Preview: Adelaide vs Perth (Round 4)

Thursday, October 19, 2023

The pressure is on both Adelaide and Perth to perform - who can start their climb up the ladder with a Saturday night win?

Saturday, October 21 at 8pm AEDT | Adelaide Entertainment Centre

Watch: Live on ESPN via Kayo Sports - International viewership details
Box scores: Download the free NBL App

Both Adelaide and Perth enter this one hanging out for a win. Although the 36ers got the monkey off their back and won their first game of the season last week, a convincing loss to South East Melbourne has once again brought pressure to the NBL’s bottom side.

The Wildcats finished Round 3 eighth on the ladder – which is the lowest they have ever finished after a round since they signed Bryce Cotton all the way back in 2017.

Perth captain and six-time champion Jesse Wagstaff will become just the 30^th player in NBL history to play 450 career games, should he take to the court against Adelaide, after registering a number of DNPs earlier in the season.

Adelaide
85-102 loss to South East Melbourne
89-80 win over Illawarra
100-109 loss to Sydney

DJ Vasiljevic

The NBL news cycle has been dominated by DJ Vasiljevic and Adelaide this week, and after being cleared by the Washington Wizards in time to take on South East Melbourne, we’ve been offered a glimpse into what the 36ers' offence will look like with him in it.

Adelaide has lacked a consistent sharpshooter in recent years, and has only had four players average more than two made threes per game since 2010 – one of those was Craig Randall II last season, who only played six times for the side.

Vasiljevic took 17 shots – including 10 from three – in his first game for his new side, so it looks as if CJ Burton has given him the licence to shoot whatever and whenever he sees fit.

Can the former King help take Adelaide to the next level, or will his shot-heavy game take away from Adelaide’s existing weapons?

“DJ was hot early and he had those 14 points in the first quarter and a half. It got dry from there and he ended up with 17 points, but on 17 shots. He didn’t really make any of his teammates better in the process, but first hit-out straight off the practice floor, so that’s going to get better.” – Liam Santamaria on NBL Now.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">That didn’t take long ?<br><br>Watch live on ESPN via Kayo ? <a href="https://t.co/iXJyrmvQxj">pic.twitter.com/iXJyrmvQxj</a></p>— NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1714925047234863201?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 19, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Jesse Wagstaff

It’s good to see the Perth Wildcats taking some time to recognise one of their greatest ever players this week, and although Jesse Wagstaff isn’t the all-action, title-defining power forward he was in his pomp, he’s still an incredibly important asset to John Rillie’s side.

The 37-year-old has a memorable career that, incredibly, actually saw him and Rillie face off in his rookie year.

The pre-game fare will almost certainly be utilised to allow fans to recognise a player who is one of the modern legends of the game, and while Wagstaff might not necessarily have been blessed with countless MVPs, Boomers appearances or All-NBL First Team nods over his career – his record-equaling six career titles will see him enter the history books for more reasons than just this remarkable milestone.

“We broke bread a bit about that yesterday. 450 itself is a great milestone but to do it for one club – that’s the thing that people probably don’t give the credit to. He’s been here through ownership change, coaching change, teammate change, and he survived, so he’s doing something right ... good luck to him with it all, because he deserves whatever he gets from this. It’s an unbelievable achievement for him.” – John Rillie in a mid-week press conference.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Club Legend Jesse Wagstaff is set to become just the second Perth Wildcat ever to reach 450 games. ??<br><br>He spoke to the media today on what the upcoming milestone means to him.<br><br>Read more: <a href="https://t.co/ZXtCRN5y0g">https://t.co/ZXtCRN5y0g</a><br>Full presser: <a href="https://t.co/DxGIgZ1YvE">https://t.co/DxGIgZ1YvE</a> <a href="https://t.co/99i2vKhizc">pic.twitter.com/99i2vKhizc</a></p>— Perth Wildcats (@PerthWildcats) <a href="https://twitter.com/PerthWildcats/status/1714816291385786514?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 19, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

CJ Bruton vs John Rillie

It would be fair to say CJ Bruton and John Rillie are likely the two most under-pressure coaches in the NBL right now, and whichever team emerges from Saturday’s game with a loss will begin to feel the weight of the watching NBL fandom on their shoulders.

The off-season departures of Robert Franks and Antonius Cleveland – plus the pre-season release of Jamaal Franklin – has meant expectations on the 36ers have been comparatively low this season, but one win from six games is enough to have any coach feeling the pinch.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">‘’You had a chance to have him … move on’’<br><br>CJ Bruton with a message for the Sydney Kings, following DJ Vasiljevic’s debut in Adelaide. <a href="https://t.co/PztlyVJo1L">pic.twitter.com/PztlyVJo1L</a></p>— NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1714962634859336027?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 19, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

For Rillie and Perth, the addition of high-level talent like Alexandre Sarr and Keanu Pinder saw expectations on the talent-laden side soar in pre-season, and the presence of star guard Bryce Cotton means no matter who else is on the team, the Wildcats should be competing at the top end of the ladder.

It just hasn’t clicked yet for the Wildcats this season, who are once again struggling to crash the boards and will enter this clash with a 2-3 record.

Whover wins will experience a much-needed pressure release. Whoever loses could well have the pressure turned up to 11.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">How important is a Saturday night win for John Rillie and the Wildcats? ?<br><br>NBL legend <a href="https://twitter.com/derekrucker5?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@derekrucker5</a> has labelled it a must win game ?<br><br>Listen to NBL Now ?? <a href="https://t.co/euWBuMArio">https://t.co/euWBuMArio</a> <a href="https://t.co/jNpryoLc2y">pic.twitter.com/jNpryoLc2y</a></p>— NBL (@NBL) <a href="https://twitter.com/NBL/status/1714418968285598008?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 17, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Bryce Cotton is just four made threes away from 600 career NBL three-pointers. Only Chris Goulding (1067) and Cam Gliddon (618) are currently active players with more made threes than the three-time MVP.

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Bryce Cotton has hit 596 three-pointers in his NBL career.