American import Charli Collier is the “strong body” the Caps need in the centre. Photo: UC Capitals.
Her skills on the basketball court have taken former WNBA number one draft pick Charli Collier from the USA to China, Poland, Israel and Italy, but the UC Capitals’ import feels right at home in Canberra.
Perhaps it’s her upbringing in Baytown, a city about 20 miles east of Houston, Texas, which she says draws many parallels with the Australian national capital.
“If this is boring, boring is my vibe,” she laughs. “I love it here.”
Collier’s credentials make her a key ingredient in the chemical makeup of the Caps – a relatively young team with many players facing their first fully contracted year in the Cygnett WNBL.
Before becoming the WNBA’s number-one draft pick, she played basketball at the University of Texas and before that, for Team USA at age 16. But it can all be traced to age five.
It was around that time her parents, both basketball players, introduced her to the game.
“My mum played collegiately and my dad professionally,” she says.
“I actually played a lot of different sports – soccer and gymnastics – but when I started to get taller, basketball became a natural interest. My parents helped train me early on, and year after year, I kept getting better and better.”
In the lead-up to their next home game on Sunday, 29 December, Collier will have to be the “strong body” the Caps need at centre – as head coach Paul Gorris put it, “an interior presence that can play back to basket and face to basket” – as the team looks to get its season back on track.
The 6’5″ centre is credited with versatility – an athlete who can play both inside the paint and shoot from the perimeter, run the floor, play in transition and is an elite rebounder.
Collier says it’s discipline, hard work, and a state of mind that wins games.
“We are a young team, but I’ve been a part of younger teams before – it makes you work harder than anyone else, and I have never shied away from work,” she says.
“The Caps are working hard, and slowly but surely we’re seeing the results. That’s what the game is all about – how to buy into your craft. That’s all you can do – be more disciplined and work harder than the other.”
Having grown up in Texas – a “sports heavy” state – Collier says you can spot “who’s putting in the work and who’s not”.
There’s no question about the Caps.
“We talk all the time about having better discipline, better defence, better communication, working harder collectively and working harder as individuals. We are doing the work, and I’m seeing strides of that in our game,” she says.
“Basketball is a short-term memory game. Whether you have a good game or a bad game, there’s no time to rest on your laurels or to dwell. It’s a quick turnaround because you have to be ‘on’ the next day.”
The UC Capitals will face off against Perth on Sunday, 29 December, at AIS Arena, Canberra. Get your tickets through Ticketek.
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