BIO: Born in Burnie, Tasmania, Knight played both basketball and Australian rules football as a junior. He was a talented footballer growing up, following in the steps of his father, Scott, who played five games for Collingwood in the VFL in 1984 before carving out a accomplished career in Tasmania.

Knight attended Smithton High School in 1997 and 1998 before linking up with the Tasmanian Institute of Sport (TIS) and joining the TIS Basketball Elite Development Squad.

During his junior basketball career, Knight played for the Tasmania under-16 team in 1999 and 2000, the under-18 team in 2001 and 2002, and the under-20 team in 2003. He was also a member of the All-Australian Junior Camp in 2002 and 2003. Knight received a scholarship to attend the Australian Institute of Sport (Canberra) in 2003. He spent one year there and played for the program’s state league team.

FAMILY: His father Scott played five games for Collingwood in the VFL in 1984 before carving out an accomplished career in Tasmania. In 2013, Knight considered a switch to Australian Rules football in order to follow in his father’s footsteps after attracting interest from WAFL club West Perth.

NBL EXPERIENCE

Matthew Knight made his NBL debut with the West Sydney Razorbacks at 22 years of age. He scored 16 points in his first game.

Knight and his Loyola-Marymount teammate Damian Martin, both joined Rob Beveridge at the West Sydney Razorbacks for the 2007/08 NBL season.

Razorbacks coach Rob Beveridge had also coached the duo during the Under 23 World Championships in 2003.

In his rookie season, Knight appeared in 25 of the team’s 30 games and averaged 12.0 points, 8.6 rebounds, and 1.1 assist per game. He also recorded six double-doubles. The Razorbacks finished the regular season in tenth place with a 10–20 record.

2008/09
For the 2008/09 season, the Razorbacks were renamed the Sydney Spirit in a bid to broaden their supporter base after the collapse of the Sydney Kings. Knight, Martin and Beveridge continued on with the Spirit, but financial difficulties soon besieged the club mid-season. After team owner Greg Evans was served a default notice, all players were asked to take a 50 percent pay cut. This led to the league having to step in and provide assistance in order for the club to play out the season.

The move saw the subsequent departure of Julian Khazzouh and import Derrick Low, to higher paying deals in Europe and the Spirit stumbled through the season and finished with a 11–19 record, missing the playoffs with a eighth-place finish.

Despite the struggles of the Spirit both on and off the court, Knight managed to have a very productive season, averaging 16.6 points, 8.4 rebounds, and 1.2 assists per game, as he played and started in every game throughout the season.

For his efforts, he earned NBL Most Improved Player honours and was named in the All-NBL third team. He also finished second in MVP voting.

PERTH WILDCATS
2010/11
During free agency, the Wildcats were able to retain star import Kevin Lisch despite several European clubs offering him much larger contracts, re-sign Shawn Redhage to a three-year deal and added Matthew Knight. Knight, who had previously played with Damian Martin and Rob Beveridge with the Sydney Spirit before they folded, leaving him to pursue a career overseas.

Knight’s debut season for the Wildcats began positively before a left calf injury suffered on 12 December 2010 against the Melbourne Tigers ruled him out for two months. Further injuries to both Jesse Wagstaff (11.4 points per game) and Shawn Redhage (18 points per game) threw the Wildcats’ season into even further disarray. Redhage’s injury in particular, which was originally feared to be career-ending after he dislocated his left hip during the Wildcats’ 77–76 loss to the Adelaide 36ers in Adelaide and he potentially required a hip replacement. The injury occurred after Redhage lunged for a contested ball in a way that punched the head of his femur through his pelvis, breaking the bone and dislocating the joint. Behind the multiple injuries the team stumbled through the regular season with

Kevin Lisch (13.5 points per game) delivering another impressive season, scoring in double figures in all but nine games, as the Wildcats finished in fourth place with a 16–12 record.

Perth would face the first-placed New Zealand Breakers in the semifinals and behind a 29-point effort from Lisch won game one of the series in Auckland in a blowout 101-78 win. The Breakers would rebound and win Games 2 (93-89) and game three (99-83), then go on to defeat Cairns to win the 2011 NBL championship. Knight was relatively injury free In 2011/12, and averaged 12.4 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 1.2 assists per game, while Kevin Lisch and Shawn Redhage were named co-MVPs for the Wildcats. This season would also see Damian Martin win the NBL Best Defensive Player award for the first time.

