'In my DNA': Resilience takes Flyer's career to new heights

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Nya Lok’s journey to becoming a key piece on a WNBL team bound for the postseason is an inspiring story of perseverance, hard work and making the most of opportunities that have come her way.

Born in a refugee camp in Ethiopia, Lok and her family came to Australia in 2005 and after growing up playing soccer and competing in track, she stumbled upon basketball as a young teenager.

After "clanking layups" at first, her drive and determination to improve led her to continue working tirelessly on her game and in doing so, she found basketball also helped her create new connections in her community.

“I didn't necessarily know about basketball until one day at recess when I was in high school and I was asked if I could fill in for a team,” Lok told basketball.com.au.

“I used to clank layups, I just had no control at all, I would catch the ball but then I would completely miss the layup.

“But I guess they could see something in me, they were like, ‘hey, you're pretty good, we're willing to work with you’, so then I went to training every Wednesday.

“Most people from migrant backgrounds, their parents are trying to figure out the lay of the land, so all those extra-curricular activities I could do outside of school, I felt like it was helping my parents, but then it also helped me create friendships and understand Australia from a different perspective.”

There’s no doubt the Southside Melbourne Flyers star's upbringing and work ethic has been key to her success on the basketball court. Being born in a refugee camp is how her story began but she doesn’t want sympathy, she wants people to realise resilience is built into her DNA.

“When I used to say I was born in a refugee camp, I thought people would feel sorry or feel sympathy for me, but now I want to say it more so as a story of empowerment,” she said.

“I want it to be about, ‘sure we had nothing, but I built myself to be something’, and so many migrants have the same story or background.

“A lot of us are really resilient, it's in our DNA; our parents had to fight so much from war to stay alive and give us what we have right now, so that's what makes us dangerous because we're willing to do whatever it takes to achieve what we set our sights on.”

Her efforts off the court were also recognised at the WNBL MVP Awards night, taking home the WNBL26 Community Award.

In 2021, Lok had the privilege of representing South Sudan at the FIBA Women's Afrobasket Qualifiers in Rwanda and it was a moment in time she will never forget.

“It was really cool and it was a great experience being on the world stage,” she said.

“It was awesome to see a bunch of South Sudanese girls being in one room and playing together, because before that it sometimes felt like I was the only South Sudanese girl playing, but there were so many of us.

“Playing for the South Sudanese national team allowed us to come together and realise, ‘okay, I'm not the only one in this position, there's so many different players in this position’, and we've stayed connected since.

What Lok has accomplished in her second season of WNBL has been extraordinary.

Heading into the 2025-26 season, she didn’t have a contract, instead she had to fight and claw her way onto the Southside Melbourne roster as a train-on player in preseason.

After earning her way onto the main roster, the hard-nosed and defensive-minded guard has become the energiser bunny the Flyers had been desperately searching for in the second half of the season.

“I just took the opportunity as it came,” she said.

“I tried not to overthink it and for me it was about just showing up, training hard, and if it's going to work out, it's going to work out.”

So often when Lok checks into the game, good things happen for Southside Melbourne, whether that’s through her being disruptive on the defensive end, getting out in transition or hitting triples. Her relentless attack on both ends of the court is game-changing.

She has grown into her role with the Flyers, be that as a starter as she has been for much of the second half of the season or coming off the bench, and she says that infectious energy she brings to the court is a product of growing up in a big family.

“There’s 10 of us in my family, so it was a loud house, it was intense, and that’s a part of my personality,” she said.

“I'm loud, I'm out there, and so when I bring that, it allows everyone else to get out of their shell, and I feel that I've found myself in that role where I am the energy player.”

After her rookie professional season with the Townsville Fire, where she learnt what it truly meant to be a professional, Lok worked on the mental side of her game more than ever and that growth has helped her flourish in year two.

“I feel like I'm only starting to learn now to appreciate my accomplishments or acknowledge when I’m doing well because I'm such a perfectionist,” she said.

“I’m always looking at what's the next thing to improve or what the weaknesses of my game are, but I've learned now that I need to start looking at my strengths as well, not always focus on the weaknesses. That has come with maturity and growth.

“In my first year, there were so many things I was learning on the court, and I also learned a lot about how to take care of myself mentally. That first year was more about me learning how to be a pro as much as anything.”

Before turning pro, she spent five years in the US college system. First, she fine-tuned her game at the JuCo level at Midland College for two years, before making the jump to division one at George Washington, where in her final year she became a valuable starter and played almost 30 minutes per game.

“I needed [those two years in JuCo],” she said.

“Initially, I wanted to go straight to division one but those two years really set me up. It taught me how the American system works, how basketball has to work around classes and about training every day.

“Then being at George Washington was awesome. I love D.C., it’s such a beautiful place and there were so many different cultures there. The government is obviously there too, and I would say I'm a humanitarian at heart - there's so many things that I want to do for my country and my people - so I feel like being in DC was literally the centre and the heart of all of that.

“I was part of a lot of organisations and did internships, so I was able to do more than just play basketball and I had teachers that worked in the White House. It was amazing knowing that my teacher just came from serving the president and now she's here teaching me about urban planning.”

As Lok continues her journey, on the basketball court and off, there’s no doubt her energy for life and drive for improvement is going to keep taking her places, and WNBL fans will be seeing her change games for years to come.

About the Author

Hayley Wildes is passionate about all things Australian women’s basketball and loves to highlight the stories of players from all levels and competitions across the globe. From our own backyard in the WNBL, to the WNBA and the Opals, and everything in between, Hayley has you covered.