By JARROD POTTER
MOVING to Canberra and living in the full-time basketball world has paid off for Pakenham’s Jaz Shelley.
Shelley, who turned 16 this week, added another accolade to her impressive basketball resume with her selection in the 12-woman squad for the Australian Under 17 Sapphires.
While she had a stop-start Vic Country campaign with injury, Shelley impressed through the pool stage of the Basketball Australia Under-17 Championships and earned her spot on the jet setting national junior team.
To go from Pakenham – playing for Vic Country, Latrobe and Southern Peninsula – all the way to Canberra was a big enough shift.
But getting into the Sapphires who will head to China, Czech Republic and finally Spain for the 2016 Under 17 Women’s FIBA World Championships in the next month or so is a lot for Shelley to take in.
“It’s all kind of hit in the last few months – having gone from Vic Country and going to living in Canberra and living by myself, to being in the Australian team in such a short time,” Shelley said. “My personality, my attitude has changed since I’ve been up here as well – being more independent, living with the girls, having to do my own washing and to get myself ready.
She puts a lot of her success down to a move to the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) – living in Canberra and relishing the rapid development the move up north has afforded her.
“I love it, I reckon it’s really good – it’s great to live with these girls,” Shelley said. “It’s much harder back home to find a court, find a gym and the facilities here are amazing and probably what has made me improve – having these facilities around me to try and develop myself.
“We’ve (the Sapphires) got a really strong team this year – we’ve got a lot of big girls, great guards and a lot of the girls are up here at the AIS so we’ve all played together for a while and it’s good.”
She’s also added plenty more senior basketball experience by the week – playing her role in the Canberra Capitals Academy SEABL women’s team.
“I love SEABL – all the girls are really young so we have a great advantage against the other teams as they’re a bit older,” Shelley said. “We’re new, athletic and quick … I like that style of play.
“Having the girls run up the floor and it makes you feel good when you’re playing against the older girls.”
Shelley’s hectic schedule starts next week when the Sapphires tour China, before coming home and heading off for World Championships preparations in the Czech Republic.
The world championships run from 22 June 22 to 2 July in Zaragoza, Spain. Australia has been drawn in Group B and will face France, China and Mexico in the pool stage.
