After months of negotiating, the two parties hadn’t reached a solution by the end of the Hungry Jack’s NBL25 Season, in which Perth was eliminated in game three of their Playoff Series against Melbourne United.<\/p>\n
Many thought this might be the last time fans would see see Cotton on an NBL court, with rumours swirling that he had interest in playing abroad, including re-uniting with former coach Trevor Gleeson at Japanese B League side, the Chiba Jets.<\/p>\n
Cotton had stated he would never play for another Australian club, and it seemed like the writing was on the wall. It was Perth, or abroad … or so it seemed.<\/p>\n
\u201cNah, like I don\u2019t think that [playing for another NBL team] is a possibility for me, but it\u2019s been a fun right like I still can\u2019t believe I\u2019ve played nine seasons here, it\u2019s been a blur … don\u2019t know what\u2019s next, but if it is it, what a ride it\u2019s been,\u201d he told 10 News Perth.<\/p>\n
\u201cI still haven\u2019t decided what I want to do next … it\u2019s a lot of factors that go into what I need to decide and obviously it\u2019s not just me making the decision.\u201d<\/p>\n
>>\u00a0March 8, 2025:\u00a0Cotton contract decision imminent<\/a><\/p>\n The Wildcats, with an eye for NBL26, gave Cotton a deadline to advise them of his decision to re-sign or leave the club. They vowed not to rush him, but needed to plan for NBL26.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve not sat down. We need to certainly do that,\u201d Perth owner Mark Arena told The Dribble Podcast in March.<\/p>\n \u201cBryce is in our view the best player in the league and should be compensated as such. That\u2019s such a key part of what the roster looks like. If Bryce is going to re-sign with us, what does the team look like? If he\u2019s not, what does the team look like? It is totally different. But we don\u2019t have any dates yet.\u201d<\/p>\n >> March 5:\u00a0Wildcats won\u2019t rush out-of-contract Cotton<\/a><\/p>\n It was while Cotton was playing in Puerto Rico in mid-March that it all came to a head.<\/p>\n \u201cMaybe three or four days after I came to Puerto Rico, they were like, \u2018Look, we need an answer.\u2019 They sent an email: \u2018We need an answer within the next two or three days, whether you\u2019re going to sign your extension or not,\u201d Cotton said on The EasyDay Show.<\/p>\n \u201cI was like, \u2018Hold up \u2026 you knew all year I\u2019ve been saying I want to test Free Agency’.<\/p>\n \u201cI’m not being cocky or arrogant, but I just had one of the greatest seasons in NBL history, and I\u2019m a Free Agent for the first time ever.<\/p>\n \u201cThey were like, \u2018Oh, we need an answer, because you\u2019re an integral part of our roster and if you\u2019re not going to be here, we need to know’.<\/p>\n \u201cI had my agent tell me, \u2018Give me your answer\u2019 within two to three days after I got to Puerto Rico, and I was like, \u2018That\u2019s just not enough time for me to make a decision. I want to test Free Agency. So if you guys feel like you want to move on, I understand. That\u2019s not enough time for me to make a decision. I want to see everything that\u2019s out there’.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n The Wildcats’ deadline came and went, and the superstar still hadn’t put pen to paper on what had been reported to be the ‘biggest deal in NBL history’.<\/p>\n Soon after, Cotton says his agent received a draft memo saying \u201cBryce Cotton is not going to be part of the Wildcats\u2019 NBL26 squad\u201d.<\/p>\n Rather than waiting, he decided to control the narrative by making an announcement via Instagram – he was leaving Perth. The Bryce Cotton era in the West was officially over. <\/p>\n “Perth will always be home, but it\u2019s time to say goodbye and see what else God has planned for me and my family,” he said. <\/p>\n “I can only hope you had half as much joy watching me play as I had playing in front of y\u2019all year after year. Win lose or draw, I gave you, my teammates, and coaches everything I had … and thank you once again for accepting, the good games, the bad and everything in between.”<\/p>\n >>\u00a0March 25:\u00a0Bryce Cotton farewells Perth<\/a><\/p>\n Once that post dropped, the internet went into overdrive, with everyone trying to figure out what this meant for Cotton, the Wildcats and the city of Perth.<\/p>\n \u201cStar players carry an incredible amount of mystique around them, but basketball is a team sport,\u201d club owner Mark Arena said.<\/p>\n “We\u2019ve locked in some high-quality re-signings with Kristian Doolittle on a three-year deal, skipper Jesse Wagstaff staying with us for a remarkable 17th season and we\u2019re looking forward to building out our roster over the coming weeks.