2011/12
Perth looked to get back on top in 2011 by adding 7’2 centre Luke Nevill with the aim of re-creating the ‘Perth Wall’ alongside Knight, who was relatively injury free in 2011/12, Jesse Wagstaff and Shawn Redhage, who was returning to action returned to action after a career threatening injury during the 2010/11 season.

Knight would average 10.8 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 1.3 assists for the season while Kevin Lisch became the first Wildcats player to lead the NBL in scoring as well as becoming the second Wildcat to ever win the NBL MVP.

The 2011/12 season saw the Wildcats jostle over top spot for the majority of the season with the New Zealand Breakers before the two teams met in the Grand Final

the Wildcat’s lost game one 104–98 in overtime but behind a 20 point game from Shawn Redhage and a final-second block on Breakers star CJ Bruton set up a third game to decide the championship. In game three the Breakers defeated the Wildcat’s 79–73 in front of 9,258 New Zealand faithful, the largest NBL crowd during the season.

2012/13
Prior to the season beginning, the state-of-the-art Perth Arena was finally completed and the 13,500 seat stadium become the new home of the Wildcats, starting with the 2012/13 season.

After undergoing off-season shoulder surgery, Matthew Knight entered season with the expectation that he was going to be the team’s go-to guy in the paint. Knight embraced the responsibility and excelled in the Wildcats’ season-opening win over the New Zealand Breakers, earning the NBL’s Player of the Week award for a 20-point, nine-rebound effort.

Kevin Lisch, who re-signed with the Wildcats (two-year deal), was coined the ‘best import in the league’ by coach Rob Beveridge at the start of the year, and he certainly proved that during the five rounds of the season. With Damian Martin injured Lisch ran the point for the first few weeks and averaged 22.0 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.3 steals per game during October, guiding the Wildcat’s to a 3–1 record.

Additionally, against the Townsville Crocodiles on October 14, Lisch played his 100th consecutive NBL games which, not coincidentally, was Rob Beveridge’s 100th game for the Wildcats as coach.

Import Michael Dunigan was brought in as a short-term replacement for Knight while he missed four games to injury and became a fan-favourite with his thunderous dunks and athletic blocks.

The team then faced another hurdle when co-captain Brad Robbins abruptly retired just eight games into the season, citing he had lost his motivation and passion for the game. Not long after, Cameron Tovey also announced he would retire after the 2012/13 season.

Despite the turmoil, Knight averaged 13.7 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 0.7 assists helping the Wildcat’s finish second on the ladder with a 19–9 record. Lisch and Knight were named in the All-NBL First Team, and the Wildcats finished second on the ladder with a 22–6 record. Perth swept the Wollongong Hawks in the semifinals to move on to the 2013 NBL Grand Final series, a re-match from last season against the New Zealand Breakers which would be their third time facing the Breakers in a playoff series in as many years.

Another injury hurdle struck the Wildcat’s when Damian Martin was ruled out of the grand final series with a Achilles injury. To cover his loss Brad Robbins was subsequently rushed back into the team to take Martin’s place, but with the team missing Martin the Breakers defeated Perth in two straight games, winning their third consecutive championship in 2013.

In late May 2013, Lisch and coach Rob Beveridge parted ways with the Wildcats after four seasons. Lisch ended his four-year tenure in Perth to pursue his European aspirations, finishing with career averages of 14.6 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 2.7 assists per game.

In 2013, Knight considered a switch to Australian Rules football in order to follow in his father’s footsteps after attracting interest from WAFL club West Perth.

2013/14
“Having been defeated by the New Zealand Breakers in the previous two Grand Final series and then losing star import Kevin Lisch (to France), the Wildcat’s revamped their roster, looking to bring a new look squad and style that would deliver the team a sixth championship.

Team changes included the departure of Rob Beveridge, Kevin Lisch (who would follow Beveridge to Illawarra) and Cameron Tovey. The Wildcats’ then reloaded first by appointing Trevor Gleeson as head coach and signing two new imports in small forward James Ennis, who had just been selected as the 50th overall pick in the 2013 NBA draft, and shooting guard Jermaine Beal. Hard-nosed point guard Damian Martin would be named team captain, and Perth’s core group of Shawn Redhage, Jesse Wagstaff, Matthew Knight and Greg Hire all returned. Tom Jervis, as well as guards Drake U’U and Erik Burdon, were also signed to bolster the team’s bench.

A search to replace a former NBL MVP is never easy, but when Wildcats managing director Nick Marvin and head coach Trevor Gleeson witnessed his ability first hand at the NBA Summer League, they knew they had a star.

