do for the athletes off the court, but, also, creating a product people wanna watch, on TV, bums on seats in stands. It's really important to create that excitement and the professionalism; the stuff the WNBL has been missing for a long time.
"They are gonna take it to the next level, there's no doubt about it. With Robyn's business acumen and passion for the game, and Larry's experience in running leagues, I think you have two people that are best placed to run a league and really push a league forward.
"The WNBL has never had a problem with talent; talent was never the issue. We've always had a great product. It's the way it's been shown outwardly to the world, that's where the problem has lied. And, also, the conditions for the athletes. It took a long time for them to level up and get to the point where they're even with other female leagues in Australia. Obviously, there's a long way to go, but they'll keep pushing, and hopefully we'll get our Australian girls back over the next few years and playing on our shores."
One idea that has been discussed internally within the WNBL's new stewardship is the prospect of having more WNBA stars play their off-seasons in Australia.
The level of WNBL imports has generally been impressive, but there's an ambition to aim even higher, and the potential of introducing ways to facilitate that sort of recruitment.
The NBL, for example, has a marquee rule, where teams can pay local athletes an exorbitant amount of money, but those players would hit the cap sheet at a lower, fixed amount. Under Kestelman, the NBL has also offered ambassador contracts to players whose popularity could notably increase the exposure of the league. Those are just two examples of mechanisms that incentivise NBL teams to lure certain talent to the league; and the WNBL could put a similar financial incentive in place to attract the level of players who would otherwise earn more money in Europe or China during the off-season.
"I think, having that vision and that in the back of our minds, absolutely, yes: we could have a Caitlin Clark come and play here," Jackson said.
"Obviously, it would cost a lot of money, but I think that should be the ambition, that should be the goal.
"We want to see the big stars here on our shores and, I think the impact Caitlin Clark, or having a Breanna Stewart, or A'ja Wilson... having someone like that play in Australia in one of our clubs would change the face of our game. It would bring so many more fans to the stands, and the economic impact would be significant."