Can they get Lisch back? Are they stuck with Ross still?

I wouldn't tinker with the frontcourt. Wagstaff, Redhage, Knight and Jervis is still solid.

Think Lisch is a mutli year in europe. Yes Isaac I'd like a Lisch type guard, good range shooting to compliment Damo's D (Damo's points are a bonus). Ross is a multi year for us I think. People forget Jervis was olny in his 2nd year, after an oustanding 1st year. We need to get more out of Wagstaff.

Ross, U'U and Beal are all contracted but have player/club options at end of each year.

Knight, Damo, Wagstaff, Hire, Jervis, Redhage are all contracted I believe.

If Beal doesn't return, Id kill to see Rotnei in a Cats jersey :P

Train, Rotnei in a Cats jersey... Yes please ;-)

Think Gleeson has 1 year left, Prefer Bevo myself, so I gather we're stuck coach wise.

They have to get a Lisch folded guy to compliment Damo's defensive star quality. Martin can't hit the ocean offensively, but if the bring in the right shooting guard then that is a very easy cover. Martin was made to attempt too many long misses this season and was exposed. Agree front court is still good enough, Id be trying to offload Ross though, if possible. And Ofcourse Daniels needs to be upgraded to a decent import. He did nothing for me. This season wasn't a good 'audition' for his NBA stakes.

If Cats cant find another Ennis in the NBA development pool then they need to find a gun outside of those parameters. They have the money to do it. No reason why they couldn't find another Childress.

Sam young? He would've been the nan to replace Ennis, was a ball hog a bit but I would rather someone have some balls to take a shot.

Keep Ross and u'u, beal went missing when we need him the most had a doughnut at half time last night for an import shooter you ain't gona win to many games.

Knight, waggs, import, beal and martin, you got four offensive players, you got to make sure that four can give you enough fire power? For me it's a solid five.

Jervis, hire, redhage, Ross and u'u, that's a quality bench, as long as they are injury free the streak will continue.

Import is the difference they get the right one, then can have a real shot.

Rotnei Clarke and Josh Childress please :P

How about wait and see if there's a comp at all..

Keep Beal - the only reason he wasn't as good this year was the lack of help around him.

I'd keep ross instead u'u. Bring in another SG bench player. A gun SF import to replace daniels and thats a very good team. If beal were to go then lisch would be an ideal replacement

I think they need mobility and speed and to play a style of game that fits in with that.

Their game lacked speed, explosiveness and mobility.

They routinely held the ball on offense for too long with little movement, ran a stagnant offense, there was (from what I could tell) limited fast break points, no "quick, easy" buckets. Especially when you compare it to last year with Ennis.

Wagstaff, Hire, Jervis, Redhage, Knight all tend to "labour" a little, Daniels isn't overly mobile and not very 'fluid', Martin is quite quick (but Beveridge and now Gleeson have now programmed into a 'we always have to run the offensive sets' type of PG). Ross was a tad overweight and laboured a little also.

IMO, they need some speed and mobility back in their game. Remember that is what Vickerman did after last season. He cut Corletto and Wilkinson in search of "better athletes and explosiveness". The result - Ced and Ebekwe - two of the best athletes in the league at their position.

Spot on MACDUB. The Cats were a high-pace team when Beveridge first arrived in 2010, Martin keying a real transition-based game the first few years there.

But as teams tried to adjust to the way to the way they and the Breakers played they evolved their style, and by 2013 both Perth and NZ were playing strong halfcourt styles of basketball.

You see now the Breakers have evolved to have an excellent mix of both styles, where the Wildcats still seem to be stuck in that 2013 philosophy, which their players still do pretty well, but I think they would be far more effective with a more rounded gameplan.

MACDUB: You really hit the nail on the head here. I dont think many thought Daniels or Ross would be that slow or surprisingly lacking in the athleticism department

Injuries obviously hurt the teams momentum but honestly would the Cats have beaten NZ in the finals even with a full roster? Sorry probably not..

Knight's injuries are a big concern for the club, Id say cut him without a doubt but when he's healthy he's the best in the league.

Redhage is simply a club champion and im pretty sure some deals have been done with his contract to allow past signings so hes unlikely to be cut; but the point system is super tough towards established players/veterans even with a loyalty discount.

Wagstaff's progress in my mind isnt where it should be, potentially because of his tiny minutes off the bench and as starter is a weakspot for the team.

In conclusion Perth need to not bring back Daniels, reconsider Knight/Redhage/Wagstaffs contracts, and sign Josh Childress :)

Do you know there may be no NBL next season?