Ennis opened the season with 25 points and 4 rebounds on debut, a three-point victory over arch-rivals Adelaide, the most points scored by a Wildcat on NBL debut at the time. Ennis would earn player of the month in his first month as a Wildcat as Perth began the season with a 8-0 start.

Injuries to Knight forced the club to sign Jarrad Prue and Jeremiah Trueman as short-term injury replacements in October and January, but the Wildcats were still the clear pacesetters for the league. By the league’s mid-season break for the All-Star game, they sat in first place with a 12-1 record, and it was clear that Perth possessed the league’s best import duo that season. James Ennis (21.2 points, 7.1 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 1.4 steals) and Jermaine Beal (15.6 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 3.4 assists), perfectly complemented the league’s best defender Damian Martin (7.6 points, 4.7 rebounds, and 4.1 assists 2.2 steals) and best villain Shawn Redhage (13.6 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 2.6 assists) and to no surprise, Perth finished the season on top of the ladder and reached the postseason for their 28th year in a row. Ennis and Beal were named to the All-NBL first and second team’s respectively.

Once into the postseason, the Wildcat’s eliminated the Wollongong Hawks first in straight sets, while on the other side of the bracket, their historic rivals Adelaide eliminated Melbourne in three games to see both team’s progress to the 2014 Grand Final.

The grand final would see first-placed Perth face second-ranked Adelaide with game one held in Perth. Wildcats star import James Ennis (30 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 assists) would lead Perth in points, rebounds, and assists, resulting in Perth claiming the win (92-85) and taking a 1-0 series lead.

Game two saw the 36ers force a deciding third game in front of 8,127 fans (their largest crowd of the season) rally their team to a 89-84 win behind high scoring from Gary Ervin (23 points) and a all-round game from Adam Gibson (18 points, 9 rebounds, and 7 assists) to even the series (1-1).

In response, 13,498 of Perth’s ‘red army’ would show up to see Perth defeat Adelaide and win their sixth NBL title. With James Ennis subdued by foul trouble, the Wildcat’s most experienced duo, Shawn Redhage and Damian Martin, were relied upon to pick up the slack. Redhage, scored 10 of his 16 points in the first term to help his team settle into the contest, while Martin produced a superb defensive effort on 36ers star Gary Ervin, limiting Adelaide’s game two hero to just four points while adding 14 points and six rebounds to the stat sheet. Greg Hire (9 rebounds, 5 assists) and Jermaine Beal (15 points) provided key contributions to help Perth bury the demons of successive grand final defeats in the past two seasons.

While Anthony Petrie (20 points) gave up for the 36ers, he lacked the support from fellow starters Adam Gibson (8 points) and Daniel Johnson (9 points), both of whom had been influential in the first two games of the series.

After his huge opening game, Ennis struggled to make a impact in Games two and three, and Beal would go on to win Finals MVP after averaging 17.6 points per game, shooting 48% from beyond the three-point line. Knight would finish the season by playing in 18 games and averaging 10.1 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 1.3 assists.

2014/15
In 2014, the reigning NBL champions would see close to their entire roster run it back for a chance to repeat as NBL champions. Perth were able to re-sign both Shawn Redhage and Damian Martin (both 3 year deals) and have Jermaine Beal, Damian Martin, Matthew Knight, Greg Hire and Tom Jervis return. Although the team would lose star import James Ennis to the NBA they were able to replace him with another star in Deandre Daniels (14.8 points and 7.7 rebounds) as their second import.

On 16 November 2014, Knight played his 100th game for the Wildcats in a 85–66 win over the Sydney Kings. In 30 minutes of action, he recorded 16 points and eight rebounds. Knight would go on to average 10.5 points, 7 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game but suffer a toe injury in January which kept him out for six weeks.

The 2014/15 season turned out to be a near carbon copy of the 2010/11 season for the Wildcats as they finished fourth on the ladder with a 16–12 record as they struggled through injuries all season. Knight, Redhage (2 games) and Hire (19 games) all missing games during the season.

This banged-up Perth Wildcats’ team still managed a fourth-place finish before being swept out of the playoffs by a Cairns Taipans squad led by Scottie Wilbekin, who led cairns in scoring, rebounds, and assists in both games. Wilbekin notched up 28 points, 10 rebounds, and 4 assists in Perth’s 64-71 game one loss and 16 points, 11 rebounds, and 6 assists as Cairns won game two, 80-68, to eliminate Perth from the playoffs.

Knight’s play was recognised with a spot on the All-NBL second team.

