NEW Bendigo Bank Spirit import Joy Burke will take a “whatever it takes” attitude into her first season in the Women’s National Basketball League.
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The former Arizona State University centre has been recruited to provide much-needed frontcourt support for star duo Gabe Richards and Kelsey Griffin.
“I’ll do whatever it takes for my team to win,’’ Burke, 24, said on Tuesday.
“It’s not just about scoring points. I’m really passionate about defence and rebounding.
“On every team I’ve played for my focus has been on whatever my team needs me to do.
“I’ve never been all about stats. I want to keep developing my game and help the program get better.”
The athletic 196cm centre arrives in Bendigo after representing Chinese Taipei at the recent FIBA Asia Championship.
Burke spent 12 years in Taiwan before her family moved to the United States.
Burke led Chinese Taipei to the bronze medal game at the Asia Championships where they lost 52-45 to Korea. She averaged eight points and six rebounds for the tournament.
“It was a great experience for me to play for my home country for the first time,’’ Burke said.
“To compete on a big stage and play against some of the best teams in the world was great for basketball at home. The support basketball is getting there is really starting to take off.”
After graduating from Arizona State, Burke spent one season in Denmark playing for the Horsholm 79ers. When the opportunity arose to play hoops in Australia she jumped at it.
“I’d heard so many great things about Australia,’’ Burke said.
“I’ve only been here a few days, but I love it here already. I can see the team culture in Bendigo is great and I can see how invested the club is with the community.
“I hope to get involved with the community here in Bendigo and make the most of my experience.”
Burke will make her WNBL debut when the Spirit play their season-opener against South East Queensland on October 9.
