2021 pre-season take-aways

The Perth Wildcats 2021 pre-season campaign is done and dusted, and now it’s time to get this thing started for-real.

In the end, the Wildcats went 2-3 over their two weeks in Tasmania, finishing fourth in the NBL Blitz standings.

Considering the team only met their coach two days out from their pre-season opener and were missing numerous key players throughout the tournament, there is plenty of positives to take away from the games.

Uptempo Basketball

When you forget an arm-wrestle opening game, where both the Wildcats and 36ers were working through some cobwebs, the Perth Wildcats averaged 94.2 points per game – aligning with Scott Morrison’s pre-season promise of up-tempo basketball. Perth weren’t afraid to let it fly from deep either, averaging 11.3 three-pointers per game at a solid 36 per cent.

Luke Travers is living up to the hype

He’s been arguably the most talked about Wildcat throughout the 2021 off-season, and with increased opportunity through the pre-season, he showed what he will be able to deliver in his rookie year. Travers started in all five games and did a bit of everything with 10.6 points, 4.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 2.4 steals and 1.2 blocks per game.

Majok is back

After going 20 months between basketball games, Majok Majok looked in fine touch in his return from an Achilles tendon injury a year ago. He played all five games, playing close to 20 minutes in each for an average of 9.6 points and 3.8 boards per game. He’ll be a major part of the Wildcats title tilt this season.

Bryce doing MVP things

After sitting out the final part of the 2021 season after leg surgery, Bryce Cotton didn’t miss a beat in his return to the action. Despite playing 26 minutes per game – far less than NBL fans are used to – he still managed 16.2 points per game, include 15 made-threes at almost 40 per cent. He also led his side with 4.0 assists per game.

Vic Law is a beast

Despite a limited off-season as he recovered from an ankle injury, Vic Law showed he can be one of the NBL’s best players this season – leading the Wildcats in points and rebounds with 17.8 and 8.2 per game. Could Law be the first Wildcat to rack up a triple-double in more than a decade? 

The kids are alright

With Mitch Norton, Todd Blanchfield, Corey Shervill, Jack Purchase, Michael Frazier and Jesse Wagstaff all missing pre-season games through injury, the Wildcats bench, including some raw NBL talent, took the opportunity to strut their stuff. Guard Kyle Zunic showed he’s a reliable set of hands running the point, while Oliver Hayes-Brown announced himself in a big way in his one appearance after coming out of hotel quarantine. Shout out to Perry Lakes Hawks young gun Mitch Clarke, who impressed as a late addition to the Wildcats pre-season squad.