2015/16
After a injury-riddled season in 2014/15 saw the Wildcats suffer a semi-final defeat, much like in 2010/11 coach Trevor Gleeson was confident heading into the 2015/16 season that he had assembled a team capable of winning the club’s seventh championship. After conceding his side struggled with chemistry issues in 2014/15 the Wildcat’s added high-profile recruits Casey Prather and Nathan Jawai as well as backup guard Jarrod Kenny to correct team balance.

With the team’s acquisition of Nathan Jawai a injury-free Matthew Knight was able to move to his natural position of power forward for the first time and together with Tom Jervis the Wildcats would feature a formidable frontcourt. The Wildcats battled with Melbourne United for top spot on the ladder all season, including Jermaine Beal notching up a career high 40 points, sinking 10 three-pointers as Perth dismantled Melbourne 113-83 in December.

Knight would average 11.6 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 1.4 assists as Perth remained relatively injury-free and finished the regular season in second place with a 18–10 record. The Wildcats extended their string of consecutive playoff appearances to 30 and made light work of the Rob Beveridge-led Illawarra Hawks in game one of the semi finals. Caey Prather would score 19 points and lead the Wildcats to a 80-68 victory.

Game 2, the Hawks would even the score behind perhaps Oscar Forman best playoff game, one where he barely missed and finished with 21 points to defeat the Wildcat’s in convincing fashion, 104–87.

Back at home, Perth would win the series, 2-1 with a 89-74 victory. Jermaine Beal would lead the team in scoring with 17 points and Prather would add 15 points, including a thunderous one-handed slam over AJ Ogilvy early in the fourth quarter to set up a NBL Finals series against reigning champs, the New Zealand Breakers.

In the NBL Grand Final series, Prather helped the Wildcat’s defeat the New Zealand Breakers 2–1 to win the championship, as he had a team-high 19 points in the series-clinching 75–52 game three win.

Knight appeared in 33 of the team’s 34 games in 2015/16, averaging 11.6 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 1.4 assists per game. At the conclusion of the regular season, Knight was named in the All-NBL second team for the second straight year.

In game one, the Wildcats would rely on Jawai’s presence inside, Prather’s athleticism, tough defence and ability to finish at the rim and Kenny being able to support captain Damian Martin admirably, all the critical areas they were missing the season prior, to take a 1-0 lead behind a six point win (82–76).

With game two back in New Zealand, the Breakers evened the score, winning 72–68 on the back of a near triple-double from import Cedric Jackson who finished with 13 points, 9 rebounds, and 8 assists.

With the deciding game in Perth and 13,090 of the ‘Red Army’ in attendance, the Wildcats’ core of Redhage, Wagstaff, Knight, Hire, Beal and Jervis made sure history didn’t repeat itself. Casey Prather (19 points) and Jermaine Beal (14 points) did most of the damage on the scoreboard for the Wildcats, but it was Martin’s inspirational display in defence that shone the brightest. Martin would be named Grand Final MVP after keeping star Breakers guard Cedric Jackson scoreless in the deciding game as the Wildcat’s claimed their seventh championship in a blowout win (75–52).

2016/17
The 2016 offseason saw a lot of change in personnel, with three key players from the 16 championship team (Nathan Jawai, Tom Jervis and Jermaine Beal) moving on. To replace them, coach Trevor Gleeson brought in Angus Brandt, Jameel McKay and Jaron Johnson and headed into the 2016/17 season attempting to secure the team’s first back-to-back championships since 1991.

On 19 April 2016, Knight re-signed with the Wildcats on a two-year deal, a month after undergoing shoulder stabilisation surgery on his left arm. Unfortunately, injury struck down Knight again during the 2016 pre-season. On 12 September 2016, he was ruled out for two months after suffering a subluxation of his right shoulder during training a week earlier. However, the joint responded well to rehab and after a week of full training with the team. To cover for the loss of Knight, the team added veteran forward Lucas Walker, who had been training with Melbourne United after not being re-signed by the Adelaide 36ers.

After adding Walker, the Wildcats started the season off strong with a 4–1 record, but things went south quickly after that. Wildcats medical staff gave him the all-clear on 20 October 2016 and Walker was removed from the active roster. Despite being removed from the 11-man roster Walker remained with the team as a training player but did not play for the remainder of the season.

Knight made his season debut the following day, recording 12 points and eight rebounds in a 80–73 win over the Illawarra Hawks.

