NICKNAME/S: The Garbage Man, The Scoring Machine

BIO: Redhage was born in Jacksonville, Florida but grew up in Lincoln, Nebraska. He attended Lincoln East High School, where he played for the school’s basketball team in each of his four years. He averaged 22.1 points and nine rebounds in 1997/98 and 21.0 points and 9.4 rebounds in 1998/99. He led the team to a 19–3 record in senior season (1998/99) and was subsequently named Nebraska Player of the Year (honorary captain) and Class A first-team all-state by the Omaha World-Herald. He ended his career as the school’s career leader for rebounds (554), assists (315) and blocks (235), while finishing second in points with 1,206.

Known as “The Scoring Machine” for becoming the fastest Wildcats player ever to score 2000 points, Redhage spent his early years in the NBL as a force on the interior before becoming known for his knockdown ability from deep as his career progressed.

NBL EXPERIENCE

Shawn Redhage made his NBL debut with the New Zealand Breakers at 23 years of age. He scored 27 points in his first game.

The Breakers entered their second NBL season looking to improve on their tenth-place finish in their first year during their debut season. The Breakers moved Frank Arsego, who had replaced Jeff Green mid-season, into a permanent position as the team’s head coach. The next move was locking in the Breakers’ leading scorer and MVP from the previous season, Mike Chappell, and replacing import Casey Frank with Shawn Redhage, who had been dominating the state league (SEABL).

Ben Melmeth would return to his hometown of Newcastle to play for the Hunter Pirates. He was replaced with fellow Aussie big man Ben Pepper, whose former team, the Victoria Giants, had vacated the league due to financial issues.

To begin the season, Paul Henare was made co-captain, alongside last year’s ‘skipper’ Pero Cameron, and despite falling short in their opening game (a re-match of the team’s first ever game against Adelaide, which they lost 94-106) they started the season by splitting the first games six games and sit within the middle of the were pack with a 3-3 record.

Although Redhage (12.2 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.4 assists) made a impressive start to the season, a form slump in November, which saw the team lose six of its seven games, led to Redhage’s court time being reduced and eventually his release after 13 games.

While Redhage would go on to sign with Perth and become one of the NBL’s all-time greats, his replacement came in the form of Marcus Timmons (9.3 points, 7.2 rebounds, 1.9 assists, and 1.5 steals). A clear mistake had been made there, however, as shortly after taking the court, it was clear Timmons was no longer the player he was back when he joined the Melbourne Tigers mid-season in 1997 and led them to a championship.

Chappell (18 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 2.0 assists) would lead the team in scoring for a second consecutive season, while Aaron Olson would boost his scoring from 10.8 points per game to 15.5 points per game and win the club’s MVP award at the end of the season.

Redhage appeared in 13 games and averaged 12.2 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.4 assists, while the Breakers finished in eleventh place (9-23), failing to improve on their debut season.

PERTH WILDCATS
2005/06
After Ricky Grace retired in 2005, veteran Tony Ronaldson was elevated to team captain of the Wildcats. While the team looked to build on its disappointing seventh place finish last season, they kept the majority of their local intact, the only major change being the departures of Grace, Adrian Majstrovich (New Zealand), and seldom used Braith Cox (Melbourne), while replacing them with Paul Rogers (via Spain), Dillon Boucher (via New Zealand) and rookie swingman Cameron Tovey.

The Wildcats did clean house when it came to imports, however. The departing Rosell Ellis (to South) and Rashad Tucker (to Melbourne) would be replaced by point guard David Bailey and Shawn Redhage, who joined the team after being unceremoniously cut by New Zealand in 2004.

In his first season at Perth, Redhage (20.0 points, 9.0 rebounds, and 3.1 assists), perhaps motivated by his Breakers’ experience, led the team in scoring alongside Bailey (17.7 points, 5.2 rebounds, 6.2 assists, and 2.0 steals), who proved to be a competent replacement for Grace.

With their two imports delivering, Tony Ronaldson (14.9 points, 5 rebounds, and 2.0 assists), Peter Crawford (14.3 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 2.0 steals) would add additional scoring with veteran Matthew Shanahan (11.1 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 4.4 assists) produced the best season of his career coming off the bench.

