Crosscourt: NBL news and likes and dislikes out of Round 5 of the 2024-25 season, including the clubs keen on out-of-contract Perth great Bryce Cotton
Crosscourt can reveal at least three NBL clubs are open to making a play for out-of-contract superstar Bryce Cotton but there’s a real prospect he could be lost to Perth — and the league.
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Melbourne United, Brisbane and Sydney are among NBL teams which are weighing up a free agency play for out-of-contract superstar Bryce Cotton amid growing confidence he could be lured out of Perth.
It’s understood the injured four-time NBL MVP holds private frustrations at the Wildcats and Crosscourt can reveal his agency, at this year’s NBA Summer League, had gauged the interest of NBL clubs in the 32-year-old scoring machine.
Sources told Crosscourt Brisbane’s brains trust has held internal discussions around making a big play to lure Cotton to the Sunshine State next season. Hard-nosed Bullets’ guard Mitch Norton is a championship teammate and a respected friend.
Sources said both Melbourne United and Sydney will seriously consider the prospect of attempting to bring in the two-time NBL grand final MVP in free agency. United assistant Jacob Chance began his NBL coaching career in 2015 in Perth, first as a video co-ordinator, and was an assistant on the Wildcats’ 2020 title team. It’s understood he maintains a relationship with Cotton.
Adelaide would consider Cotton but are an unlikely player, given the 36ers’ investment in star guard Dejan Vasiljevic as the figurehead of their guard core.
There is no shortage of local interest in prying Cotton out of Perth but there is a genuine and very real fear the lure of a big-money deal in Asia will mean any of those attempts are trumped and he is lost to the Australian league.
It leaves the 182cm guard with a big decision.
Closer to the end than the beginning of his basketball career, a stint in Asia, where salaries dwarf the NBL, would ensure he maximises his earnings as his career enters its twilight.
Conversely, Cotton is already an all-time NBL great but, if legacy is a motivating factor, he could seek to stay in Australia and chase Andrew Gaze’s seven MVPs or CJ Bruton’s six NBL titles as a player in a bid to stamp himself as the league’s greatest.
Cotton is extremely close to legendary five-time Wildcats NBL championship coach Trevor Gleeson, who leads marquee Japanese B.League club Chiba Jets.
Gleeson, when contacted by Code Sports Sunday, would not be drawn on his perceived interest, but said he expects the Wildcats’ star to be in high demand if he hits the open market.
“Remember he (Cotton) dropped 33 points against Denver’s full team. He is an NBA talent, different timing and he would be in the NBA,” Gleeson said.
“He is a world-class player who could play anywhere in the world he wishes.”
Former Wildcats teammates like Nick Kay and Angus Brandt speak glowingly of the Japan experience.
Cotton, in past years, has been quick to shut down talk of a move. But, while he recently said he would settle in Perth, post basketball, he has left the door open for a move to another club or overseas.
“I’m just focusing on the season and I’ll worry about all that other stuff once the season is done,” Cotton told Ten Perth, confirming he would wait until the end of the season to weigh up his next move.
“Of course, I love Perth and, at the end of the day, this is home.
“No matter what, I’ll always be in Perth, even when I’m done playing basketball, so that is the most important thing.”
Asked about the interest from other NBL clubs: “Yeah, I would like to think so, just because that means I’m still playing pretty good basketball.”
The Cotton story is intriguing. Just two years ago, it seemed unfathomable the Arizona-born guard would ever leave the Wildcats, who he joined in 2017. Every year, he’s bombarded with multiple offers but has taken less money (still understood to be $8-900,000 per season) to remain loyal to the club and a city where he’s become king. He’s led the Wildcats to three NBL championships and it’s where he and wife Rachel met, made their home and raised their daughter.
But cracks began to appear last season when Rachel took to social media to air Cotton’s frustrations with coach John Rillie.
“When there’s no system within the team, and the players don’t have clear roles, not one player has been reliable at the job they are meant to do, it’s pretty hard to thrive when you’re the most heavily scouted player in the team,” Rachel wrote on social media.
Multiple sources told Crosscourt Cotton and Rillie have a strictly working relationship and that early fracture has never been fully closed.
The Wildcats recently extended Rillie until the end of the 2027-28 season.
Notoriously private, Cotton has given more of his time to media in recent years but never airs criticism publicly.
Rachel remains correct in that Cotton is the most heavily scouted player, not just on the team, but likely the league, with many opponent employing a ‘box-and-one’ defensive scheme, which means a defender never leaves his side, essentially resulting in a four-on-four game.
The Wildcats have had no answers — especially against marquee teams Sydney (20 points, but just four made shots) and Melbourne United (Defensive Player of the Year Shea Ili and Co held him to 5 points in one of his worst games) — unable to find offensive schemes to make Cotton more effective against the suffocating ball denial, or significant advantages among the rest of the playing group.
While frustrated, Cotton has remained committed to giving his best for the Wildcats, although a rib injury looks set to keep him out of action for at least a couple of weeks.
The Wildcats slipped to 2-4 and third last after Saturday night’s loss to New Zealand, where Cotton was taken to hospital after leaving the game in the first quarter with a rib injury.
Cotton’s been in thre wars recently, copping blows to the midriff against Tasmania last Saturday and Cairns on Thursday night.
