Lauren Jackson eyes more success in her WNBL return for the Southside Flyers
Legendary Australian basketballer Lauren Jackson will make her return to the WNBL on Saturday night for the Southside Flyers.
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Australia’s greatest basketballer Lauren Jackson is tipped to produce another standout performance in her WNBL return for the Southside Flyers on Saturday.
It’s Jackson’s first WNBL game since a chronic knee injury prematurely forced her into retirement while playing for Canberra in 2016.
Now 41 and with two kids, plenty has changed for the Aussie basketball GOAT, but she can still play as she proved at the recent World Cup in Sydney.
Jackson defied Father Time to lead the Opals to a bronze medal with a memorable 30-point haul in her international farewell.
On Saturday, she will swap the green and gold for the aqua blue of Southside in a season-opening clash against the Adelaide Lightning at the State Basketball Centre from 7.00pm (AEDT).
Flyers forward Sara Blicavs played alongside Jackson at the World Cup, so she is expecting a standout performance from the legendary forward on debut for Southside.
“I mean, LJ is in fine form,” Blicavs told News Corp.
“She is coming off a 30-point game against Canada to win the Rose Gold medal, so she is still going to be such a big inside presence for us.
“She plays aggressive, she plays tenacious, and she is a fiery player.
“Lauren is also a gun three-point shooter, so I think fans can expect to see LJ doing LJ things and it will be quite a show.”
Blicavs has urged Australian basketball fans to get around the WNBL competition, especially on the back of the Opals World Cup success on home soil.
“It’s huge with the momentum that we have coming off the Opals campaign and we just want to keep going,” she said.
“The thing is – people don’t actually realise how good we are in the WNBL, until you come to a game.
“That’s my biggest thing. People try and compare women’s basketball to the men’s game, but we are completely different styles of play.
“It’s a whole different ball game, it’s super exciting and I think with the calibre of talent in the league, this will be the best WNBL season we’ve had in a long time.”
To celebrate Jackson’s debut with Southside and her return to the WNBL, commemorative GOAT T-shirts will be sold exclusively at the Flyers opening game.
The T-shirts will only be available at the game on Saturday night for $20 with all sizes available.
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Originally published as Lauren Jackson eyes more success in her WNBL return for the Southside Flyers
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