The Wyndham Basketball Association are excited to share with you the signing of Gianna “GiGi” Smith to the Championship Women’s team for the 2022 season.

GiGi is a native to Norfolk, Virginia, and competed in the Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) with the University of North Carolina – Wilmington. Gianna, a Third-Team All-Colonial Athletic Association selection who started 25-of-30 games as a senior, averaging 34.4 minutes per game, led the Seahawks with 14.3 points per game and 5.5 rebounds per game.

Championship Women’s Head Coach Gerard Hillier is thrilled to secure the signature of GiGi for the 2022 season “There was an instant connection with GiGi during our initial talks, with all of her questions about Wyndham and the league being really relevant and in line with exactly what we’re trying to achieve as a program.”

Hillier added that her ability to create her own score along with creating for others was a great asset for the program in 2022 “What I really like about GiGi is her ability to balance getting her own points while assisting others, with a young roster it was vitally important to have a player such as GiGi who is able to make tough plays when the team needs a bucket, yet help our younger stars find their own buckets throughout the game.”

GiGi is pumped with the opportunity to join the Wyndham Basketball Association family saying that “talking to the Head Coach made me feel comfortable, made me feel like family, made me feel like it was home  I’m so excited to be around everyone, I can’t wait to get there”.

In addition to his playing role, GiGi, along with the other WBA imports will be considerable contributors to the WBA through coaching in various programs and camps.  We look forwards to our community having the opportunity to get to know Amanda and to learn more about our game from her.

GiGi will arrive in Australia in February.

Wyndham Basketball Association are thrilled to share that our Championship Men’s Program have signed Kavione Green, out of Bloomfield University, as our first Import for the 2022 season.

Kavione, a 6’4″ Wing from New York, had a tremendous senior season at Bloomfield, averaging 19.3 Points, 1.8 Assist, 10.7 Rebounds and 1.5 Steals per game, whilst shooting 41% from behind the 3P line.  Kavione finished the 2018-19 season as the 10th leading rebounder and 12th leading offensive rebounder in all of Division 2 Basketball.

These numbers, his performance in general and his team’s success lead to Kavione receiving a number of end of season accolades;

• Named the Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association D2 Player of the year
• Selected to the NCAA Division 2 Men’s Basketball All East Region First Team
• Central Athletic Collegiate Conference Player of The Year
• Central Athletic Collegiate Conference Defensive Player of The Year

Head Coach, Lucas Allen had initially signed Kavione when coaching at Southern Peninsula, experiencing a full pre-season with each other before Covid saw the season being cancelled.  Allen spoke of the significance of this time together “having spent time with KG previously, there is an instant familiarity with one another.  We have maintained communication since KG initially went home after Covid hit, and when the opportunity to team up together again presented itself, we both acted immediately”.  When speaking of Kavione’s ability and impact, Allen couldn’t have had higher praise “Kavione will excel on the defensive end, be a rebounding menace and be a strong scorer, both inside and out.  KG is a tireless worker and I’m pumped to have him helping lead the way in our program”.

Kavione shared the sentiments of his Coach “I’m blessed and grateful for the opportunity.  I chose this club because of the hospitality; the vibe was everything.  I’m excited to get back to Australia, have fun and win games”.

In addition to his playing role, Kavione, along with the other WBA imports will be considerable contributors to the WBA through coaching in various programs and camps.  We look forwards to our community having the opportunity to get to know Kavione and to learn more about our game from him.

Kavione will arrive in Australia in February.

Wyndham Basketball invites all 1st and 2nd team players to our Wyndham Pro Day Camp.

The Wyndham Pro Day Camp will be conducted in a high-performance environment that will expose our players to a wide range of elite level skill set and concept development.  Wyndham Basketball’s Coaching Lead, Lucas Allen will be running the Pro Day Camp.  Lucas has vast experience in coaching, including but not limited to;

Current Coaching Staff at South East Melbourne Phoenix

Championship winning Head Coach at BigV

8 x Australian Junior Championships

12+ years coaching in Basketball Victoria High Performance Pathways

Coached in China, USA and New Zealand

Combining with Lucas will be a guest coach (NBL/WNBL/National Level), the athletes attending are sure to receive unrivalled coaching and tuition.

The camp will be structured in the exact same manner as the Australian Representative Camps, which will involve the following:

1. Speed, agility, and endurance testing
2. Physical testing, height, wingspan, and flexibility testing (no weight testing or anything along those lines)
3. Footwork development workshops
4. Shooting & finishing workshops
5. Ball handling workshops
6. 3v3 concept development & scrimmage

The Wyndham Pro Day Camp is designed to give players the opportunity to work on the finer details within our game and develop in areas that have been proven to best assist players in taking the next step in their basketball journey, all whilst being mentored and coached by elite level coaches.

