My phone has been going off today from agents and different players reaching out.
- Tracy York
The WNBL 2020-21 free agency period is officially open.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
One of the biggest game-changers this year is the absence of imports on team rosters, an element which Bendigo Spirit coach Tracy York said made the process a lot different than normal.
"With no imports it does make the thought process quite different this year," York said.
"It will impact the teams who don't necessarily have a big player who can play the five (centre) as they can't go down the import path."
The Spirit have three players contracted for the 2020-21 season - last season's MVP Carley Ernst, Demi Skinner, and Alicia Froling.
The club is expected to make an announcement in the next week or so with player signings for the season ahead.
"My phone has been going off today from agents and different players reaching out," York said.
"We're looking at how we structure our remaining five spots that we have left, we certainly have some players earmarked."
Current free agent players that were on the Spirit's 2019-20 roster are Kasey Burton, Shyla Heal, Isabella Stratford, Kara Tessari, Abbey Wehrung and Kelly Wilson.
Without imports, York said the plan was to secure up and coming Australian talent for 2020-21.
"Some teams in the league have the bulk of the upper echelon Australian players, other teams, like us (Spirit) want to look at the next level and develop them," York said
"There is so much exciting young talent around and some players who are back from college in the US, so there are plenty of options."
WNBL 2020-21 is planned to begin in November for a full schedule 21 regular-season games per team, in addition to finals. The grand final series is scheduled to occur between March 25 to 31.
Have you signed up to the Bendigo Advertiser's daily newsletter and breaking news emails? You can register below and make sure you are up to date with everything that's happening in central Victoria.