Jade Melbourne has become accustomed to a whirlwind.
It began amidst the 2020 pandemic when, as a teenager, she was plucked by the UC Capitals, from the Centre of Excellence, to play in the condensed WNBL season in North Queensland.
The following year, she’d debut for the Opals, and win a bronze medal, at the FIBA Asia Cup in Jordan. 12 months later, she’d be drafted to the WNBA.
In 2024, she was preparing for her second season with Seattle when she was traded to Washington Mystics at the 11th hour.
At the ripe old age of 22, Melbourne, is an Olympic medallist, WNBL captain and star and third-year WNBA player.
She takes it all in her stride.
“My whole basketball career has moved very, very quickly and it’s been one thing after another which has been really cool,” Melbourne explains.
“For me, obviously there’s expectations that come with the teams and situations and the opportunities I’ve been getting because not many people have the kind of spotlight I do so everyone’s a critic but I try to stay true to who I am and it comes back to why I started playing in the first place and that’s because I love the game, I enjoy it and I have fun.
“When I’m in situations where I start to feel the pressure or there’s an expectation to perform, I come back to what’s got me to that position and that’s that I love the game.
“After a turnover I might smile instead of smacking my hands because I can only fix things. The pressures don’t really bother me because my love of the game is so strong.”
Getting back to basics also helps ground Melbourne.
“At the end of the day I always remember, the game hasn’t changed since the first time I picked up a basketball.
“The rules are still the same, the court’s still the same size so as the levels get higher you still remember the game is still the same and that’s how I’ve always liked to play.
“When you don’t let the expectations and pressure get the better of you, I think just getting back to enjoying the game, remembering why you started and why you have fun is the most important thing for me.
“There are definitely times I do feel the pressure. I’ve taken on that role at Canberra of being the franchise player and there’s pressures that come with that, starting point guard for the Opals there’s pressures that come with that and being an Australian in the WNBA you always want to do your best.
“For me, my best is when I’m having fun and that’s what I stay true to.”
Melbourne plays like she lives her everyday life, with a smile on her dial, and it’s always been that way.
“From as young as I can remember I loved hanging out with my friends, was always doing some sort of sport and was always competitive,” she says.
“I think it’s the way I was brought up, shout out to Mum because she always taught the three of us (Jade and sisters Sophie and Ava) to be glass half full kind of people. We’ve always looked at the positives in life.
“I’ve always had a pretty positive outlook on life, liked to have a lot of fun and always looking for the fun in things.”
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