Not thread relevant, Harry, participate or go away.

Concentrate on the true issue at hand. No point in fantasising about recruiting for next season Nathan. That's far more important now.

No, discussing future recruitment in this thread is perfectly valid.

Harry, you do realise the possibility of no NBL arises every second year or so? No point putting everything on hold until it actually is on hold.

Its seldom every 2nd year or so Paul. By all means if the NBL want to run with a 7 team competition go for it. The point of that would be?
Speculating on recruiting to me right now is pointless.
FFS Adel are talking 2 imports AND Newley and Boti says they are close to folding as well.

Harry, if you don't want to participate in discussions about any team's potential recruits for next season, then don't. But don't tell other people that they shouldn't be either.

"Its seldom every 2nd year or so Paul"

- 2008 when Brisbane and Sydney Kings folded

- 2009 when BA took over, Sydney Spirit folded, Dragons pulled out, Melbourne almost pulled out and SOS saved the 36ers

- 2012 when Gold Coast dropped out of the comp

- 2013 when Townsville had to be resuscitated under a community model

- 2015 with Wollongong in administration and Townsville TBC

Five times in seven years, so I was wrong, it's more than every second year or so.

We are talking about the NBL folding, not individual clubs failing.
I don't believe we have ever been down to 7 clubs in the NBL Paul.

Great derailment Harry. Now shut up. Paul is spot on.

Jeepers Harry, seriously? How many would we have had in 2010 had Adelaide not been saved and Melbourne maintained their decision to withdraw? Or in 2014 with no Townsville?

We have never got to seven, and we haven't yet, let's see what happens, like we do every other year in the NBL off-season.

Harry, there are existing threads for discussing the NBL's future - save this for them.

Looks like Beal will stay.
Assistant coach Woolpert, Luke Martin and development player Anthony Fisher have been released. Ross may be retained depending on his recovery.

The article also mentions Cats are looking at a second round draft pick or established big name Marquee to replace Daniels. I hope they go with the latter.

http://www.perthnow.com.au/sport/basketball/perth-wildcats-axe-three-as-nbl-season-post-mortem-begins/story-fnhq5y0s-1227252662087

Daniels was bloody good value once they started using him well. Which is not to say he was the right player for the Cats. He was always detained to return to the US, but I doubt he can make it in the NBA.

Starting both Jervis and Knight was a good innovation, and could be a sign of things to come. Redhage is past his best, becoming injury prone, and so covering for him in the starting line-up has got to be their number one priority.

Another priority, although not necessarily high value, is finding a backup PG. If Damo gets injured they are in a world of hurt.

Ross's retention is recovery dependent, but if he's ok I prefer him to U'U. U'U has shown some potential as an SG, but his retention will depend on who's available and the overall points situation.

With a 7 team comp going ahead it seems Wildcats have cut 2 players and one of their many asst coaches. Woolpert, Luke Martin and Anthony Fisher.
So let the speculation begin.

Dazz, how is Redhage becoming injury prone? The games he just missed were the first he'd missed since his hip injury, which were the first he missed for his entire career.

What is there to speculate Harry ? All of those people were never signed to stay longer than the season anyway.

It's all the flopping.. Before you get on the band wagon UB, floppers intentionally get their feet in line with the centre of offensive players cylinder placing their feet inside or either side of the offensive players feet so will always go down as they have shifted their own centre of gravity. When the refs start looking at the feet rather than the body they will finally be on to it and the flopping will have to stop. Stepping inside a players cylinder is a foul. If players continue to do this they will develop accumulative long term wear and tear, pressure in their bodies and be injured more often. No surprise that Redhage and alike are looking more and more less able to take the impact on their bodies and hobble off, return later and now the injuries are showing. . Predict the floppers will be the injury prone next season if they continue the flop which in some teams appears to be a strategy as many players are doingfg the same. Marvin should be looking at thise practices and not blaming the medical staff assistants and so on. Look outsode the box and the less obvious right in front of their noses. Get a Trauma Specialist to look at the mechanisms of injury and they will immediatly identify risk factors. Perth bodies are showing signs .of accumulative stress. Rest and repair, change the habits or suffer the consequences.

Potentially see the Wildcats looking like this

D Martin /U'u or Rookie
Beal/ Ross if not recovered then add free agent
Import swingman/ Hire
Knight/Redhage
Jervis/Wagstaff

Really comes down to a top replacement for Daniels some support in back up guards and less injuries.

Anon: so the root of Perth's problems and injuries is Flopping ? Very interesting theory, better not mention that to too many people or you might have the men with white coats knocking on your door ;)

Funny, in another thread, Anon tells me to get with reality. Ok then....