On 23 October 2016, Martin recorded a career-high 13 rebounds in a 72–69 win over Melbourne United. During the game, he received a heavy knock to the head, with x-rays revealing a fracture to the left side of his jaw. Consequently, he was ruled out for two weeks of action. He returned after missing just one game but sustained another injury, this time a grade three MCL tear in his left knee against Adelaide (5 Nov 16) and was subsequently ruled out for 10 to 12 weeks.

the Wildcats had slumped to the last spot in December with a 7–9 record as the team’s long-term injuries to Martin, Knight and Jarrod Kenny had impacted the Wildcat’s significantly.

Import Jaron Johnson would take the brunt of the Wildcats’ poor start, and he was axed just three games into the season and replaced with three-point specialist Andre Ingram.

In a bizarre twist, Ingram left the team and returned to the US after just two games, citing mental issues, and Johnson was brought back into the team. It was at this time Perth legend Shawn Redhage announced that the 2016/17 season would be his last.

Johnson’s reinstatement was a temporary solution, and he was shown the door again in December with the Wildcats seizing the opportunity to sign former NBA guard Bryce Cotton.

With the addition of Cotton, the Wildcat’s became a completely different team and went on to win eight of their remaining twelve regular-season games as the team squeezed into the playoffs behind after winning two must win games to finish in fourth place.

Knight appeared in 27 of the team’s 33 games, averaging 9.4 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game which included a season-best 24 point and 13 rebound effort in a 87–86 overtime loss to the New Zealand Breakers.

From there, the Wildcat’s rolled through the Finals undefeated to claim the title, first sweeping the second-seeded Cairns Taipans and then delivering a 3–0 Grand Final sweep of the Illawarra Hawks.

In game one of the best-of-five grand final series, Knight scored 18 points to help lift the Wildcat’s to a 89–77 win over the Illawarra Hawks. In game two of the series, Knight had to be helped off the court after seemingly innocuous contact from teammate Casey Prather early in the third quarter. He was subsequently ruled out of Game 3. Despite being without Knight, the Wildcats successfully defended their title with a 3–0 series sweep. It marked the Wildcats’ eighth championship and Knight’s third. a incredible achievement in what was arguably the closest season in NBL history.

The Wildcats went back-to-back for the first time since 1990/1991, while Gleeson became the first coach to guide the Wildcat’s to back-to-back championships.

At the end of the season Wildcats managing director Nick Marvin acknowledged that the club would consult with Knight regarding his six concussion-related incidents in six years raising concerns over his long-term health.

2017/18
The Wildcats were able to re-sign Grand Final MVP Bryce Cotton for the 2017/18 season but lost two-time Club MVP, Casey Prather, to Melbourne United. The team replaced Prather was Devondrick Walker, but when he suffered a foot injury during the pre-season, the Wildcat’s replaced him with JP Tokoto. Other changes to the roster included Derek Cooke Jr. coming in to replace the outgoing Jameel McKay, and Lucas Walker stepping up from a training player role to a full-time squad member in place of the retired Shawn Redhage.

Matt Knight made it public that he would retire at the end of the 2017/18 season after battling shoulder problems and concussion in 2016/17. Knight had hoped to avoid injuries for one last season but on 13 September 2017 he was ruled out for the remainder of the club’s pre-season games with a thumb injury. The injury occurred in the Wildcats’ opening game of the NBL Blitz. Scans revealed a small fracture and ligament damage in his right thumb, with Wildcats medical staff opting to take a non-surgical approach to repairing the injury.

The injury-prone Knight later suffered head knocks against Brisbane and Cairns early in the season, but concerns for his future were only fully taken into account following another head knock that came accidentally at training on 30 October. As a result, Knight brought forward his retirement plans, calling time on his 236-game NBL career on 6 November 2017. He averaged 5.4 points and 2.2 rebounds in his last NBL season and finished his career with 2,800 points and 1,646 rebounds.

the Wildcat’s then start their season with a 10–3 record, before dropping to 13–9 in mid-January and they finished the regular season in third place with a 16–12 record. They went on to lose to the Adelaide 36ers in the semifinals.

As a member of the Wildcats, Knight became a four-time All-NBL Team member and a three-time NBL champion (2014, 2016 and 2017).

Matthew Knight played ten seasons across three NBL teams. This included the West Sydney Razorbacks, Sydney Spirit and Perth Wildcats. He averaged 11.9 points, 7 rebounds, and 1.2 assists in 229 NBL games.

Dan Boyce (815 Posts)

Dan Boyce is a die-hard Sydney Kings fan who grew up in Melbourne during the roaring 90's of Australian Basketball and spent far too much time collecting Futera NBL Basketball cards.