While the contact against New Zealand appeared innocuous, it left the star guard hospitalised. Post-game, Rillie denied Cotton went into the game with an injury.
Crosscourt contacted the Wildcats and Cotton’s agency, Pensack Sports, for comment on this story. A Wildcats official said it was club policy not to comment on player contracts or negotiations.
LIKES
FORMER NBA NO.1 PICK’S INTEREST IN NBL
Anthony Bennett has watched on from afar as Montrezl Harrell exploded on the NBL scene — and he wants in.
Crosscourt can reveal the Canadian former NBA No.1 draft pick, 31, had a fleeting interest in joining Adelaide before the 36ers ultimately settled on Harrell.
It’s understood Harrell’s success in Adelaide — and very real prospect of franking that into an NBA return — has Bennett keen to find an NBL club in a bid to relaunch his career.
The Australian league also has the advantage of being a short season - late September to March - opening the door for players to complete a full campaign before potentially being picked up by an NBA playoff contender.
Bennett, of course, has been dogged with the label of one of the worst No.1 picks ever, which might be ever-so-slightly unfair, given the 2013 draft has been proven incredibly weak, outside of Giannis Antetokounmpo — who nearly half the league passed on at No.15 — and Rudy Gobert (No.27) as the main luminaries.
The former Cleveland Cavalier hasn’t played pro ball since December 2023, where he was filling it up in Taiwan averaging 17 points and 10 rebounds for Kaohsiung Steelers.
He’s played in Israel, Puerto Rico, South Korea and Turkey.
It’s not clear what shape Bennett is in but one NBL source told Crosscourt, if healthy, the 203cm power forward could be a “difference maker” in the league.
HARVEY ON TRACK FOR CAREER-BEST SEASON
Star Illawarra guard Tyler Harvey is one of the NBL’s finest sharpshooters, but inconsistency and poor shot selection has always been the big knock on him.
In NBL25, the 31-year-old looks locked in and is consistently producing for the table-topping Hawks.
The American-born import is shooting a career-high 51.2 per cent from the field in his six games this season.
Harvey has been perfect from the free-throw line, averaging 17.8 points per game on a near-45 per cent clip from deep.
The elite numbers have come from a recognition his team is packed with offensive weaponry and it’s no-longer ‘Harvey or bust’ when the Hawks need a bucket.
He continued his standout form in the big away win over Cairns on Saturday night, dropping a game-high 20 points as his team continues to look every bit the championship contender in NBL25.
DISLIKES
JACK MCVEIGH ISN’T WALKING THROUGH THAT DOOR
Grand Final hero Jack McVeigh looks like he’s locked into the NBA for at least a season, so how do the JackJumpers fix their scoring struggles?
We’ve questioned Tasmania and they’ve always proved the doubters wrong, but their lack of ability to put the ball in the bucket in NBL25 is a genuine concern — not lost on coach Scott Roth.
The JackJumpers put 45 points on the board in the first half against Sydney on Friday before going stone cold in the second with just 8 in the third for a total of 26 after halftime, conceding a 12-point lead.
The JackJumpers are the only team averaging fewer than 80 points a game in NBL25 at just 78.2.
Roth said the the absence of key guard Sean Macdonald (ankle injury) hasn’t helped but the JackJumpers’ hopes of a McVeigh return look decidedly slimmer after he survived the cut in Houston and looks to have locked down one of the Rockets’ two remaining two-way roster spots.
“We haven’t had consistency with that across the board, but without Seany on the floor and with McVeigh not back here, that’s 20 something points that’s missing,” Roth said.
Regardless, they must find a way to score more points to once again silence the doubters in NBL25.
The JackJumpers’ famed culture makes them resistant to in-season roster change but the McVeigh news might force their hand if they really want a chance to go back-to-back
CHARGING FOR TACKO NO BUENO IN NZ
Billed as a big signing for the Breakers ahead of their NBLxNBA games, 229cm former NBA giant Tacko Fall never set foot on a court during the tour.
1 x extra leg room ticket to Auckland please!
— BNZ Breakers (@NZBreakers) October 15, 2024
Tacko Fall will travel to New Zealand this Saturday to join the team as a practice player and continue his rehab 💪#UNBREAKABLEpic.twitter.com/RDUM1WdY7T
A quad injury forced him out but he liked the Breakers that much he decided to head to NZ for recovery and to practice with the team.
Given the 28-year-old’s inability to play, the Breakers tried to capitalise on the former Boston Celtics arrival by charging fans to attend a meet and greet prior to Saturday night’s win over Perth.
The club offered up a Q&A session and photograph with the Senegalese giant at $25 for members and $30 for non-members.
It didn’t go down well across the ditch.
Fans called the move “a new low” and former Melbourne Boomers WNBL GM and Sky Sports NZ executive Justin Nelson slammed the initiative.
“Sorry … have to be blunt here – this is a poor look – fans should NOT be charged extra $$$ to meet a player you are billing as one of your own. You have dressed & promoted Tacko Fall as a Breakers player the last few weeks – have him meet EVERY fan at no cost,” Nelson wrote on Twitter.
After all that, the meet and greet was cancelled due to unforeseen travel delays.
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