Perth Announces Star Signing

The Perth Wildcats have announced the signing of star forward Keanu Pinder for the next two seasons.

The 27-year-old is coming off an outstanding two-year stint with the Cairns Taipans, averaging 16.9 points and 9.3 rebounds across the NBL23 campaign. 

It's been a remarkable rise for Pinder, who has claimed the League's Most Improved Player Award two seasons in a row. 

He was also a member of the All-NBL Second Team for NBL23. 

“It feels great to be able to play in front of my family and the best fans in the country,” Pinder told the club's website. 

“I can’t wait to get started and I feel like we’re going to win a championship.

“(The) Wildcats have such a rich culture and tradition of winning championships and I feel like I can be a part of that I think we will have the team to do it, I like the vision the club has for me and I think we’re going to do well.”

Perth coach John Rillie said he was excited to welcome Pinder to the roster.

“We have put an emphasis on getting elite, local talent to the Wildcats this offseason and Keanu fits that mould, so to bring a home-grown talent back, we’re off to a great start,” he said.

“Keanu has shown great improvement in his all-round game over the last few seasons, his desire to work and compete for a championship is what caught my attention.

“He also rebounds at a high level so that addresses one of our weaknesses of last season.”

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">KEANU IS A CAT. ?<br><br>The Perth Wildcats are thrilled to announce the signing of exciting star forward Keanu Pinder on a two-year deal!<br><br>Full details: <a href="https://t.co/Qy3uvX8NJH">https://t.co/Qy3uvX8NJH</a> <a href="https://t.co/mAULxzwiW9">pic.twitter.com/mAULxzwiW9</a></p>&mdash; Perth Wildcats (@PerthWildcats) <a href="https://twitter.com/PerthWildcats/status/1641923354788524032?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 31, 2023</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>