So Woolpert was to be there only for one season? The DP as well? Why heire them in the first place then. At least Perth have another 5? Asst coaches?

Does it matter how long he's been there? They've decided to let him go.

Woolpert was hired to fill in for Gleeson during the pre season while he was on Boomer duties. His contract was only meant to be for the pre season. He was offered to hang around for the rest of the season ( most likely influenced by Gleeson) on a very very slim salary. I doubt there was ever the intent to keep him beyond this season.

Does anyone other than Harry really care how many assistant coaches Perth have.

People use at as a Cats bashing exercise. Complain that they have so many assistants, then complain when they sack one.

Train i already have a white coat hence my understanding of how bodies respond and work at a cell level and how injuries develop and occur. Sports Science Buddy but maybe too intellectual for some. Watch and learn when predictions come true.. Hate me if you like, makes no difference to me but you are obviously fired up and see black and white and no grey.

So silly. You're predicting an ageing team is going to get injured, but incorrectly attributing it to only one thing, and that is way off in any case.

Every professional athlete cops injuries, and continues to play with discomfort and niggles, but they build up. Guys in their early 20's are in their physical prime, as they get older recovery takes longer, and things like stress-fractures start to take their toll. That's all I'm saying about Redhage. Having him come off the bench (at 6 points) will be fantastic.

Starting Jervis at centre and Knight at PF give them a massive front court and opens up a few different possibilities. They can chase another PF type and return to the days of the "Great Wall" or they can leverage that height to chase another athletic small forward or swingman. That would still give them the option of starting Jervis/Knight/Wagstaff against big opposition.
It will be interesting to see who they bring in for the bench. If they bring in a cheap backup centre, its a sign that they intend Jervis and Knight to play a lot of minutes together.

Personally, I would rate the targets as:
PF type as an import & marquee. Preferably an established player, unless they can somehow find another Ennis. (Replace Daniels.)
Backup PG in the form of a returning college player. (Replace Ross.)
A proven 3-point shooter as role player (SG or swingman) using the extra points to upgrade U'U.

Depending on their overall points situation, their assessment of their DP's, and of course their existing players, I wonder if they might consider going with more than 10?

Heavy falls accelerate the speed of injury wear and tear. Hitting a moving body carries lower Kinetic Energy so absorption is spread. Hitting a hard floor the KE absorpton is higher. Never said that flopping is the only mechanism just that those that do increase the speed and risk of long term wear and tear accumulatice injuries. We will wait and see shall we. Keep biting UB. I am not silly by the way. You just can't see my point of view. Same goes for all players from all sport worldwide. No Blinkers on me.

Just ask Redhage. QED.

So please tell me Uwe why so many asst coaches. I don't give a fat rats about Perth but I think the overkill of all staff within that organisation is wasted.
If as someone said Woolpert was hired to fill in for Gleeson, to me that means he's the 2IC and next best surely?
Yet the other Asst coaches aren't good enough. That's why they hired Woolpert, yet let him go because.... I know the Geelong guy would be pissed.
L Martin no brainer, DP wasted his time.

You clearly do care. Why?

Why so many assistants? It's simple, the Cats make lots of money, and coaches is an area they can spend it to gain an advantage.

Well simple observations shows the more assistant doesn't work.
Please trot out they "if we were fully fit argument" by all means. Clearly NZ have never had any injuries. Nor Cairns either.

"Well simple observations shows the more assistant doesn't work."

It obviously didn't this year. I'm still not sure why you're so against it though.

"Please trot out they "if we were fully fit argument" by all means. "

I don't know what would have happened if the Cats didn't have so many injuries at the times they did but it can't be ignored.

"Clearly NZ have never had any injuries. Nor Cairns either."

Cairns didn't change their starting five once the whole season, and I think their only injury was to their tenth man. Thats a massive advantage to them. NZ managed Pledger's injury all season - did anyone else miss any games? Abercrombie, maybe, right at the start of the season?

Anon: I understand where you are coming from and you make some valid points (and no i don't hate you lol), but the point of flopping is that you fall over from minimal contact. Your not taking a big hit, more often than not you are collapsing your legs and making small contact make like its more than it is.

I'd be more inclined to say a player that takes charges and puts their body on the line would be more susceptible to the injuries/damage that you describe.

Anyhow its clear that you have a greater understanding and you specialize in that field so I'm probably way out of my league to be arguing with you about it lol - I just would of thought that a per-meditated fall would cause a lot less damage than taking a charge legally.