Representing Mandurah remains the focus for legendary Milo

She won't say this herself but Casey Mihovilovich already holds legend status in West Australian basketball but she does know she has nothing to prove and her playing another NBL1 West season with Mandurah Magic is all about the bigger picture.

Mihovilovich has had a remarkable career with the Magic ever since starting as a 14-year-old back in 1996.

She has lifted her team to six Grand Final appearances along the way, she has won an MVP and now has that award named after her, and with 553 games behind her she holds the league record.

She comes into the 2024 season with the Magic with nothing to prove on a personal front, but with the passion as strong as ever to help her club set the example of being a community minded organisation offering opportunities to the young basketballers in Mandurah.

Decision to play on in 2024

Mihovilovich knows coming into any new season that it could be her last and because of that, there is the possibility that 2024 will be the last time we see her in Magic colours.

However, by the end of 2023 she wasn’t getting that feeling that she was done so it was always her intention to return in 2024 not only to continue to chase that first championship, but to continue to help the Magic provide that pathway for all young basketballers in Mandurah.

She might have only officially been confirmed to return a week out from the season once she signed her contract for 2024. But once coach Vlad Alava said he wanted her back, she was always going to play on and now her focus is on once again helping the Magic remain as competitive as possible.

"I never was thinking about quitting yet at the end of last season and I just went down to trainings in pre-season, and then naturally just thought I needed to sign a contract before the season started," Mihovilovich said.

"I always told Vlad that if my body was feeling OK and I was fit and healthy then I could play if he wants me to.

"The honest truth is I look forward to the day Vlad says he doesn’t need me anymore and I would be so proud of having that conversation that I'd happily sit back in the crowd with Ben and my boys and watch the girls play and cheer for them – and the boys team as well.

"But for this season at least, Vlad wanted me back and now we're a week out from the season and I'm playing. I'm only doing it to help the team at this point and I've got nothing to prove.

"I do enjoy playing still and I love the girls, and I'm there if they need me and at the moment, they seem to still need me so I'm playing."

Taking pride in how Mandurah does things

While Mihovilovich is perhaps the greatest competitor the SBL/NBL1 West competition has seen and she loves playing, what trumps that is the connection that the Magic has with the entire Mandurah community.

She is in a unique position now too as the chief executive of the City of Mandurah so being a community minded club is something she takes great pride in.

"At Mandurah we take a huge amount of pride in ensuring there is a pathway for our locals and I can probably safely say I'm a bit disappointed with the way things are going at a number of clubs where there is no pathway for a lot of locals because of how much they are stacking up," Mihovilovich said.

"So that does make me disappointed with some of the clubs but at the same time, in our bubble at Mandurah winning a championship won't be the only thing that defines success with what we're coming up against.

"For us success is all about the future and it's not a short-term focus for us, it's about the long-term and people will keep being given an opportunity and whether they take it or not, is up to them."

The number six is something Mihovilovich can't escape when it comes to the Grand Finals she has lost with the Magic, but for her it's all about much more than just winning that elusive maiden championship.

That doesn’t mean that winning a championship wouldn’t be an incredible experience and accomplishment, but Mihovilovich has her vision on the bigger picture of what the Magic can do for the community as a whole, and providing a pathway for every young basketballer in Mandurah.

"When you look at the people who come and watch NBL1, they are coming to watch the locals because they are invested in our community," she said.

"They are working and living in it, and we're all volunteers so I think everyone is just so proud and it's like an extended family at Mandurah Basketball because we invest in our locals, they give so much back to the community and it's not about getting paid to play basketball at all.

"Everyone just does it because they have bought in and they understand that the club has provided them with a pathway and they want to give back. I'm very proud that we and the board are really driven by the fact that the local pathway is something that's really important for long-term success."

Taking inspiration from Lauren Jackson

This comparison will make Mihovilovich uncomfortable and she'll quickly shoot it down, but what she continues to do for Mandurah basketball and in the NBL1 West competition stacks up favourably with what Lauren Jackson continues to do in the NBL1 East, WNBL and for the Australian Opals.

At 42 years of age, Jackson has just helped the Southside Flyers to a WNBL championship to make it six in her career on top of what she's done in the WNBA and on the international stage.

Even someone like Mihovilovich with everything she has done as the NBL1 West games record holder, a former league MVP and having that award now named after her can't help but look on in admiration of Jackson and to be thankful to her for being the role model that she is.

"It's absolutely amazing what she is still doing. She's a mum and had to deliver two kids and I personally know how hard it is after popping out two kids, and she has been phenomenal," Mihovilovich said.

"She's a true professional in every way and I'm sure that it is not easy for her to get up every day and get her body into training and into game mode.

"She's playing at such a high level and playing so well that I hope she continues to play, but I totally understand that she has to look after her body too and we all get to a point where you ask yourself if it might be enough and playing might start to hinder your future in terms of doing justice to your own family, work and all of that.

"I'm sure she will be asking a lot of those questions that I ask myself, but she is just phenomenal and has been an amazing role model for basketball in Australia and boys as well I'm sure," she added.

"She would have to be the most well-known Australian basketballer and she continues to promote the game in a positive way, and having those positive role models like Lauren really does drive many kids to want to aspire to play basketball and live a healthy life.

"That's really something that we can all thank her for and seeing the number of kids and participation rate for basketball continues to increase which is a huge credit to her, and everyone else who is being a positive role model in basketball."

In good shape ahead of season starting

The season now starts for Mihovilovich and the Magic this coming Thursday night up against the defending champion Cockburn Cougars at Wally Hagan Stadium.

While the Magic are still awaiting some troops to arrive to get to full strength to start the 2024 NBL1 West season, Mihovilovich is feeling good physically coming into another season and she hopes it stays that way.

"I'm always feeling good at the start of the season, ask me again in three weeks' time and I might give you a different answer, but it is next level once you start playing games," Mihovilovich said.

"I take it pretty easy in the pre-season and I really do look after my body the best I can and don't push myself too hard, and try to ease my way into a season.

"So at the moment I'm feeling pretty good and the battle is trying to stay healthy once the games start and those double-headers certainly don't help either.

"I think we have one in the second week so that will be interesting, but I do my best to look after my body and I eat well, and do everything possible to make sure that I'm fit and ready to go. Hopefully that will continue and I can be injury free for the season ahead."

Thoughts heading into season-opener

Mihovilovich has full faith in the Magic being around the mark once again when they get everyone up and running in 2024, but right now they will be without key trio Sam Roscoe, Nicole Fransson and McKenna Dale for the season-opener.

However, there's that strong core at Mandurah led by her but alongside Rachel Halleen, Kelly Bailey and Rachel Pettit with Bree and Emma Klasztorny both returning, and then an exciting group of younger players who will receive plenty of early opportunities.

"My body's feeling alright at this time of year, which is good, but whether I'm physically ready or if the team is physically ready or not we'll soon find out," Mihovilovich said.

"The answer is probably not to be totally honest and we've got three paid players not here yet. That will make the first couple of weeks a bit of a challenge, but it also gives our locals an opportunity to really step up and show that they can play, and deserve to have court time."