Despite the reshuffled roster, Perth would finish seventh for the second season in a row.

Despite not having a winning record (16-16), the team qualified for the playoffs, with the league allowing the top eight team’s to proceed to the postseason.

There, things all began to click for the Wildcats, and after upset victories over both the sixth-ranked Brisbane (96-91) and third-ranked Wollongong (101-121), the team found themselves in a unlikely semi final appearance, facing off against a powerhouse Melbourne squad.

Behind the NBL MVP Chris Anstey and former Wildcat Rashad Tucker, the Tigers would prove too strong. Anstey (28 points and 11 rebounds) and Tucker (10 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 steals) delivered a comfortable 94-78 Melbourne win at home in game one. Then backing it in Perth, winning 106-101, with Anstey (29 points and 6 rebounds) and Tucker (9 points, 11 rebounds, and 5 assists), ending Perth’s ‘Cinderella’ playoff run and going on to win the NBL championship.

Redhage would appear in 36 games and averaged 20 points, 9 rebounds, and 3.1 assists, while Redhage’s first year in Perth saw him finish runner-up in league MVP voting.

In February 2006, West Australian businessman Jack Bendat became the chairman and majority shareholder of the franchise. Although no longer the majority shareholder, Andrew Vlahov remained in control of the team as managing director. Bendat then assumed full control in 2007.

2006/07
In 2006, although they made the playoffs, the Wildcat’s failed to finish with a winning record, which had occurred only seven times prior. With the team’s backcourt highlighted as a major cause of their problems, and import point guard David Bailey being fined ($ 5,000) and reprimanded for testing positive for cannabis during in-season tests by the Australian Sports Anti-Doping Authority (ASADA), a roster rehaul was undertaken as a result with Coach Scott Fisher replacing 50% of the team.

Shawn Redhage, Paul Rogers, Tony Ronaldson, Peter Crawford and Jeff Dowdell returned, and young guards Damien Ryan, Adam Caporn and Brad Robbins to solve the team’s backcourt woes.

The team signed import Darren Brooks to pair with Redhage and provide some additional offensive firepower while being a pesky defender in the backcourt. Another key move saw Rogers replace Tony Ronaldson as team captain.

During a campaign that also saw the Wildcats celebrate their 25th anniversary, Redhage (21.4 points, 8.1 rebounds, 5.0 assists, and 1.2 steals) led the team in scoring for the second straight season, this included his 30 point, 11 rebound and 15 assist game against West Sydney, here he became the first player in NBL history to record a triple double with 30 points and 15 assists. A few days later, he recorded 20 points and 20 rebounds against Sydney to be a no-brainer for the NBL Player of the Week award.

Rogers (15.6 points and 10.5 rebounds) doubled his offensive output from last season and led the team rebounding, while Brooks (15.7 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 2.0 steals) led the league in steals.

Perth (23-10) would record their highest number of wins in a single season (although historically, they have recorded better win-loss ratios) but flounder in the playoffs, seeing their season end thanks to a loss against Cairns (78-82) in the Quarterfinals.

2007/08
After being eliminated in the first round of the playoffs, the Wildcat’s moved on from veteran Tony Ronaldson (to New Zealand) and guard Damien Ryan (Europe), looking to get younger and bigger and replaced them with Alex Loughton (Spain) and Tom Garlepp (NCAA). after an impressive debut season, Perth could not retain import Darren Brooks who received several lucrative offers from overseas and replaced him with Rashad Phillips.

Despite leading the league in assists, Phillips (13.7 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 7.5 assists) was released six games into the season, with the team sitting on a 3-3 record and head coach Scott Fisher citing Phillps fitness being the main issue.

‘ Unfortunately, Rashad never really showed us the athleticism or intensity needed to make himself or those around him better. Plus, he never really contributed to the defensive side of things. He lacked the leadership and on-court management that this group needs. So we felt it was in the best interest of the club to delist him.’

The team immediately replaced him with Gerald Brown (13.0 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 3.6 assists), who had been a former teammate of Luc Longley at the Phoenix Suns.

