9 November 2006
Jake Lloyd
When Kristen Veal is on the court, she is “second to none” in her ability to create good scoring chances for her teammates.
That’s what G.E.T. Sydney Flames coach Karen Dalton said about her guard, who is in her second season with the Flames. And you’d be hard-pressed to find someone in the WNBL who’d disagree with Dalton.
Unfortunately for the Flames, Veal missed most of last season with a knee injury, which has plagued her each of the past five years. She returned to lead the Flames to wins in their final five games, but it wasn’t enough to push them into the playoffs.
Veal’s impact on the court was obvious: the team won with her active. She didn’t post gaudy numbers, averaging 7.4 points, 4.2 rebounds and three assists a game, but her assist-to-turnover ratio of 2 ½-1 was excellent, and floor presence is not something you’ll stumble upon in a box score.
“I think it’s pretty important [that she stay healthy],” Dalton said. “We struggled badly last year because both our point guards, Alicia Poto and Kristen, were out. Once she came back to the team, we won all [five games]. I think that speaks for itself.”
Through six games this season, Veal leads the WNBL in assists, averaging five per game for the Flames, who are 4-2 heading into a matchup with undefeated Canberra this Friday at the Sydney University Aquatic Center.
Veal has been one of the WNBL’s top passers for a decade now. She entered the league as a member of the AIS in 1997, and by her second year with the institute she led the league in assists. She has since added three more assist titles and she had a career average of 4.6 dishes per game entering this season.
But the statistical category that stands out above the rest for Veal is championships. She’s won four WNBL titles in nine seasons – one with the AIS and three with Canberra, where she played from 1999 through 2004.
Her teammates feed from her relaxed and confident demeanor on the court, which comes from all her experience in big games.
“She knows how it feels [to win a championship], and she’s trying to motivate us and she’s always very positive on the court,” Flames forward/guard Michelle Musselwhite said. “She’s a good leader.”
Veal does what it takes to win games, whether it’s feeding her teammates or asserting herself offensively. Her career scoring average entering the season was 10.3 points a game, but through three games she was averaging less than eight points.
“Personally, I would like to see her take a few more shots,” Dalton said after Sydney Uni’s 70-67 loss to Dandenong two weeks ago. “I think she can score as well as create for other people.”
It’s safe to say Veal got her coach’s message. In the three games since, she has averaged 13 points, while still dishing out more than five assists a game.
Veal is perfectly happy to shoot or pass (although she’ll always take more pride in delivering a great pass that sets up a teammate than making a 3-pointer). She just wants to win that fifth title, which she realizes will not be easy to accomplish despite the talent the Flames boast.
“You can appreciate them [the championships] more as you realize how hard they actually are to come by,” Veal said. “I think I got lucky with the teams I was on. We happened to have a lot of talent.”
Veal grew up watching tapes of Los Angeles Lakers’ great Magic Johnson, one of basketball’s greatest passers of all time. And Veal’s game, the way she effortlessly pushes the ball up the floor and makes the difficult dish seem simple, is reminiscent of Johnson’s.
Musselwhite said there are times when the passes Veal makes, through traffic on the fastbreak or even in the half court, amaze her.
“It’s like, ‘Man, I wish I could pass like that,’ ” Musselwhite said.
Veal simply said: “I think it’s something that comes a little bit naturally.”
Which is why it was so surprising when Veal threw away an inbounds pass in the final seconds against Townsville last Friday, costing the Flames the game.
But Veal, as she has demonstrated by bouncing back from annual knee surgery, is not letting the hard loss affect her as the Flames prepare for undefeated Canberra this Friday.
“When you lose a game so obnoxiously it’s easier to bounce back because you know it can’t get worse than that,” she said.
Veal spent three years playing in American leagues – in the WNBA in 2001 and 2002 and in the NWBL (the WNBA’s feeder league) in 2005. While Veal said she wishes she was a little more mature for her WNBA experience, she reveled in playing against some of the world’s most athletic players.
“I probably was not as mentally strong as I would have liked to have been, but I had a ball and did some good things,” Veal said. “All in all it was a fabulous experience.”
Veal, 25, won’t rule out one day returning to America to play against close friends Lauren Jackson and Sue Bird, but for now she’s content in Sydney, playing for the Flames and studying at the Australian College of Physical Education to become a teacher.
“I’m pretty happy doing what I’m doing now, basically putting steps together to get an education,” Veal said.
And educating young point guards in the stands with her passes, just like Magic taught her back in the day.