Canberra Capitals sign point-guard Tahlia Tupaea for 2020-21 WNBL season

Tupaea will be unveiled as the Capital's newest recruit on Thursday morning, with the 23-year-old's arrival to offset the departure of Olivia Epoupa.

She brings eight years of WNBL and grand-final experience, having become the second youngest debutant when she signed with the Sydney Flames in 2012.

But having suffered numerous concussions and two broken feet over the past three years, the Sydneysider thought it was time for a fresh start.

So when the Capitals approached her during the free-agency period with a roster complete with Marianna Tolo and Kelsey Griffin, the decision to reignite her career in Canberra was easy.

"I had a few niggling injurying when I played for my former club, so I thought it was time for another pathway in my journey and Canberra was a really good fit for me," Tupaea said.

"I'm not trying to come in to change anything, just playing the role that I can. With a group like them winning two championships, there's no doubt they can get a third.

"So it's good they've got that core group, I can just fit in and play my role.

"I just want to learn as much as I can from everyone in the team, especially from Tolo and Griffin."

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Tupaea was selected by the Minnesota Lynx with the 36^th overall pick in the 2017 WNBA draft and represented the Australian Gems for three years.

The WNBL season's delay gives her the perfect platform to relaunch her bid for Olympic's selection, with only a few months between the competitions.

The absence of grand final MVP Epoupa could give Tupaea a chance to shine at point-guard, but she'll have to jostle with Maddison Rocci for the starting position.

"[Epoupa] only played in Australia for one season, did a heck of a job and it paid off," Tupaea said.

"There's massive shoes to fill coming in but I'm just going to take it one step at a time."

Tupaea is the eighth player to join the Capitals' bid for a historic WNBL three-peat, joining Tolo, Griffin, Rocci, Keely Froling, Abby Cubillo, Alex Delaney and Gemma Potter.

She moved to Victorian club Frankston Basketball for the NBL1 season, but the coroanvirus-forced shutdown put those plans on hold.

While Tupaea has been left searching for basketball action, the season's suspension has given her time to focus on recovery.

"I've been able to take a step back from the court and get my body healthy," Tupaea said.

"I'll be moving to Canberra around October, so until then it'll just be focusing on ball handling and things you can control.

"I've got plenty of basketballs, some cones and things like that, so I'll try and get my skills developed even more. I'm fortunate enough to have some gym equipment at my house, so I'll be using that to get my strength back."

Canberra coach Paul Goriss will now look to complete his roster with only a few positions remaining.

Canberra Capitals 2020-21 squad: Marianna Tolo, Kelsey Griffin, Maddison Rocci, Keely Froling, Abby Cubillo, Alex Delaney, Gemma Potter and Tahlia Tupaea