Rookie Loughton (14.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 1.0 steals)impressed during his rookie season, finishing second in Rookie of the Year voting (losing to Nathan Jawai). Shawn Redhage (22.9 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 3.3 assists) delivered a career high scoring season, which incliuded a career-high 40 points against Adelaide (10 Oct 2007) and became the fastest Wildcat to reach 2,000 career points, doing so in 95 games and 3,400 minutes. Captain Paul Rogers (12.2 points, 9.2 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 1.2 blocks) proved he was still one of the competition’s elite big men, earning a spot on the All-NBL Third Team, joining Redhage who earned a spot on the All-NBL First Team. Despite the high-level play from Redhage and Rogers the team just couldn’t win on the road. Close to unbeatable at home (12-3) but woeful in away games (6-9), the Wildcats finished the season in fourth place (18-12).

Much like their results from the regular season, Perth was able to win at home but struggled on the road in the playoffs. They defeated fifth seed Townsville at home (96-78) in their quarterfinal matchup, but upon reaching the semi finals against Sydney, they were outmatched. Perth would push the Kings to the limit on their home court in game one (101-98) rebound behind a huge game from Redhage (35 points) to gain a win on home soil in game two (94-85) only to have Sydney hand Perth their worse loss of the season in game three (109-77), ending their playoff run. Shortly after, coach Fisher announced that he would not seek a new contract from the Wildcat’s and would return to the United States.

2008/09
After four seasons of leading the Wildcats, coach Scott Fisher decided it was time to return to his family in the US. Upon Fisher’s announcement that he would not return after leading the Wildcats to within one game of the grand final, a worldwide search was conducted for the hiring of the team’s next coach. Ultimately, Fisher’s replacement would be Conner Henry, a former college teammate of Fisher’s who had been with the Wildcats since 2006 as a assistant coach.

The core of the Wildcat’s roster, Shawn Redhage (University of Utah), Alex Loughton, Peter Crawford and Paul Rogers, would all return, with the only major changes to the team’s local roster being the additions of Ben Knight (via Singapore), Chris Goulding (via Brisbane) and Rookie Stephen Weigh. As a result of Shawn Redhage becoming a naturalised Australian (Jan 08), the Wildcats had the luxury of being able to sign two new imports with athletic forward Isiah Victor (via Sydney) and Darnell Hinson (via West Sydney), who both delivered debut NBL seasons the year prior.

Perth entered the season fighting off multiple injuries, with guards Adam Caporn, Brad Robbins, and Peter Crawford all fighting through knee issues. The team even placed starting centre Rogers on the deactivated list due to a lingering knee complaint. The additional roster spot allowed Perth to pull off a major recruiting coup, beating Melbourne Tigers and South Dragons for the signature of former Boomers point guard Luke Kendall.

At the mid-way point of the season, Rogers returned to the lineup, forcing the Wildcat’s to release Kendall (8.5 points, 2.2 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.2 steals), who had become a key reserve with Robbins managing only three games over the season. Kendall signed a deal to play with Melbourne shortly after, who needed a replacement for Sam MacKinnon after medical staff advised him not to return to play. Team captain Rogers (9 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.0 blocks) played in only two games before a ruptured disc in his back that required surgery kept him out of the remaining games.

Perth’s efforts during the regular season were a carbon copy of the one before. The Wildcats were a force at home (11-4) but couldn’t win on the road (6-9), finishing in fourth place (17-13) for the second year in a row. Shawn Redhage (19.2 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 3.5 assists) would lead the team in scoring and rebounding, earning selection to the Al-NBL Second Team along the way. Hinson (13.8 points, 4.6 rebounds, 5.0 assists, and 1.7 steals), Loughton (13 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 2.0 assists) and Victor (12.8 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 1.0 assists) all playing key roles also.

Once into the postseason, Perth faced fifth seed Townsville, who defeated them in the Elimination Finals (96-103), delivering a abrupt end to their season and ending their playoff run and ensuring Henry’s tenure lasted only one season.

