Wagstaff commits to Wildcats
Perth have started re-signing their championship NBL team with Jesse Wagstaff agreeing to stay at the Wildcats until at least 2016.
Wagstaff inked a two-year deal with a third-year player option.
The 28-year-old has played for Perth since his rookie season in 2009-10 and is the first player to be re-signed by the club in the 2014 off-season.
"It’s finally good to be done, and to know that I’m going to be in Perth for the next few years, it’s a relief and I’m very happy about it," said Wagstaff.
"For the last five years, since I’ve been here, we’ve kept a good bunch of people around, the club is surrounded by good people and that’s a big factor in me staying. Perth is pretty much home for my partner and I, add to that a bit of success and it was a pretty easy decision."
Wildcats coach Trevor Gleeson described Wagstaff as the ultimate teammate.
"I’m thrilled, Jesse had a fantastic year, one of his most consistent seasons, and to have him sign up for the next couple of years is exciting," said Gleeson.
"We want to keep that core group together as much as we can and he was a big part of that, playing a variety of roles especially when some of the guys got injured, he’s a hard worker, dedicated, and very talented."
In his five seasons with the Perth Wildcats, Wagstaff has won two NBL Championships (2010 and 2014) been named NBL Rookie of the Year in 2010 and the league’s Best Sixth Man in 2012.
A fortnight ago he was named the Wildcats Most Improved Player of 2013-14 in which he averaged 10.5 points per game while shooting at 46.4 per cent.
He also hit 47 three-pointers (10th in NBL) at an outstanding 42.7 per cent (third in NBL), as well as grabbing 3.7 rebounds and dishing out 1.0 assists per game.
Wildcats managing director Nick Marvin is pleased to see Wagstaff remain a Wildcat.
"We are very grateful for Jesse being the first player to act, he’s a class player, an outstanding character and it means a lot to our organisation to have him on board,” said Marvin.
“After originally being ranked a nine under the NBL’s Player Points System, Wagstaff appealed his points, had it reduced by one, and as it will be his sixth season with us he receives a loyalty discount which essentially brings him down to six points.
The NBL brought in the new loyalty program last month, which sees players’ points reduced by two for spending five consecutive seasons at a club, or a four-point discount for 10 consecutive seasons.
Each club can have a maximum total of 70 player points on their roster.
Wagstaff joins Shawn Redhage, Matt Knight, Greg Hire and Mathiang Muo as contracted players ahead of the Wildcats title defence in 2014-15.
