Jayda Clark is ready to conquer the basketball world

Jed Wells

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Jayda Clark is ready to conquer the basketball world image

If you asked any young basketball player across Australia what their dreams were, you would overwhelmingly get two answers: play professionally and represent their country. 

Jayda Clark was able to tick both off her list within the same week, and not for the first time. 

In the span of just a few days, Clark signed her first WNBL deal with The University of Canberra Capitals and was selected to represent Australia at the 2023 FIBA U19 Women's World Cup in Madrid.

But in the face of one of the biggest weeks an athlete could have, the young West Australian remained impossibly cool, a sign of how prepared she is to explode into the next stage of her career. 

“It was honestly a really cool experience and I had some really good people helping me out and helping me make the right decision, so, yeah, I'm definitely grateful for it,” Clark said.

“It was more overwhelming coming to the decision of what I wanted to do in the end. 

“But once I made the decision, I was happy with it and I knew that it would be the best decision for my future.” 

It was a decision that a lot went into, considering the amount of options that she had to sort through. 

One of the country's most sought-after prospects, Clark had most of the league chasing her signature, but for the majority of her junior career, she was convinced she would go overseas and play college basketball in America. 

“Initially I was definitely set on college just because it looks super cool, but, yeah, as I kind of got older, I realised the WNBL is definitely a great pathway to take,” Clark said. 

“Seeing younger girls do well and then get drafted, and I think also the style of play just suits me a bit better.”

In particular, Clark saw the Capitals as a way to continue her current momentum, staying in her adopted hometown of Canberra, under her former Centre of Excellence (CoE) coach Kristen Veal.

“The team culture they have there, I know that it's very special, and seeing them play together, I really like the style of play and I just think it's going to be a great fit for my first year,” Clark said.

The playstyle of WNBL players is something Clark is intimately familiar with, having played in the NBL1 with the CoE for the last two years, moving to the nation's capital from Western Australia when she was just 15 years old. 

“I was very fortunate at a young age to have played in older age groups, so when I was 15, I had the chance to play NBL1 in Perth, so I made my debut when I was 15 and that definitely helped,” Clark said. 

“I guess people looking at me, and then obviously making state teams was also a huge part.

“The turning point was when I was offered my CoE scholarship when I was 18, bottom age at Nationals. I kind of realised, like, ‘Okay, if I take this, then I can definitely have a career out of this.'”

Making a cross-country move during the middle of high school seems like a tall order to many people, but Clark is quick to make clear that it was only because of the CoE that she had the opportunity to unlock her full potential. 

“My first year helped me so much and we were doing heaps of gym work, working on our bodies and getting bigger and stronger,” Clark said.

“If I didn't go to the CoE, I don't think I'd be where I am today, definitely.”

Also instrumental in getting Jayda Clark to where she is was her impressive sporting pedigree.
 
Her grandfather is Australian Test cricketer Wayne Clark, and her father Michael is a former Fremantle Docker and WA cricketer, but the youngest Clark claims that her family has been nothing but supportive in helping her pursue her own athletic career, one which has a good chance of being the most impressive of the lot. 

“They've always been hard on me. Always say, keep working hard, like, it's not going to happen [on its own], you have to keep striving for things and working hard,” Clark said.

“I'm super grateful for them, and then obviously, having a sporting background definitely helps with a few decisions I make, and also definitely grateful for the advice they give me.”

Those decisions would lead Clark to one of the biggest sliding doors moments of her career, an Opals’ training camp ahead of the 2022 FIBA Women’s World Cup, that would not only see her test herself against the best our country has to offer but also cemented her decision to go pro with the Capitals. 

“They had a couple of people who were away, they were quite lower numbers. So three of us here got the chance. Well, we got a call up to come in and join and fill in, so, yeah, that was really cool,” Clark said.

“Definitely grateful for that opportunity, and I think just the whole experience and the sisterhood they have and learning about their culture and their trainings were definitely some of the most intense training [sessions] I've ever been a part of. 

“It was just honestly a great experience and I hope I can definitely experience it again and I think the WNBL will definitely complement that.”

If the pressure of her first WNBL contract wasn't enough, she also has the U19 Women’s World Cup to get through, hoping that she can replicate some of the excellent from she has displayed in the Australian jersey in years past.

“It's always an honour to represent your country and, yeah, I've done it before, and being able to go overseas and play against the best players in the world in my age group - it's definitely a great experience and hopefully we can do well with this tournament,” Clark said. 

“[Winning the Asia Cup] was a crazy, crazy experience. But, yeah, if I have that opportunity again, just deep breaths and I guess take it as it comes.”

At 17, with a WNBL rookie season and an U19 World Cup on the horizon, Jayda Clark truly has the basketball world at her fingertips. 

But Clark seems grounded in a way that many in her position would not be. Her potential is limitless, but according to her, she’s just working on improving, one day at a time. 

“Obviously, it might take me a little bit, but I'm pretty confident in my abilities and hopefully I can do well.”

Jed Wells

Jed Wells Photo

Jed is a writer and social media producer, who has a keen interest in the intersection of sports and popular culture, especially basketball.