NBA 10-day to NBL power play: The bond that brought Bryce to Adelaide

15 games in Utah were enough to spark the connection that brought Bryce Cotton to Adelaide.

Not many know that 36ers coach Mike Wells was an assistant at the Utah Jazz back in 2015, right when a 22-year-old Bryce Cotton signed a 10-day contract.

Cotton impressed, earned a second 10-day, and within weeks, a multi-year deal. But in typical NBA fashion, he was waived just seven months later.

Wells stayed with the Jazz for eight more seasons. Cotton took a different path, heading to Australia and making his mark in a different way.

It all started in Utah. Ten years later, it landed the pair in Adelaide.

“I’ve had a relationship with him (Cotton) for a long time,” Wells said on Friday.

“He was with us on a couple of 10 days … in year one with Quin Snyder in the Jazz. So I had a chance to get to know him then. It was fun to kind of reconnect.

“It’s been fun to talk to him on the phone and really kind of, you know, get this thing going to where it is today.”

Adelaide 36ers owner Grant Kelley and coach Mike Wells are speaking after the club signed NBL legend Bryce Cotton on a three-year deal. #7NEWS https://t.co/Vs1hKVLCMk

— 7NEWS Adelaide (@7NewsAdelaide) May 23, 2025

On Thursday evening, Cotton signed a three-year deal with the 36ers, a move already hailed as one of the biggest in NBL history.

Behind the scenes, Wells and GM of Basketball Operations Matt Weston had mapped out a bold and deliberate plan to bring him to Adelaide.

It was a patient, calculated approach. Cotton was in no rush to make a call on his future, and he was afforded space.

“To me, it gets more serious when I get on the phone, right? I’ve got to go and recruit him and kind of paint the picture of how I see this team and this group of guys together and how they function,” Wells said.

“Then Matt comes in and tries to close the deal for us.

“Matt’s due diligence [was] to keep checking with the phones and keep checking with him to the point to say, ’Hey man, are you interested?’… because I think we have the right situation and we have the right roster and everything that could help you in the next step of your career and help us change the 36ers.”

Pulling it off was no easy feat, but an almighty achievement. Cotton’s signing sparked elation in Adelaide and heartbreak in Perth.

“This isn’t just a signing. It’s a statement. Bryce Cotton changes our culture the second he walks through the door,” Wells said.

“We’re not just excited, we’re reshaped. Bryce Cotton elevates everyone around him.”

“You don’t get many chances to add someone like Bryce. When you do, it shifts the whole trajectory of your club.”

Back in 2015, neither Wells nor Cotton could have guessed they’d reunite a decade later, chasing history together in Adelaide.

Mike Wells, second row, second from left. Bryce Cotton, front row, fourth from left. 

For all the latest Free Agency news, download the free NBL APP now.