Literally end of an era I would think. Painfully obvious that both sides need to shake up their local player core.

As key players, Abercrombie and Wagstaff were mediocre for both teams. Plus, with the exceptions of Cotton and Newbill, they sure could recruit better in the imports department.

Fans of any other teams would be happy with 4 titles in 8 years.

Smart fans would want continued success for their club

Perth are capable of rebuilding quickly. Will extend playoff streak yet again.

You cant win them every time. But you can try.
Tokoto just wasn't in his own league like Cotton. Good player, solid but those imports help win games.

Perth's issues are with the local players IMO, not the imports. We may have had some pretty handy imports come through, but having that core of Martin, Redhage & Knight, and Wagstaff off the bench, gave us a really solid cake to put some icing on top of.
Most other seasons an import combo of one star, one quality starter, and one role player would have gone ok because the reliance wouldn't have fallen so much onto them. Our aussie strength and depth has eroded away in recent years. That will happen when you've got such stability.

Changing of the guard. It is poetic. Melbourne and Adelaide had to go through the NZ and Perth.

Couldn't script it any better.

Disappointing it ended this way, I would have preferred to see one of the other teams beat either Perth or NZ in the grand final.

If we're extending the hypothetical as far as Perth or NZ making the grand final, I see no reason we can't extend it further and have one of them be a top-two team.

I still would've preferred NZ to get over Melbourne regardless, though.

I absolutely did not want to see either of Perth or New Zealand in the Grand Final series so I am happy as hell it ended this way. I have huge respect for those clubs but I can't watch the same script play out again and again and enjoy it.

Adelaide have got the heart in this. I think they're going to win the series in 4 and finish it off in Adelaide.

Of Pfft, how many of these threads do we need?

Perth failed to win their 4th title in 5 seasons, and suddenly the sky is falling in.

It would have been awesome to pull out another "come from behind" championship, but at the end of the day I'd have to admit that this is better for the league.

Interesting times ahead, to see how they go about regrouping, but reality in NBL is that they could easily bounce back with the right recruits.

I absolutely did not want to see either of Perth or New Zealand in the Grand Final series so I am happy as hell it ended this way. I have huge respect for those clubs but I can't watch the same script play out again and again and enjoy it.

Adelaide have got the heart in this. I think they're going to win the series in 4 and finish it off in Adelaide.

Dazz, not everything is about Perth.

When Adelaide or Melbourne have more than a GF appearance under their belt and have some silverware in the cupboard we can start talking about era's ending.
NZ and Perth very well may be back in the winners circle next season with some savvy recruitment so because both teams were soundly beaten in their semi's I don't think there will be any panic in Perth or Auckland.

Mystro

So, by your own proviso, we can already start talking about the end of an era.

You placed 2 conditions on this, and by definition 1 of them must happen. No team other than Adelaide or Melbourne can get the silverwear this year.

Maybe the end of an era has arrived, but the beginning of a new era could be decided in the next 3-5 games. Or maybe other teams step up next season and we get 2 new grand finalists.

Yes one of those teams is going to win a title this season and rightfully so.
Perth & NZ have dominated for a decade.

When they have multiple championships in consecutive seasons we can talk about dynasty's & era's.

Perth just needs to upgrade on Cooke and get another outside shooter.

No idea why they went with Steindl.

Mystro, Adelaide won titles in 98, 99 and 02

You forgot one. 86 was the first as the 36ers. They also won one when they were the Bearcats before the transition to 36ers.

They had plenty of opportunity to replace Cooke.

I didn't forget it, I was replying to Mystro's comment of winning consecutive titles, 3 in 5 years is pretty good

Ah. I see. Well hopefully they can add another to the total list in a few weeks. Then work on 3 in 5 years after that!

3 in a row is much better

Bit of rebuilding required for sure, but I can see the Cats getting back up there. Cant win every year but you can certainly remain a contender. Wouldnt necessarily call it the end of an era but definately some changes needed to refresh this team.

Adelaide and Melbourne should be very good for a few years to come but I would expect Perth and NZ to not go away so easily. Particularly Perth. They'll bounce back.

