FORMER Ballarat Miners' guard Jade Melbourne continues to sharpen her chance to play for the Australian Opals on the road to the 2024 Paris Olympics.
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Melbourne has been named in a 20-player Opals' squad on December 12 with the squad to be cut to 12 for a FIBA Olympic qualifying tournament in Brazil in early February.
The 21-year-old left Ballarat to join Women's National Basketball Association club Seattle Storm in the United States earlier this year.
Melbourne became the youngest player in WNBA action this past season before returning to the Australian Women's National Basketball League where she has played a starring role in a struggling Canberra outfit.
Seattle Storm is best known in Australia as the club where the great Lauren Jackson built her WNBA career as a three-time WNBA most valuable player and two-time WNBA championship player.
Jackson, aged 42, has also been named in the Opals training squad, subject to fitness.
This leaves open the chance for Jackson to attempt a fifth Olympic Games after twice having retired and making an elite level comeback, the latest with WNBL club Southside Flyers in October.
Melbourne follows in a rich tradition of players progressing from Ballarat's marquee women's basketball program to Opals ranks.
The latest 20-player squad alone features former Ballarat players Cayla George (formerly Francis), who is fresh back in Australia as a WNBA championship player with Las Vegas Aces in October.
Former Ballarat player Alice Kunek is also in the squad, subject to fitness.
Melbourne earned selection in the Opals preliminary squads for the 2023 world cup and featured in the build-up to the Sydney tournament. WNBA duties kept Melbourne out of this year's Asia Cup.
Her form has earned the praise of Opals captain Tess Madgen, who last week said 2024 could be the breakout year for Melbourne on the big stage.
"Jade Melbourne is definitely going to be an Opal, whether that's at Paris ... she's got a very strong chance of making the team," Madgen said.
"I really do believe that she'll be a future leader of the program, she's just a great quality person, great for culture.
"She'd be the first one that would be really raising her hand for going for the (Olympic) team."