Wyndham Pro Day Camp – U12’s & U14’s 
Date: Saturday 23^rd January
Time: 9.00am to 3.00pm (multiple mini breaks throughout the day)
Venue: Eagle Stadium
Cost: $80.00 per player
Bring: Basketball, Wyndham Training Uniform, Water Bottle, Foam Roller, LUNCH & SNACKS, towel

Wyndham Pro Day Camp – U16’s & U18’s 
Date: Sunday 24^th January
Time: 9.00am to 3.00pm (multiple mini breaks throughout the day)
Venue: Eagle Stadium
Cost: $80.00 per player

Bring: Basketball, Wyndham Training Uniform, Water Bottle, Foam Roller, LUNCH & SNACKS, towel

REGISTER HERE

There will be a wide range of other Wyndham Basketball Association holiday camps and programs for your child to attend over the holiday period, which they are most welcome to attend in addition to the above mentioned, however the Wyndham Pro Day Camp is only open to 1st & 2nd team players.

Note: If you are in a 3rd or 4th team, we will be holding a special day for the athletes in those teams later in 2022, so no player within the Wyndham Junior Rep Program will miss out.

If you have any questions, please contact Wyndham Coaching Lead, Lucas Allen – lucas.allen@wyndhambasketball.com

The up and coming Wyndham 3×3 tryouts will see teams selected to attend the 2022 3×3 Big Hustle National Qualifiers, with the winners of each age group then moving on to the National Championships.

This tryout and team selection process is the first major step in our Wyndham Way Vision – 3×3 Focus, which will see the Wyndham Basketball Association promote the 3×3 pathway more within our community, and also have a stronger presence on the 3×3 National scene.

For those that are new to the 3×3 world, it is a fast, relentless, physical and exciting format, with shorter and more action filled games. For those that do have experience with 3×3, we most certainly want to see you at tryouts.

There are two additional and major benefits of playing 3×3, the first being that it also develops and greatly assists your normal 5on5 basketball, and the second reason being it also provides you an entirely new pathway in basketball, so it’s a win/win situation.

Although these tryouts will only see one team per age group/per gender selected, we will be hosting more and more 3×3 events as 2022 rolls on, but for the meantime, roll up your sleeves and get along to the tryouts.

Tryout information:

Date: Friday 14th of January

Time: 1:30pm – 3:00pm – u12s and u14s

Time: 3:30pm – 5:00pm – u16s and u18s

Location: Eagle Stadium

Ages:  DUE TO THE EARLY DATE OF NATIONALS THE AGE CUT OFF DATE IS 23rd of JANUARY 2022

12’s & under – athletes who are 12 years or younger on 23^rd Jan 2022

14’s & under – athletes who are 14 years or younger on 23^rd  Jan 2022

16’s & under – athletes who are 16 years or younger on 23^rd Jan 2022

18’s & under – athletes who are 18 years or younger on 23^rd Jan 2022

OPEN – athletes who are 17 years or older on 23^rd Jan 2022

Register here

Athletes who are successful at the tryouts will attend the below event:

Date: 22^nd & 23^rd Jan 2022

Time: 8:30am team check in on the Saturday – 5pm finish on the Sunday

Location: Ballarat Sports Events Centre – 989 Norman St, Wendouree VIC 3355

Cost:  $50 per athlete (4 players maximum)

Note: All selected athletes will also need to purchase a 3×3 Big Hustle uniform ($25), which can be purchased online and collected at the tournament during check in (link will be provided to successful athletes).

If you have any further questions, please contact Wyndham Coaching Lead, Lucas Allen – lucas.allen@wyndhambasketball.com

The Wyndham Basketball Association are thrilled to share with you the signing of Amanda Paschal to the Championship Women’s team for the 2022 season.

Amanda hails from Brooklyn, N.Y, and started her collegiate career at Junior College – Gulf Coast State, where she helped the Commodores to the 2016 National Junior College Athletic Association National Championship, 2016 Panhandle Conference Championship and 2016 Florida College System Activities Association/NJCAA State Championship.

After a successful start to her career, Amanda then transferred to one of the nation’s biggest programs, the University of Kentucky. Amanda carved out a successful career with the University of Kentucky, where she worked her way in to the core group and main rotation, and also become a leader within the program.

Championship Women’s Head Coach Gerard Hillier is thrilled to secure the signature of Amanda for the 2022 season “We knew instantly that Amanda was the perfect fit for our program, it was obvious right away that Amanda was a hardworking and genuine person who would add great value to our program via her work ethic and personality”.

Hillier added that her ability to play multiple positions gave the roster flexibility for the season ahead “Amanda can easily play the 1, 2 or even 3 spot in our system, which will give our roster a range of different looks throughout the season, Amanda is a very experienced combo guard and can fill whatever role is needed to win on any given night”.

Amanda is elated with the opportunity to join the Wyndham Basketball Association family “ever since I’ve been in contact with the club, they’ve been nothing but friendly, they show love, invited me in as if I was family and I am grateful for the opportunity”.

