Capitals make a crucial call on coaching plans in bid for playoff return

The Capitals have re-signed Veal on a new one-year deal despite winning just six games in her two seasons at the helm, which has left the club with back-to-back wooden spoons.

University of Canberra director of sport Carrie Graf says Veal has been faced with "adversity after adversity" over the past two seasons with injury tolls and import exits making for a challenging introduction to coaching in the WNBL.

But Graf is confident - with "a roster that's bolstered a little bit more" - the Capitals can turn the corner and catapult their way back up the ladder.

"It's been a competitive season. The wins and losses don't show it for the Caps. I say to coaches when coaches say 'we only lost five games by four points or less'. My answer is 'but you lost'," Graf said.

"It's finding ways to convert those close losses to wins. That's what winning teams know how to do and that's part of the growth of the program, to go from four wins to 10 or 11 wins which gets you into that top four. That's part of what this group will do next year with Vealy leading it.

"In performance sports you have some massive highs, and you might maintain that plateau. Then you have other times where you bottom out a little bit.

"This is a little dip for the Caps program, and we've seen it before. The Caps bottomed out and catapulted back into some championships.

"We can turn things around pretty quickly, and there are a lot of good things coming from the program over the next few years. We're confident Vealy is a part of that piece going forward and can really make an impact with next year's team."

Veal's new deal comes as the Capitals prepare to end their season with a home game against the Melbourne Boomers at the National Convention Centre on Saturday.

The Capitals have managed just six wins throughout the past two seasons but the club is anticipating a sold-out crowd in what could be a National Convention Centre farewell amid plans to move to the AIS Arena.

Capitals co-captain Jade Melbourne - an Opals guard in the hunt for the WNBL's most valuable player award - is already locked in for the 2024-25 season.

Veal will open talks with players soon after Saturday's season finale while the club is preparing to hit the open market in search of more talent to build a squad around.

The blueprint is there - the Capitals spent seven seasons out of the finals before landing the signature of Kelsey Griffin ahead of the 2018-19 campaign, and back-to-back championships followed under Paul Goriss.

"For me, I think if we find two really strong key pieces, it's going to elevate the program and the playing group exponentially next year," Veal said.

"You add a couple of experienced players or a certain type of player and it's just really going to highlight what we've been doing. I don't think it's a far stretch from where we are to getting into the finals.

"It's really about how we add pieces to what we've got and essentially grow the garden that's already kind of blooming.

"These guys are go-getters and they're super aware of what's going on and where their next step is. They're already thinking about it.

"Players want to know who they're playing for, so then we'll start that conversation with the playing group over the next few weeks before they head off. The ones that are still here in Canberra, we'll have those conversations a little bit later."