2009/10
Following the 2008/09 season, the Wildcats came within weeks of folding unless they raised a million dollars in sponsorship. The NBL itself was also in strife; with the competition falling on tough times, there was a real possibility at the time that there would be no league in 2009-10. Collaborating with other clubs, the Wildcats helped reform the league.

Once the season was given the green light, the Wildcats hired a new coach in Rob Beveridge, who was tasked with recruiting a new-look team where Shawn Redhage, Stephen Weigh and Brad Robbins would be complimented by newly acquired proven talent Damian Martin (via Sydney), Drew Williamson (via Townsville), Luke Schenscher (via Adelaide), Martin Cattalini (via Cairns) and rookie Jesse Wagstaff to round out the bench. Import Kevin Lisch was then recruited to lead the Wildcats on the offensive end and lead the team into a new era. Just prior to the season kicking off, Paul Rogers relinquished the captaincy heading into the 2009/10 season, handing over the reins to Redhage. In what would be his final NBL season, Rogers would play two games before a injury to his elbow and triceps in the team’s second game would see him sidelined for the rest of the season. The injuries would ultimately end Rogers’ playing career, and the Wildcats signed import Galen Young as his replacement.

Lisch started out slowly over his initial weeks in the league, averaging only 11.4 points across his first five NBL games. A victory over the Melbourne Tigers (94-90) where he dropped a season-high 21 points in 27 minutes, proved to all that he would be a force in this league. By January, the Wildcats had emerged as clear frontrunners (13 wins, 8 losses) as new point guard Damian Martin (8.3 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 2.9 assists) delivered his best season to date, numbers which would earn him a Australian Boomers call-up at the end of the season. Alongside them, Redhage would finish the season with averages of 15.1 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 1.8 assists.

The team rolled through the regular season to finish in first place (17-11) before going on to the semi finals to face Gold Coast (fourth seed). Lisch (19 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists) led the Wildcats in scoring in game one (81-68). In game two, Lisch (18 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 assists) backed it up, by leading the team to victory once again (82-78), sending Perth through to a Grand Final matchup with Wollongong (making their first Grand Final series since 2003).

Perth started the series with a very comfortable win at home (75–64), with Lisch (15 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 3 steals and 1 block) filling the box score. The series then moved to Wollongong for game two, where the Hawks rebounded to defeat Perth (75-63), with both Lisch (11 points) and Redhage (9 points) struggling to make a impact in the loss.

After Games 1 and 2 proved to be comfortable victories for each home team, the series returned to Perth for the third and deciding game, where the Wildcats found themselves down by as many as 11 points in the second quarter. Redhage (9 points, 7 rebounds, and 4 assists) was again limited by the Hawks, but Lisch (29 points and 5 rebounds) would prove to be the difference-maker in the second half, defeating Wollongong (96–72) and guiding the team to a record fifth NBL Championship. Lisch was subsequently named Finals MVP after averaging 18 points and 4 rebounds over the three-game series.

2010/11
After winning the 2010 championship, Wildcats legends Paul Rogers and Martin Cattalini decided to retire, leaving room for Perth to bring in some younger talent. Ater Majok, Greg Hire, Cameron Tovey, Jeremiah Trueman, and big man Matthew Knight being the key addition. Perth had beaten out multiple offers from both European and NBL team’s offering contracts to Knight, who had spent the past season playing in Hungary. During the off-season, he was pursued by multiple European and NBL clubs, but Knight, who had previously played under coach Rob Beveridge and alongside Damian Martin with the Sydney Spirit before they exited the NBL, ultimately chose to sign with the Wildcats. Another major coup came with the team being able to retain star import Kevin Lisch despite him several European clubs offering him much larger contracts and re-signed Shawn Redhage (three-year deal).

Knight’s debut season for the Wildcats began positively before tearing his left calf muscle in a win over Melbourne (12 Dec). The injury ruled Knight out for two months, and a injury to Jesse Wagstaff (ankle ligaments) saw him on the sidelines as well shortly after. On Christmas Eve, the Wildcats signed Ater Majok (7.5 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 2.0 blocks) to a six-week deal as an injury replacement for Jesse Wagstaff and Matthew Knight. 8 games later Majok was released due to behavioural issues. Despite his short stint in Perth, Majok became a favourite amongst the Wildcat’s fans with due to his shot blocking ability, blocking a total of 11 shots in his first three games. This forced coach Beveridge to sign former NBA big man Andre Brown (9.3 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 0.6 steals) in a attempt to improve the interior weaknesses since losing Knight (12.4 points and 6.7 rebounds) and Wagstaff (8.4 points and 4.3 rebounds).

