Emerging Wildcat's Elite rise

Monday, September 11, 2023

"We had him in last year just to practice and there's something about him. He has a chance to be special."

Perth Wildcats young gun Ben Henshall is looming as one of the most exciting players to watch in NBL24, following a series of impressive performances across pre-season.

After scoring a combined 26 points against the NBA’s G-League Ignite team over the weekend, Henshall backed up with perhaps his strongest effort yet – 17 points, four rebounds, four assists and two steals against Overtime Elite on Monday, Australian time.

With Bryce Cotton, Tai Webster, Keanu Pinder, Jesse Wagstaff and Jordan Usher all rested, it was the Centre of Excellence product’s chance to shine.

In all, he played 25 minutes in the Wildcats’ 91-64 victory in Las Vegas, as they capped off a 2-1 winning record across the team’s US trip.

On Sunday, Perth coach John Rillie was full of praise for the 19-year-old.

"Oh man, I love that kid," he said.

"We had him in last year just to practice and there's something about him. He has a chance to be special.

"Now everyone else is starting to realise that he's quite a good player. Where he gets to, we'll find out and it might take him a couple of years.

"He's certainly got some tools that get the NBA people excited, and myself of course."

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Some impressive flashes from <a href="https://twitter.com/BACentreofExcel?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@BACentreofExcel</a> graduate Ben Henshall today vs Ignite. A young man with a very bright future. <a href="https://t.co/oN6NhnaNZ2">pic.twitter.com/oN6NhnaNZ2</a></p>— Liam Santamaria (@Liam_Santa) <a href="https://twitter.com/Liam_Santa/status/1699660701277794430?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 7, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Alexander Sarr is an elite prospect that is going be a massive part to what Perth do this year.<br><br>Ben Henshall is also worth NBA teams attention and could potentially be drafted. <br><br>Wouldn't surprise me to see him really grow into a considerable role with the Wildcats this season.</p>— Michael Houben (@michaelhoub) <a href="https://twitter.com/michaelhoub/status/1700361977951134122?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 9, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Another emerging talent, Michael Harris, also enjoyed valuable minutes and continues to show the Perth coaches what he can do.

Harris finished with 20 points and six rebounds, across 31 minutes of action.

After missing the FIBA World Cup with the Tall Blacks, Corey Webster was back to his best, with 15 points in just 11 minutes of court-time.

Development player Dontae Russo-Nance also showed what he’s capable of, with the New Zealand talent grabbing 15 points, four rebounds and four assists, across 22 minutes, and finishing with a +/- of plus-30.

Next Star Alex Sarr played 18 minutes, scoring nine points, having previously played two seasons at Overtime Elite.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Is tomorrow gonna be awkward? ? <a href="https://twitter.com/alexandresarr_?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@alexandresarr_</a> <a href="https://t.co/wj4kxtNMah">pic.twitter.com/wj4kxtNMah</a></p>— Overtime Elite (@OvertimeElite) <a href="https://twitter.com/OvertimeElite/status/1700646247097385452?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">September 9, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

The Wildcats will now return home for the Hungry Jack’s NBL Blitz, which gets underway on Saturday, September 16.