Her father is former rugby league player Peter Shiels, who played for Penrith, Wests, Western Reds and the Newcastle Knights before rounding out a 167-elite match career in the United Kingdom with St Helens.

And while the Charlestown 15-year-old says her parents have always "let me do me", she credits older brother Noah, 17, with helping develop a competitive edge that has made Shiels one of the country's most talented junior basketballers.

Height is also an advantage. The teenager already stands at six feet, a couple of inches below Noah and around five inches short of her father, who was unusually tall for a rugby league player.

"We're a really competitive family but I've never been pushed into anything; they just let me do me," Shiels said. "My brother and I have grown up playing and I used to love versing him in the backyard. He's really pushed me to become a better player."

Shiels has been identified as a rising star of Australia's future as one of four players offered an athlete scholarship in Basketball Australia's Centre of Excellence women's program, which was formerly known as the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) program.

The Hunter Sports High year nine student will relocate to Canberra next year to take up the scholarship and plans to glean as much as she can from the "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity".

"I'm super excited," Shiels told the Newcastle Herald. "It's something I've been working towards.

"My focus is to always be improving my game and become a better player, better person. I would love to one day play for the Opals or represent my country at any stage. That's always been a goal of mine."

A number of Centre of Excellence graduates have used the scholarship to launch careers in the WNBL, college leagues and Australian teams.

Shiels started playing basketball when she was around six. She has been in Newcastle's representative program since nine years of age and was picked in the NSW under-16 side this year for the national championships, which were cancelled due to COVID.

Darren Duff, who coached Shiels in Newcastle's under-16 team for the past two seasons, believes the teenager has the natural talent to take her to the next level.

"She has very advanced skillset for a 15-year-old and the game just comes to her fairly easily," Duff said.

"She has a really great feel for the game. I've coached a few kids who have gone to the institute [AIS] before but nothing like her.

"She could make junior Australian programs - I see no reason why she couldn't be in contention for those teams. She's extremely competitive and has always had that edge."

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