Kasey Burton jumped at the chance to be coached by Keilor Thunder coach Kristi Harrower again in the National Basketball League 1 South competition.
Burton, who has been playing with the Bendigo Braves, is one of the key signings for the Thunder this season.
“Kristi was a big influence on that decision,” Burton said. “Who wouldn’t want to play under Kristi?
“She’s a great presence as a player herself, she can bring lots of aback to my game and as a coach is just a people’s coach, can’t wait to play for her.
“I played under her in the Covid affected seasons, she was at Melbourne Tigers she was the coach then.
“I already knew her so I jumped at an opportunity to come under her.”
Burton said joining the Thunder was a new challenge for her and Harrower reached out to her at perfect time.
“I live in Ballarat, so it’s a nicer road to drive down to Keilor than Bendigo,” she said. “The Bendigo coach moved on and Kristi realised that and quickly jumped on to message me to come play for me at Keilor.
“I was like, perfect, I will.
“It’s a good challenge for me and I can’t wait for it.”
While Burton has played against the Thunder, Burton said she didn’t know much about the side.
She said they were a tough team to play against last season and they were keen to keep the ball rolling on what they started last year.
“Once everyone is there, Kristi will then start to roll out what roles and positions we play in the squad,” she said.
“I know everyone will have a massive contribution towards the team, we just have to see how we all gel and where the spots need to be filled.
“There’s amazing players. I like to play defence and pass in offence.
“I definitely want to help them as a team and I can’t wait to see what we produce and as a club hopefully continue on with what they did last year and hopefully make it back to finals and go from there.”
Burton, who previously played in the WNBL with the Bendigo Spirit, said for her the main thing was having fun on the court.
She said her WNBL experience was amazing and while getting another opportunity wasn’t something she thought about she would think about it if the opportunity ever came up again.
“I loved that whole environment, something that is really good for younger players to strive towards,” she said.
“As I start to get older, 28 now, I have to have a job on the side. It’s really hard to handle the double.
“It’s given me an opportunity and experience to bring back to the NBL1 and juniors that are coming through.
‘At the moment I’m just taking it one game at a time, just focusing on the now.”
