Perth's silver lining in life after Bryce

With many Wildcats fans are still dealing with the emotions of Bryce Cotton’s departure from the club, Pete Hooley believes that there are still good times ahead in Perth.

“You should be very excited,” he said on The Marketplace.

“The club hasn’t had this financial flexibility for a very long time.”

It’s been dubbed the ‘Wildcats' War Chest’ by Jack Heverin, and with Cotton’s huge salary no longer on the books for Perth, the club now has an opportunity to build a strong roster in this off-season.

“With Kristian Doolittle locked in ... you’re in a very good spot to go and make a massive splash in free agency,” Hooley said.

“You’re never going to replace Bryce Cotton, but you can feel a little positive that you’ll be able to contend for a championship next year because they’re going to get all the right pieces.”

Olgun Uluc doubled down on Hooley’s comments, noting that the news of Cottons departure wouldn’t have surprised the front office.

“NBL teams were told in the middle of the season to prepare for the Bryce Cotton sweepstakes,” Uluc said.

“There was a preparation that he may be a free agent. So, they’ve been aware of this for a good amount of time.
While the emotions are still raw for the fans to come to the realisation that number 11 won’t be running around in a red jersey next season, it isn’t all doom and gloom according to Hooley.

“Back to the timing of this whole thing ... I think it’s a really positive thing for the Perth Wildcats to now know this ahead of Free Agency.

“This is a Perth Wildcats team that over the past two seasons have been top two in cash spend,” Uluc added.

“A lot of that is Bryce Cotton, because he is a highly paid import who you cannot marquee, so you absorb all of that in your cap spend.”

Cotton may not be the only Wildcat who is set to depart the club, with recent reports of two key locals set to be on the move.

“The intel suggests that Keanu Pinder is more than likely not returning ... I don’t think Tai Webster is returning either,” Uluc said.

“There is a lot of money there ... now they can use that allotment of money to not just get a high-level player like Bryce Cotton, but get two really high level players that can fill that space.”