Cotton ready to face former side in his 300th NBL game

Bryce Cotton will play his 300th NBL game this Thursday night, as he returns to RAC Arena in Perth to play against the Perth Wildcats.

It seems fitting that Cotton will play such a huge milestone game against the Wildcats, the same side where he played nine season and won three championships, along with five MVPs.

Though reaching 300 games is such a huge achievement, and cause for celebration, it seems that Thursday night is just another game for Cotton.

“I stay in a moment, and I think when you're always focussed on what's coming next, you don't really have much time to stop and smell the roses,” Cotton said.

“300 games does kind of tell me I've been in this league for a little bit of time now.”

Head coach Trevor Gleeson is also returning to Perth, facing the same team where he coached for eight seasons, winning three championships alongside Cotton.

Having reunited this season for the first time since 2021, Cotton and Gleeson hope they can recreate the same success they had in Perth with a new team in Adelaide.

“We obviously have some great history where we achieve some pretty cool things. But the respect has always been there,” Cotton said on his relationship with Gleeson.

“I think that's a big part of why both sides of the fence were excited about being reunited. And, yeah, now we're just saying what new memories we can create.”

Though Gleeson is returning to face Perth for the first time, Cotton doesn’t feel his head coach needs any advice in his return to the city where the pair shared so much success.

“Trev’s been in the game of basketball probably longer than I've been alive, so he'll figure it out," Cotton said..

"He'll be fine.”

The Sixers are coming off a gutsy win against Melbourne United at John Cain Arena in their first match of the season.

Adelaide battled through the absences of Isaac Humphries and John Jenkins, and injury to Flynn Cameron to grind out a 97-95 win against a team which many rate as one of the best in the league.

Cotton led Adelaide in scoring with 27 points and seven assists, continuing his incredible form from last season which saw him win his sixth NBL MVP.

The 34-year-old spoke about the toughness and depth of his side, describing the team as having a “next man up” mentality.

“I think it just shows how much our team is ready to get going, no matter the adversity we face,” Cotton said.

“I think the guys that ended up having to play more minutes than expected, they answered the call, and those are the things that you look for when wanting to be a championship calibre team.”

Cotton was speaking at the Lights Community and Sports Centre where the Adelaide 36ers Math Hoops Regional Tournament saw 132 students from 11 local schools take part.

Math Hoops is an educational program that combines the thrill of basketball with mathematics, statistics and teamwork.

Students participate in basketball-themed games, classroom activities and interactive challenges designed to improve maths fluency, social-emotional learning and student engagement. A team from Stirling East Primary School won Tuesday’s regional event and now has the chance to represent Australia at the NBA Math Hoops Global Championship in New York next year.

Cotton was king of the kids during the event, and reflecting afterwards said he only planned to be in Australia for just six weeks when he first signed with Perth in 2017.

Nine years later, he is still here, having even become an Australian citizen in late 2025, and represented the Australian National basketball team for the first time this year.

“(I thought I’d only be here) just those six weeks when I first came,” he said.

“I never thought I'd come back, but I was wrong and I've been wrong for, what, nine years.

“It brought my love for the game back. Once I found myself on the outside looking into the NBA, I felt like the political side put me on the short end of the stick, and I was pretty mad at basketball for the first time in my life.

“Coming to Australia helped me fall back in love with the game.”

Adelaide plays the Perth Wildcats at RAC Arena Thursday, 24 September 9:00pm ACST.

The game will be available to watch live on ESPN via Kayo or Disney+.