\u201d<\/p>\n >>\u00a0March 25:\u00a0Wildcats comment on Cotton departure<\/a><\/p>\n While all eyes were on Cotton, the 36ers, steered by their GM of basketball operations, Matt Weston, started to plot their move in mid-May.<\/p>\n \u201cHis name was deep in my mind, but I didn\u2019t want to get too excited and get people thinking it could happen in case it couldn\u2019t,\u201d Weston revealed on NBL Now.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019d had about a half-hour discussion with Bryce\u2019s guys and thought, this could actually happen.<\/p>\n \u201cI sort of shocked Mike (Wells) when I went over to him during the Development Player camp and said, \u2018You want Bryce? We could get him.\u2019 He thought I was mucking around. He said, \u2018Are you serious?\u2019 I said, \u2018We\u2019ve got him on the hook. What do you think?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHe (Wells) couldn\u2019t concentrate for about a day and a half at the DP camp while I went and did the deal.\u201d<\/p>\n >>\u00a0May 23: Adelaide signs Cotton in bombshell move<\/a><\/p>\n As the 36ers, whose coach Mike Wells had a previous relationship with Cotton due to their time together in the NBA with Utah, sensed an opportunity, they went into overdrive.<\/p>\n \u201cOn Tuesday I simply asked the question, \u2018What\u2019s going to happen with him?\u2019 and they told me he was open to coming back,\u201d Weston said.<\/p>\n \u201cSo we [Weston, Wells, Nic Barbato (CEO) and Grant Kelley (owner)] have been working day and night talking about philosophy, strategy, what we do and how we do it here.<\/p>\n \u201cI worked around the clock from that, and on Thursday we got the deal done.\u201d<\/p>\n >> May 24: The story behind the mastermind move that shook the NBL<\/a><\/p>\n Those 72 hours proved to be organisation-changing for the 36ers, who haven’t won a championship since the 2001-02 season.<\/p>\n \u201cThe opportunity to bring in one of the all-time greats of the NBL is hard to pass up,” Weston said.<\/p>\n \u201cBryce has a history of winning championships, of personal and team excellence, and he\u2019s going to help us transform our culture and our standards to build a team capable of winning championships.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe know when he\u2019s up and going, he\u2019s hard to stop, and we think our fans will love having him on our side instead of playing against us.\u201d<\/p>\n The entire NBL had been turned on its head, with people distinctly remembering where they were when they found out Cotton was signing a lucrative three-year deal in Adelaide.<\/p>\n >>\u00a0May 30: The Bryce is right: Cotton deal “biggest in NBL history”<\/a><\/p>\n While there was ecstasy in the City of Churches, the same could not be said for Perth.<\/p>\n The West Australian ran a back page saying \u201cThe Lying King\u201d, in reference to Cotton’s comments about not playing for another club. <\/p>\n This didn’t sit well with the man himself, labelling the treatment \u201ccrazy and disrespectful\u201d as he vowed to burn the commemorative \u201cKing of the Jungle\u201d poster they\u2019d gifted him after his 59-point game.<\/p>\n >>\u00a0May 27:\u00a0“Crazy and disrespectful”: Cotton slams WA paper<\/a><\/p>\n Elsewhere in Perth, media personalities Tim Gossage and Lachie Reid both suggested the Wildcats\u2019 management botched the re-signing attempt, labelling them \u201casleep at the wheel\u201d, with late deadlines, poor communication and a lack of consultation with their best-ever player.<\/p>\n Arena was quick to defend the club’s actions. <\/p>\n \u201cI think we started by saying we\u2019d talk at the end of the season. Then we extended it, and we extended it again. It happened many times,\u201d he said on NBL Now. <\/p>\n \u201cWe didn\u2019t have a set time frame on it, but at some point, you\u2019re talking to other agents of other players, and what Bryce decides really impacts them, whether they\u2019re going to come back or not.<\/p>\n \u201cIf we don\u2019t start to move on them, we could be impacted. We didn\u2019t want to end up in a position where we were waiting and waiting, and other players perhaps started looking or signing elsewhere. Then we\u2019d be trying to build a roster without some of the key people we wanted, who had already signed elsewhere.\u201d<\/p>\n >> May 27:\u00a0\u201cA horrible decision we had to make\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n A few weeks later, when revealing their new club logo, Arena doubled down.