KELSEY Griffin says she has unfinished business with the Bendigo Spirit after signing a one-year deal with the WNBL club.
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The four-time Spirit MVP returns for a sixth season with the team, continuing an association that has netted two WNBL championships in 2012-13 and 2013-14.
She becomes the second player for the Spirit's 2016-17 roster to re-sign, after fellow forward Nadeen Payne committed to a similar one-year deal late last month.
Griffin, who was the grand final MVP in both Spirit championship wins, felt she had plenty more to offer both the club and basketball in Bendigo.
"I'm excited to be re-signing here in Bendigo, it is a town and club I believe in and I feel my work here isn't done,” she said.
"I am assistant coaching with the Young Lady Braves this off-season and I've been able to see the future of basketball in Bendigo and it is bright.
"I'm excited to continue to grow the culture here for future generations."
Griffin, who joined the Spirit at the end of her third of five WNBA seasons with the Connecticut Suns, hailed a new WNBL television deal as a great opportunity for fans and players.
"The standard of the WNBL is something I have always been proud to be a part of and it's great that it will be back on TV," she said.
“Women’s sport in Australia is flying, and we are all excited about what it will mean for the club, the team and Bendigo.”
The two-time WNBL All-Star has featured in the elite bracket of players in the national competition since her arrival in 2012-13.
Griffin has averaged 15.74 points, 8.88 rebounds and 1.88 assists across 114 games with the Spirit.
Her re-contracting comes after her previous three-year deal with the club expired at the end of last season.
Coach Simon Pritchard said re-signing Griffin had been a priority.
“Kelsey is a true champion, in every sense of the world,” he said.
“On the court and off the court she works amazingly hard, and Spirit fans know only too well what that hard work can deliver.
“Her selection in the Opals training camp in the lead-up to the Rio Olympics was great reward for her hard work, and we are looking forward to her strong leadership again this year.
“The other players look up to her and understand how important she is. "
"And Bendigo has adopted her with open arms.
"The work she does in the community is loved by a lot of people.”