Wooden spoon turnaround: Sydney Flames set the bar high

The revamped Sydney Flames have declared they will accept nothing short of a top-four finish after collecting the WNBL wooden spoon last season.

The Flames managed just six wins from 23 games in a 2025-26 campaign that saw interim coach Guy Molloy resign midway through a season plagued with injuries and disappointment.

However, a recruitment drive has brought in fresh talent set to turn heads when the new season tips off next month.

Expectations come with the new arrivals Shuyu Yang - captain of China's national team - and Opals Ally Wilson and Isabelle Bourne, along with Jaz Shelley, Maya Dodson and Darcy Rees.

"There's an expectation when you recruit people that you have a really slick professional environment," Flames co-owner and three-time NBA champion Luc Longley said on Wednesday.

The ex-teammate of Michael Jordan said there would be "no excuses" for the Flames finishing outside the top four.

"There's no reason why we shouldn't do that. In fact, you should have a word to us if we drop out of the top four."

A successful Sydney team isn't foreign to the incoming Wilson, who played for the Flames in their 2017 championship.

Her new two-year deal follows a pivotal performance in the final of the Opals' gold medal-winning Asia Cup run in 2025 and a dazzling domestic campaign with the Perth Lynx as the All-WNBL First Team player helped them to the grand final last season.

Wilson's return also comes on the back of a short-lived WNBA contract with the Washington Mystics, and appearances in Australia's FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup campaign earlier this month.

When Wilson fronted the media with Longley on Wednesday, she spoke about the importance of culture and said it was the driving force behind any successful team.

"I think the basketball will take care of itself as long as we support each other," Wilson said, two days after landing in Sydney.

"Having a big focus on culture and relationships within the organisation from the top down is super important.

"It just makes you gel better on the court when you feel like you're connected to something bigger than yourself."