Anstey: 'Wildcats the real deal'

The Perth Wildcats made a statement by defeating Adelaide on Sunday, in their first match against five-time MVP Bryce Cotton.

In a game that was scripted to be all about Cotton playing against a side he played nine seasons and won three championships with, the narrative coming out of it was how dangerous the Wildcats can be, especially defensively.

Now, two-time NBL MVP Chris Anstey believes the Wildcats should be in the championship conversation.

"Perth looked good [on Sunday], didn't they? Their team looks more balanced," Anstey said on Tuesday's episode of NBL Now.

"John Rillie is on record saying he's got higher expectations than anyone else [for Perth].

"There are some people out there that probably don't think Perth are going to genuinely contend for a championship, but a game like that makes you pause a little bit.

"David Duke Jr has come in and provided that extra balance and an extra scorer, he fits in so well.

"It was just a reminder that this league's a little bit more wide open than perhaps what a lot of us thought."

For the Wildcats, currently sitting in fifth with a 6-5 record, to completely throw themselves in the championship contention mix, they will need to improve their home record.

Heading into Round 8, Perth is 5-2 on the road, yet has only won one of its four contests at RAC Arena.

"Isn't it interesting that Perth are really good on the road, but struggling at home? We'd never known that to exist in the NBL," Anstey said.

"Perth's one of the toughest places to play, because the crowd is all over you and they're loud.

"But it's almost like that's been turned back onto the Wildcats and there's a pressure for the Wildcats to perform, not the opposition.

"The opposition come in with the opportunity to take a free swing at a historically great team and Perth are the ones who seem to feel the pressure of playing at home because of that weight of expectation to be successful."

Perth's next chance to reverse that home record comes on Saturday when they host New Zealand from 8pm AEDT, live on ESPN.