Perth going forward will need to go over their whole list. Recent recruiting stategies in signing Walker and Steindl just because they are available didn't
work, they need to target specific players with the skillset they want. Both Steindl and Walker were too inconsistent at previous club before Perth signed them. Walker was the same when Sixers signed him. Looked great at training, was good in pre season and started season like a star before going back to habits. Hire had a very ordinary season apart from a 3/4 court buzzer beater. Wagstaff has relied heavily on Redhage and is not a 1st pick player. As much as I even hate to think it they even need to go as far as looking at Damo. His offensive output is a massive liability which was very evident this season and as he gets older his defence won't be able to keep up with younger stars. His role on the team may now need to be greatly reduced.

Martin would be effective off the bench.
His leadership if Perth do go with youth next season would be invaluable

Unfair to be critical of the Walker move IMO. He's a guy who was out of the league, and for half the season had turned into a legit starting-calibre player.
Regressed in the 2nd half of the season, but is still a decent depth guy IMO.

Everyone knows Walker is a great trainer and he benefitted initially from most teams showing little respect to him (and also having not scouted Tokoto). I suspect Walker's downturn has synergy to Tokoto's lack of range being revealled.

Walker also needs lots of court time but this can be detrimental to team performance if too much is expected of him. He struggles to get a feel for the game off the bench.

I think the quality of the league has left him behind and teams won't be so complacent next season.

Trade him to Cairns with Cooke Jr for Gliddon or the Hawks for Kay and Ellis :-)

Didn't put a team together to go for a three peat to be honest, played well in patches through the season.

Knight retiring was pivotal and didn't recover from that. Overall made the finals and probably a good thing for the league having other teams in the gf.

@luuc
Hindsight is great as Perth could have signed someone else. Walker was exactly the same here at Sixers. Signed in preseason after starring at training. Worked himself into starting 5 at the beginning of season and then became a shadow of himself the longer he was at Adelaide. History repeating at Perth.

Some weird recruiting for sure.
Walker was a good pickup, if you were looking for a bench player or 11th man. Cracking the starting 5 was a bonus, but also concerning that there was nobody there to keep him out. Problem is that they have too many players who are "great off the bench"

It's almost as if they didn't plan for Knight's injury or retirement? Cooke was just woeful, and Having Steindl as their go-to replacement just didn't work. Again, he's another guy that would be a handy pickup as your 11th player.

But still the reality is that with a couple of good replacements, they could easily be back on top.

It had to happen eventually.

Perth were lucky last year in that they managed to avoid their two biggest threats for the title (Adelaide and Melbourne). Thus it looked like they dominated the playoffs, but it was more about matchups than anything.

Well done to Perth and NZ for the past 8 years, but with Knight and Penney now gone, and Wagstaff, Martin, Vukona, Abercrombie, Pledger all on the wrong side of 30, it's time to regroup.

Still- 2 quality programs both strong financial backing. There's no reason why they can't both make a couple of tweaks and end up back playing for the championship next season.

Please no more Greg Hire.

I think Wildcats will be going for Devondrick, Cotton, Prather, Martin, Wagstaff, Stiendle, Kenny, Brandt, Daniel Johnson, Gliddon, then players like Bragg and Lochlan Cummings as fringe/development players.

The wildcats weren't the team of seasons past this year due to their Australian players. If you compare to Adelaide who have Sobey, Creek, DJ and a host of other very good locals the wildcats Aussies don’t cut it. If you compare to Melbourne with Goulding, etc and some experienced Aussie internationals off the bench, again the Wildcat unit doesn’t cut it.
Think of it this way- take the imports out of the Adelaide and Melbourne teams then play then against the Perth Aussie content. The result would be embarrassing to Perth. They would even get smashed by the Breakers locals. Wildcats have relied
on imported talent too much this season.
Going forward, keep Cotton, Martin, Brandt and the recruit the best Aussie content possible after which, and only after which compliment them with imports. A complete rebuild is needed if this team make it back to the Championship round next year. Good targets would be Jervis, McCarron, Ellis, Isaac Humphries, Cadee, literally any Aussie
playing for the 36ers and a few others.
Hire, Wagstaff, Kenny are past their used by dates. I would consider Walker a possibility as a bench player. I would keep Steindl, I think there is a spot for him. Then get themselves some guys returning from the NCAA such as Pinder to build for the future.
No tweaking of this lineup, a complete rebuild is required.