<\/p>\n \u201cNo regrets [about the decision],\u201d Arena said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe did what we thought is, and what we still believe is, right for the Wildcats. That\u2019s long term success both on and off the court. We felt we did that and totally back the decision we made collectively.\u201d<\/p>\n >>\u00a0June 11: Mark Arena at peace with how Bryce Cotton negotiations played out<\/a><\/p>\n In the ensuing months, championship anticipation built as the 36ers also signed Zylan Cheatham and Flynn Cameron, to complement Australian Boomers pair Isaac Humphries and Dejan Vasiljevic.<\/p>\n While Cotton was still overseas, the NBL26 schedule dropped, leading to everyone circling two dates; November 9 (Cotton’s first clash against the Wildcats in Adelaide) and December 7 (Cotton’s first game back at RAC Arena).<\/p>\n Upon arriving in Adelaide in mid-August, the 36ers’ star signing opened up on the incredible decision.<\/p>\n \u201cI was honestly not planning [to stay in Australia],\u201d Cotton said on SEN SA Breakfast.<\/p>\n \u201cThey [Adelaide 36ers] came out of the blue. Me and my manager, we were still discussing options as it was early in the free agency.<\/p>\n \u201cOne night my manager sent me a text with the proposal they had sent through, up until that point there had been no talks with them.<\/p>\n \u201cIt blindsided me, but it was a pretty good offer, a lot of things lined up for me and my family and it was a no-brainer from there.\u201d<\/p>\n >> August 29: Bryce Cotton opens up on shock switch to Adelaide 36ers<\/a><\/p>\n He also went on to explain that he \u201cdidn\u2019t technically leave\u201d, as the Wildcats first decided not to wait while he exercised his right to see what was out there.<\/p>\n Cotton stressed it was a business decision on both sides and repeatedly thanked the Red Army for their loyalty over nine seasons, saying he gave them everything he had.<\/p>\n Since the season got underway, Cotton has let his play do the talking, producing career-best marks in assists (6.9) and steals (2.1), while leading the league in scoring (26.6 points per game).<\/p>\n He guided the 36ers to an impressive 7-2 start before Perth came to Adelaide, in a mouthwatering matchup at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre.<\/p>\n While all eyes were on this blockbuster, the 33-year-old American tried to play down the fixture.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s just another game for me. I know there’s a lot of hype and I guess story around it, but it’s just another game that I’m hoping to win,\u201d Cotton said.<\/p>\n “[I’m going to let my] basketball do the talking. That’s all it is.<\/p>\n \u201cWhatever it takes to win \u2026 and you know, I have a good radar of what’s normal banter and what’s crossing the line. So, depending on where I feel about what’s said or things that are done on the court, it will indicate my reactions.\u201d<\/p>\n Perth got the better of that matchup, winning 94-87.<\/p>\n But everyone knew that was just the appetiser, with attention quickly shifting to ‘The Return’.<\/p>\n Despite a FIBA Break, and both Perth (who defeated Melbourne) and Adelaide (who smashed Brisbane) having previous games in Round 11, Sunday’s blockbuster at RAC Arena is the game everyone has been waiting for. <\/p>\n “If you cannot get up for a game [Perth v Adelaide] like this, I do not know if you are in the right business, so for us this is a team that came in and smacked us in the mouth at our crib,” Cheatham said in Friday’s post-game press conference.<\/p>\n “We took that very much personally, and I think the majority of the group feels that, and obviously Bryce has his personal stuff going on, but for us it is a matter of coming out, executing and getting a road win to try and get some more separation on that ladder.”<\/p>\n >>\u00a0December 6: Cotton\u2019s homecoming turns into Sixers’ revenge shot<\/a><\/p>\n Although the war of words has stretched over a couple of months, it seems like more of that is being put in the rear-view mirror.<\/p>\n This week, Arena stated there was no bad blood between him and Cotton.<\/p>\n \u201cIt has nothing to do with Bryce individually with me or me with Bryce,\u201d Arena told CODE Sports<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cFor me, it is all about having a budget and one of the largest in the league to build a team and like I said when I came in, the best thing is how do we effectively use that to win a championship.<\/p>\n \u201cThat is the focus of every club owner in the league.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/69340012d26b124dbf1aa842_bryce.jpg\")
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