Shortly after, a hip injury to leading scorer Shawn Redhage (18.0 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 1.7 assists) resulted in losing him for the second half of the season, throwing another spanner into the Wildcats’ hunt for back-to-back titles. Redhage dislocated his left hip during a loss to Adelaide (77–76) on the road. Redhage had 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. The injury was originally feared to be career-ending, with Redhage potentially requiring a hip replacement.

The Wildcats lost four consecutive games following Redhage’s injury, winning only two from the team’s remaining eight matches, as Kevin Lisch (13.5 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.5 assists, and 1.0 steals) delivered another impressive season, scoring in double figures in all but nine games.

the Wildcats finished the season in fourth place (16-12) and would earn a semi final matchup against New Zealand.

The Undermanned Wildcats rode the brilliance of Kevin Lisch (29 points), who almost single-handedly won the opening game of the series for Perth (101-78 win). After losing in Auckland, the Breakers would travel to Perth and win games two (93-89) and three (99-83) before going on to defeat Cairns to win the 2011 NBL championship.

Kevin Lisch and Shawn Redhage were named co-MVPs for the Wildcats, and Damian Martin (8.8 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 2.4 steals) claimed the league’s Best Defensive Player award for the first time. Martin also made history by becoming the first player to be named to the All-NBL First Team and average under nine points per game. .

In honour of @Redhage42 retiring, here is his comeback video I made for the @perthWildcats 11 years ago.

Still one of the worst injuries I’ve ever seen in a @nbl game.

Cheers to a helluva career Scoring Machine! #42ForeverRedhage pic.twitter.com/R1I69ixJrP

— Full Court Fitness (@AdamWesterhout) November 15, 2022

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

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. Lisch (17.3 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 3.2 assists) finished the season as the league’s leading scorer (the first Wildcats player to lead the NBL in scoring) and won the NBL Most Valuable Player award. Shawn Redhage (13.8 points, 4.4 rebounds, and 2.6 assists), Jesse Wagstaff (11.4 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 1.3 assists) and Matthew Knight (10.8 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 1.3 assists) were key to the Wildcat’s success, as was Damian Martin (7.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 3.5 assists) claimed his second consecutive Best Defensive Player award.

Redhage made his remarkable return in the Wildcats’ season opener against the 36ers in Adelaide on 8 October 2011, the same arena where his horrific injury occurred nine months earlier, Redhage scored a game-high 26 points (6-of-9 threes) alongside Kevin Lisch (23 points at 73 percent) and Jesse Wagstaff (22 points at 50 percent), who also delivered big games, and handed Adelaide their biggest opening night loss in team history (69-102).

After just narrowly missing out on the opening round’s Player of the Week award, Redhage went on to earn Player of the Week honours for Round 2 after recording 21 points, seven rebounds, and four assists in a win over Melbourne (92–76) on 14 October 2011. Redhage concluded the season by earning Player of the Week honours for Round 25 after scoring 19 points and adding seven rebounds, two steals, one assist and one blocked shot to help the Wildcat’s finish the regular season with a road win over Melbourne (72–71).

Perth (19-9) entered the playoffs as the second seed, and after defeating Gold Coast in the semifinals (2-1), they would face New Zealand in the Grand Final. After losing to the Breakers in game one in Auckland, the Wildcat’s looked down and out in game two in Perth also. All looked lost for Perth In game two, who trailed the Breakers for much of the game until Hire, who had averaged five minutes a game for the season, delivered a rousing half-time speech before injecting life into Perth in the third term. Backing up his words, he registered seven points and four rebounds in the following quarter. Hire (2.7 points, 1.6 rebounds, and 0.5 assists) led a Perth comeback that turned a 13 point deficit to a one-point win (87–86) and was decided only by a memorable final-second shot from Breakers guard CJ Bruton being blocked by Shawn Redhage.

