Opals star to show her fighting Spirit in WNBL decider
Sami Whitcomb knows there's more to life than eat, sleep, basketball, repeat.
Despite this, the Opals star continues to add to her decorated trophy cabinet, bagging an Olympic bronze, her first WNBL MVP and her fifth All-WNBL first-team call-up in one year.
The 36-year-old has also recorded the most baskets, most points per game and most threes on average in the WNBL.
But she has one more box she wants to tick - that's winning her first WNBL title and the Bendigo Spirit's first trophy in 11 years.
Although the guard is focused on winning come Wednesday, she also wants to show people, including her kids 3200km away, life's more than a small orange ball.
"I want to be known as someone who worked really hard, someone that set a goal, chased it, gave everything to it, and wasn't afraid to fail all of those things," Whitcomb told AAP.
"I don't want (my sons) to view me as a basketballer. I want to inspire them to dream big and chase their goals.
"You ask young girls, young boys, who's your favourite basketball player? A lot of them might have just said Steph Curry or LeBron James. I would love to have kids say Caitlin Clark, Asia Wilson or Veronica Burton."
Sami Whitcomb NO LOOK DIME! 🪙The WNBL MVP finds Kelsey Griffin with a beautiful dish as the Spirit look to wrap up the series in Sydney!Watch the #WNBL Finals LIVE on ESPN2! 📺 pic.twitter.com/KcgwJVz6nS
— ESPN Australia & NZ (@ESPNAusNZ) February 27, 2025
Bendigo signed nine players over the off season including Whitcomb, fellow Opal Marianna Tolo and WNBA guard Burton, who have scored 835 points collectively when on court together.
The guard said the team gelled almost instantly, which was reflected on court as they started their season 9-0, finishing 18-3.
After downing the Sydney Flames 91-74 in their semi-final, Bendigo now shift their focus to the Townsville Flames.
"We set the goal of making it to a grand final, so I'm really proud that we've been able to do that," Whitcomb said.
"It's such a special group. I love that the players are willing to work as hard as they can and live with whatever the results end up being.
"Burton is the best import in the league. Not only is she a really great human, but also really values playing both sides of the court."
The best-of-three Grand Final begins in Bendigo on Wednesday.
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