In addition to his playing role, Amanda, along with the other WBA imports will be considerable contributors to the WBA through coaching in various programs and camps.  We look forwards to our community having the opportunity to get to know Amanda and to learn more about our game from her.

Amanda will arrive in Australia in February.

The WBA has decided that junior domestic competitions this Saturday (November 6th) will be “Welcome Back Round”, where the games will be played according to the released fixture (including Manor Lakes as the second venue), however the results will not be collated for inclusion in ladders nor used for grading purposes.

The late confirmation of vaccination requirements and operating rules which came through from Basketball Victoria and WLS had major impact on providing adequate notice to clubs, teams and families as well as increased risk of operational issues occurring. The WBA were concerned that the game results could be unfair given so many variables.

For example, player registrations are still coming through and therefore player points allocations cannot be finished, domestic clubs are still trying to recruit players and finalise teams (we know there are teams not currently entered), some competitions currently only have 2 teams, and there are major concerns of traffic flow and car parking at Eagle stadium. Another week will allow more time to address these issues.

Please note that people entering and exiting Eagle stadium for COVID vaccinations will be using separate doors to patrons attending for basketball games and programs.

Manor Lakes Parking
Manor Lakes has a new entry for the Stadium for those that haven’t been there this year. The school is also locked off with a court only entrance to the 2 courts/venue spaces. You won’t be able to park on the street and walk through the school you’ll need to park at the carpark near the football oval. Please notify your players of the new entrance.

Getting to the stadium:
Stadium car park is located off Howqua way behind the football oval.
Entrance to the courts is found along the black fence, where the green AstroTurf starts is the entrance to the stadium area.

Regards,
WBA Management

The WBA is excited to be able to share with you all the most recent update in relation to our return to sport.  We thank all of you for waiting patiently for the update, we have wanted to ensure that we had all of the required information available, and now we’re ready to pass it all on.

We are thrilled to be able to announce not one, but TWO new coaching appointments for the Victoria University Wyndham Senior Program.

The WBA welcomes Lucas Allen to the position of Victoria University Big V Championship Men – Head Coach. Coach Allen comes to Wyndham with a wealth of knowledge and experience, having coached in the league for over 10 years, including a championship along the way, Coach Allen knows the league inside out and has a proven track record of success.

“Coach Allen is a huge addition to our program, when you combine his overwhelming experience of working with elite juniors via the Basketball Victoria Country pathway, and also his ever growing experiences with the South East Melbourne Phoenix where he’s their Technical Assistant Coach, we know we have secured a highly credentialed coach to drive our program forward” said Gerard Hillier, WBA Player & Coach Development Manager.

“Coach Allen is a highly driven and focused Coach; he will absolutely bring a high level of professionalism to our program which will not only greatly assist the senior men’s program, but will also filter down to our aspiring young athletes in our junior program.” Added Hillier.

The WBA also welcomes home Aaron Bensted, who is our newly appointed Victoria University Big V Youth League Men – Head Coach. Coach Bensted returns home to Wyndham after spending the past 4yrs with the Melbourne Tigers, where he worked extensively with their u18 to Youth League programs.

Coach Bensted brings a large amount of experience to Wyndham in the Youth League divisions, having served as Assistant Coach under Australian great, Andrew Gaze, for a number of seasons. Coach Bensted also has a great understanding of the Wyndham program, having played all his junior career here at Wyndham, and also coached a number of season with our program in the past.

“Coach Bensted is a really enthusiastic young Coach, and a real student of the game. I have no doubt that Coach Bensted will build a new and exciting environment for our Youth League members to thrive within” said Gerard Hillier, WBA Player & Coach Development Manager.

The WBA also welcome’s back Gerard Hillier as the Victoria University Big V Championship Women – Head Coach, along with Corey Michailidis as the Victoria University Youth League Women – Head Coach.

As part of the Wyndham Way Vision 2024, the WBA’s coaching lead roles will be undergoing a restructure, leading to a sole coaching lead with assistants helping this position.

The restructure means our 2020/21 coaching leads Grant Duca (Boys) and Corey Michialidis (Girls) will be finishing up in these role, though, thankfully, neither will be lost to our association with both Grant and Corey set to continue in other coaching roles across the association.

The WBA wanted to take this opportunity to thank both Grant and Corey for their hard work and dedication across multiple seasons. Both have been pivotal in the development of our players, coaches and the program overall.

Player and Coach Development Manager Gerard Hillier thanked both Grant and Corey for their work in the coaching lead roles.

“Both Grant and Corey and well known and liked for their work within our VJBL program and we can’t thank them enough for the time and expertise they have put into their roles,” Gerard said.

“The leadership positions within our VJBL program are crucial to the overall success of the program, which is why I took a lot of time to consider the best structure moving forward and believe we have landed with it in the Wyndham Way Vision 2024.”

“We’ll be advertising the single Coaching Lead role soon and the start date will obviously be COVID restriction dependent,” Gerard explained.