It all ended with the team returning to Auckland for game three and suffering a six-point loss (79-73) in front of 9,258 New Zealand faithful, the largest NBL crowd of the season.

2012/13
Before the season began, the state-of-the-art Perth Arena was completed, with the 13,500 seat stadium becoming the new home of the Wildcat’s in 2012. Perth began the season hoping for Matthew Knight, who had undergone off-season shoulder surgery, to become 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.

a early season win against the Townsville (Oct 14) saw Kevin Lisch (15.2 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 3.0 assists) play in his 100th consecutive NBL game and Rob Beveridge coach 100 games for the Wildcats. Amidst the celebrations however, Knight (13.7 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 0.7 assists) succumbed to another injury that saw him miss four games. Import Michael Dunigan (13.8 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks) was brought in as a short-term replacement, becoming a fan-favourite with his thunderous dunks and athletic blocks before exiting the club once Knight returned to health.

Ten games in, Perth faced another hurdle when co-captain Brad Robbins (3.9 points, 2.0 rebounds, and 1.8 assists) abruptly retired, citing he had lost his motivation and passion for the game. Rhys Carter (6.0 points, 2.8 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.4 steals), who had been playing in Sweden, was brought in as a replacement for Robbins and played the remaining 16 games as Damian Martin (6.5 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 3.2 assists) was elevated to co-captain alongside Shawn Redhage (14.6 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 2.7 assists) upon Robbins’ retirement. Shortly after, Cameron Tovey (1.5 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 0.9 assists) also announced he would retire at the season’s end.

Despite the shuffling of the roster, the Wildcat’s went on to finish in second-place (22–6).

Lisch and Knight were both selected to the All-NBL first team and together, swept Wollongong in the semifinals (2-0), setting up a Grand Final rematch against New Zealand, their third time facing the Breakers in a playoff series in as many years. Damian Martin (6.5 points, 4.9 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 1.9 steals) won his third consecutive Best Defensive Player award before learning a injury to his Achilles would stop him from playing in the Grand Final series. a emergency call was then made to the retired Brad Robbins, who was rushed back into the lineup as a replacement, but with the team missing Martin, New Zealand defeated Perth in two straight games, winning their third consecutive championship in 2013. Redhage appeared in 32 games, averaging 14.6 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 2.7 assists.

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. Also during this season, Shawn Redhage was named in the Perth Wildcats 30th Anniversary All-Star team.

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. In February 2014, Hire played his 100th NBL game, and by the league’s mid-season break for the All-Star game, Perth sat in first place with a 12-1. 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, and 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. Beal also contributed 19 points in the win.

Game two saw Beal (19 points) again lead the Wildcats in scoring, but it wasn’t enough to stop the 36ers from forcing a deciding third game in front of their largest crowd of the season. 8,127 fans helped rally the 36ers to a 89-84 win behind the high scoring of 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 and 4 assists) 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.

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.

This season Redhage would relinquish the captaincy to Damian Martin before going on to average 11.4 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 2.4 assists during the season but Perth would struggle through injuries all season. Most impacted was the team’s’ frontcourt as Knight (6 games), Hire (19 games) both missing games during the season and Redhage suffering from a stress fracture in his right foot which saw him miss the Wildcats’ entire finals campaign.

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.

At the end of the season team captain Martin was named the NBL’s Best Defensive Player for the fifth consecutive year.

2015/16
On the heels of a injury-riddled season that ended in a semi-final defeat, similar to the 2010/11 season, coach Trevor Gleeson was confident heading into the 2015 season that he had a team capable of winning Perth’s seventh championship. After conceding his side struggled with chemistry issues the past season, Perth 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 while Shawn Redhage was moved to a bench role.

This first month of the season began by losing Damian Martin (5.5 points, 4.4 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 1.8 steals) after he suffered a broken jaw and missing teeth after a errant elbow from Townsville Crocodiles forward Brian Conklin. He returned to action by the end of the month, despite originally being ruled out for three weeks and in February, played his 200th game for the Wildcats.

