Settling in for a mid-range jumper, Samantha Cooper sees the ball flowing effortlessly through the basketball netting.

It’s a shot the Sudbury native has made a million times over, from her high-school days on a local level (Lockerby Vikings), on to a memorable NCAA career with the Fairfield Stags, named to the school’s all-decade team just a few years ago, and closing things off with seven years of professional basketball experience overseas.

The image of that made basket – and countless others just like it – are seared in her mind.

Non-shooting settings, however, are far less clear in the sights of the ultra-friendly now 30 year-old woman – including wrapping her mind around the notion of stepping away, as an athlete, from a game that she dearly loves.

“When I was playing and people were retiring, I would ask them: how did you know it was time to retire?,” said Cooper, back at home in the nickel city as she pursues a PhD in Human Kinetics from Laurentian University and has also signed on as an assistant coach with the Voyageurs women’s basketball team.

“They would always say – you’re just going to know – but I would never know what that means,” Cooper continued. “This year, I think I understood.”

“I still love basketball, don’t get me wrong, but I started thinking about what was next. That was big for me. I have achieved so much in basketball and I think I am ready for the next part of my life.”

Short-term, Samantha Cooper has a plan. Exactly where that might lead long-term remains at least somewhat hazy as the 6’2” world traveller ponders her options for what the future might hold in store.

“Ten years from now? I really don’t know,” stated Cooper. “I want to see how I like academia, how that goes, because I could see myself in that path. But I also love to coach basketball. It’s a good situation because maybe one will pull me a little bit more in that direction.”

“I think that is why I am so happy that this has worked out, that I am doing my PhD and coaching basketball, all while I am at home.”

And all with the peace of mind that comes from knowing that there is so much to be proud of in the journey that took her to this point.

Physically, emotionally, there is an inner resilience, a trait that rose to the surface quickly as Cooper endured a pair of knee surgeries prior to even setting foot on a court with a Fairfield squad that she would eventually depart after recording more than a thousand points and earning countless conference honours.

“Bouncing back from that tough first year, I was really proud of myself – and then playing as long as I did,” said Cooper. “I think it kind of speaks to the (physical) routines I put myself through and how strict I was in maintaining those.”

“And just learning different ways to play basketball,” she added. “Even this season, we played a completely different tactic that I have never played. It was good for me to still adapt at my age to playing a completely different style.”

Known for her willingness to immerse herself in a variety of cultures, Cooper’s professional tour of duty included stops in Luxembourg, Sweden, Greece, France, Mexico, Hungary, Germany, most recently, Spain. The self-fulfillment of her (largely) European Adventure runs far deeper than simply checking several cool tourism venues off her bucket list.

“Moving up through different leagues, I am so proud of my progress, continually working my way up,” she said.

That said, the toughest adjustment comes with leaving friends behind, especially for one as personable as Samantha Cooper. “I didn’t expect that to be so tough,” she said. “I still talk to at least two teammates from every team I have played on over the years. I just never imagined moving abroad and making these types of connections, connections that made it so hard for me to move home.”

Yet in many ways, it is very much those interpersonal skills that L.U. head coach Jason Hurley and current staff members Brad Hann and Cory Bailey will look to most as they lean on their new peer for help in building a winning team.

“In speaking with Jason and what he wants, I think I can really empathize with the players because I was just there,” said Cooper. “I am going to work closely in player development, helping to make sure the athletes are on the right path. And I’m going to learn a lot from Jason and Brad and Cory about the X’s and O’s.”

That said, a lifetime on the court offers a wealth of exposure to basketball strategies that are all over the map. “When I was at Fairfield, we played a very slow style of basketball and didn’t really run transition,” said Cooper. “This past year in Spain, all we did was basically run transition.”

“It was very chaotic on defense.”

Through it all, Cooper never stops learning – a valuable approach indeed, especially in light of the direction she would like her PhD thesis to take. “I would like to do my research on athlete transitions, athletes kind of in my situation, moving out from professional sport and into retirement as an athlete.”

For as much as the final plan might not be cast in stone, the stepping stones are in place for this bright, articulate young woman.

“It helps so much to have a plan with Jason (head coach Jason Hurley) and Dr Schinke (Robert Schinke – Cooper’s academic advisor),” said the athlete turned coach who also excelled in competitive soccer and volleyball in her youth.

“I think that is why I feel so secure, because I know what I am doing next.”

Just the kind of security one might envision as a gifted basketball ball star releases her clutch shot, knowing it’s hitting nothing but net.