Perth don't seem to have the naturalized Americans floating around like they used to either.

Udog, what you say is true. Many of their championships, in fact all except one was built upon naturalised imports making their Aussie contingent extremely tough and then complimenting that with excellent imported talent.
The Wildcats should look at Lee Roberts who is a naturalised player currently playing in Italy and who will return to play state league to be close to family and friends. He is a can't miss prospect who will give them an excellent talent at the 3/4 spot.

You sure Lee Roberts is already naturalised? I thought he hasn't fulfilled the length of stay requirement?

I think he qualifies to play as an Aussie in the NBL. Given he is a winner through and through from college through professional ranks around the world he would fit perfectly into the Wildcats culture of team first. He has an excellent resume.

Put it this way, Serie A teams in Italy are looking at him is NBL teams would be crazy not to.

His college team went 33-0 in his senior season, albeit NCAA D2 but that just tells you the quality of his character.

He has highlights on YouTube easily found by searching his name.

JR what type of player is he?

Todd- athletic 3/4 shoots the 3 ball well, can play offensively off the post either back to basket or facing up. Has an excellent mid range jumper, explosive first step is about 6'6 or 6’7’ in height. Great rebounder for his size and a quick leaper who gets up well and does so quickly. He is big in effort levels and hustle plays which make him a can’t miss.

Main thing is that he is a great team personality and would suit any winning program. He always makes the extra pass. As you will see from his resume he is not one of those guys who is only interested in chasing his numbers, quite the opposite actually which is why he has won championships in US college ball, Argentina as well as here in the SBL. He absolutely dominated the grand final here last year. His numbers are excellent whilst being very unselfish.

He had an Aussie wife and soon to be born first child so he is a grown man who takes his profession very seriously. Very mature mindset.

Check him out on YouTube he has plenty of highlights there

https://youtu.be/ILG7FVac2NM

He is a young 31 though, never had any serious injuries and stays in shape

I made an error.. he has an Aussie wife!!

Thanks JR.

Sounds like a no brainer to me.

Todd I agree, he would add signifcant value to any team as an Aussie

I'm so eager to see Devondrick Walker play here. Hopefully not for Perth, but even so I'd be all right with it. Would be a star in the NBL

As I understand it, having a spouse here only entitles Roberts to an initial partner visa that also commences permanent residency. To become citizen, he has to go through the same process as any other permanent resident which includes a minimum of 9 months every year where he has to be on the country.

AFAIK he has yet to do that as his playing contracts since he became PR has forced him outside Australia for longer than the maximum 3 months every year he's here? Unless I'm mistaken he is an import for the Redbacks?

Think of it this way- take the imports out of the Adelaide and Melbourne teams then play then against the Perth Aussie content. The result would be embarrassing to Perth. They would even get smashed by the Breakers locals. Wildcats have relied
on imported talent too much this season.

Roberts was an SBL import last year and all you need to play as a local in the SBL is PR. I believe the NBL requires full citizenship.

I don't smoke. Goulding, Wesley, Moller, Anderson, Barlow, Majok beat Perth’s unit of Australians. Pretty obvious to all I would’ve thought.

I don't think Perth's crew are too abysmal (Martin, Kenny, Wagstaff, Brandt, Walker) but they don't really have scorers in that group. Melbourne at least have Goulding and Wesley.

Adelaide probably have both covered though - solid scoring almost the whole way through? They could likely start Sobey, Drmic, Creek, Johnson and Hodgson against a full-strength NBL team and not embarrass themselves. Kinda remarkable to start with that and then have three pretty competent imports as well.

If I were Perth (or anyone), I'd be going for Gliddon, Norton and Kay.

Koberulz I believe he has citizenship