Further injuries saw Wildcats leading scorer Casey Prather (16.3 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 1.8 assists 1.2 steals) also miss several games but with Jermaine Beal (15.7 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 3.6 assists) and a healthy combo of Knight (11.6 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 1.4 assists) and Jawai (10.3 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 1.8 assists), the Wildcats were able to remain ranked in the top two spots on the ladder all season.

The battle for the top spot saw Perth and Melbourne go back and forth, with the Wildcats on top for four rounds and United owning it for 14 rounds. Both team’s faced off in some gruelling battles during the season, including a career-high 40-point night from Jermaine Beal, sinking ten three-pointers after not scoring at all in the first quarter as Perth dismantled Melbourne (113-83). A few weeks later, Melbourne took their revamp and defeated Perth (92–87) in a game that pushed the Wildcat’s into third position on the ladder for the only time that season.

A key storyline this season was the decline of veteran forward Shawn Redhage (6.6 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 1.4 assists), who averaged under 10 points per game for the first time in his career. Despite clear signs of slowing down, he still provided a valuable spark off the bench and managed to play in his 350th NBL game in January.

Perth finished the regular season in second place (18-10) and reached the playoffs for the 30th straight season, a streak not matched in any other Australian or American professional sport code. The Wildcats then went on to make light work of the Rob Beveridge led Illawarra Hawks, coming out with a game one win in the semifinals (80-68), with Prather (19 points) healthy and leading the Wildcats in scoring. In game two, the Hawks would even the series, thanks to Oscar Forman delivering the best playoff game of his career. Forman (21 points) barely missed, with Illawarra convincingly defeating Perth (104–87). Once the team to Perth, the Wildcats would close out the series (2-1) with a conclusive game three victory (89-74). In the final game, Beal (17 points) led the team in scoring, while Prather (15 points) made highlight reels with a thunderous one-handed slam over AJ Ogilvy early in the fourth quarter.

On the opposite side of the bracket, a surprise upset saw reigning champions New Zealand (16-12), who had narrowly made the playoffs as the third seed, eliminated top seed Melbourne in two straight games to face Perth in the championship series.

In game one, the Wildcat’s played some of their best basketball thanks to Jawai’s presence inside, Prather’s athleticism, Kenny’s ability to provide a spark while Damian Martin went to the bench… all of the critical factors they were lacking last season. The result being a six-point win (82–76) to open the series.

After struggling in game one, Beal (20 points) finished as the high scorer of game two but would also make a crucial late-game turnover in the dying seconds of the match that would cost Perth the game. Riding the hot form of Breakers guard Cedric Jackson (13 points, 9 rebounds, and 8 assists) who recorded a near triple-double, New Zealand were able to even the series with a win back in Auckland (72–68).

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).

On 16 August 2016, Redhage re-signed with the Wildcats for the 2016/17 NBL season after revealing he never seriously contemplated retirement following his injury in 2015.

2016/17
In April 2016, the team re-signed both Damian Martin (three-year deal) and Matthew Knight (two-year deal), who had just undergone shoulder stabilisation surgery on his left arm. Just before the Wildcat’s opening game, Knight was ruled out for two months after suffering a subluxation of his right shoulder during training, and Lucas Walker, a current free agent who had been training with Melbourne after not being re-signed by Adelaide, was added as an injury replacement player.

After adding Walker, the Wildcats started the season off strong with a 4–1 record, and Knight was given the all-clear, which removed Walker from the active roster but remained with the team as a training player.

Knight (12 points and 8 rebounds) made his season debut the following game, a win over Illawarra (80–73), but further injuries to Damian Martin and Jarrod Kenny depleted the team’s backcourt. During a win over Melbourne (72–69) Martin, who had collected a career-high 13 rebounds in that game, 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.

By December, the Wildcats had slumped to last place (7–9) and a import roller-coaster which saw import Jaron Johnson (13.1 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.8 assists) replaced with three-point specialist Andre Ingram, but in a bizarre twist, Ingram (8.5 points, 2 rebounds, 1.5 assists and 1.0 steals) left the team citing mental health issues after just two games resulting in Johnson returning to the squad. Johnson’s return would be a temporary solution, however, he was shown the door again in December with the Wildcats seizing the opportunity to sign former NBA guard Bryce Cotton. It was around this time also that veteran Shawn Redhage (2.7 points, 1.2 rebounds, and 0.5 assists) announced that he would retire at the end of the season.

Throughout the roller-coaster of roster changes, Prather (19.5 points, 4.6 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and 1.6 steals) had continued to carry the offensive load for the Wildcats, this included a career-high 39 points in a 92–89 win over Melbourne United (Dec 9). In February, Prather also put up 29 points in a win over the Sydney Kings (101–74), then two days later, recorded 26 points and a career-high 11 assists in a win over United (96–94). Martin (4.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 1.7 steals) also returned to form after his injury, and in his 250th NBL game (Jan 28), he scored a season-high 11 points to go with six rebounds and four assists in another win over Melbourne (73–71). But it was the addition of Cotton that saw the Wildcats become a completely different team, winning eight of their remaining twelve regular-season games, the last two being must win games in order to reach the playoffs. Cotton (23.1 points, 3.2 rebounds, 3.1 assists, and 1.3 steals) finished as the league’s leading scorer, while Prather finished second in NBL MVP voting (107 votes) behind Jerome Randle (147) of the Adelaide 36ers and was selected to the All-NBL First Team.

in the semifinals, Perth (15-13) would face Cairns (15-13) at home, where Cotton (34 points, 5 rebounds, and 5 assists) and Prather (22 points, 4 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals) led the way offensively for a easy win in game one (91-69). In game two, Perth closed out the series (74-66) with Prather (24 points, 10 rebounds and 4 assists) leading the team in scoring and Jesse Wagstaff (20 points, 5 rebounds, and 3 steals) having a huge game off the bench.

In the NBL Grand Final series, Prather (22 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists), Cotton (18 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists), and Knight (18 points, 11 rebounds, and 2 steals) delivered a balanced offensive attack, winning the opening game by twelve points (89-77). The series moved to Wollongong for game two, but the Wildcat’s continued their playoff winning streak (89-77), with Cotton (20 points, 3 rebounds, and 3 steals) and Prather (18 points, 4 rebounds, and 6 assists) being the team’s primary scorers on a night the Wildcats had five different players deliver double figure scoring efforts. Perth won game three comfortably (95-86), finishing undefeated in the postseason, claiming their eighth championship and winning back-to-back for the first time since 1991.

A number of record-breaking moments occurred in the game three win. Most prominently, Bryce Cotton was named Grand Final MVP after putting up 45 points, the most ever scored in a NBL Grand Final game. Cotton’s 27.7 points per game over the Grand Final series marked the most from any player in 20 years.

Trevor Gleeson became the first coach to win back-to-back championships in Perth while Prather delivered a historical season. Prather was voted Wildcats MVP for the second year in a row, becoming the only player to be a club MVP in more than one championship season, as well as becoming the first Perth player to win two championships in his first two seasons.

Despite his limited role in 2016/17, Redhage competed in every game, collected his fourth championship and retired as one of the Wildcats’ all-time great players. He played 380 of his 393 career games with the Perth Wildcats (second on the team’s all-time games-played list). Redhage was able to collect his fourth title and bow out of the NBL on a high.

Redhage had his number retired by the Wildcat’s (20 Jan 2023), becoming the seventh to receive the honour. His jersey sits alongside other Wildcats legends Ricky Grace (15), Mike Ellis (6), Andrew Vlahov (21), James Crawford (7), Scott Fisher (30) and Scott Fenton (14).

Redhage was the recipient of the Gordon Ellis Medal (Club MVP Award) for a unprecedented six consecutive seasons (2006-2011) and became the first US born player to captain Perth to a championship (2010).

Shawn Redhage played thirteen seasons in the NBL, playing for both the New Zealand Breakers and the Perth Wildcats. He averaged 14.8 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 2.5 assists in 391 NBL games.

CAREER RANKINGS:
– 34th in total points
– 48th in total rebounds

HIGHLIGHTS:

Dan Boyce (817 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.