Windler names best leader he’s ever had

Dylan Windler fired the Perth Wildcats to a fourth straight win, but the sharpshooter saved his loudest praise for his evergreen captain and believes the best is still to come.

Windler drained 7/12 from beyond the arc on his way to 32 points in under 30 minutes at RAC Arena on Saturday night as Perth downed the shorthanded New Zealand Breakers 100-84.

Much of the pre-game attention centred on the debut of 451-game NBA veteran guard Brandon Knight, who had 6 points, 2 rebounds and 2 steals on 2/6 shooting in 19:31 of court time.

But in the end, the win belonged to the usual ‘Cats suspects, including games-record-holding captain Jesse Wagstaff, who turned 40 in the off-season.

Wagstaff finished with 13 points, 6 assists and 4 rebounds, going 2/3 from three to be +24 in his 17 minutes.

Windler offered him the highest compliment afterwards.

“I can say with confidence that he’s probably the best teammate I’ve ever had in terms of leadership, starring in his role, competing and just showing up and working hard every day,” Windler said.

“All around, he just helps the team win in all those ways. It’s not going to be one or the other every single night, but he’s just steady and consistent, a leader, a presence for us in the locker room and he’s always locked in on the scout and the little things.

“He’s always willing to make and take big shots, he’s willing to do all the little things and make the nitty gritty plays.

“He always seems to be in the right moment at the right spot at the right time. I can’t say enough good stuff about him, he’s the ultimate teammate and winner for sure.”

After a rough start to NBL27, a 21-point home loss to South East Melbourne, the ‘Cats have built nicely, with a pair of RAC Arena victories over the Breakers sandwiched around a win against the Adelaide 36ers and revenge over the Phoenix.

Perth is 4-1 with Jaron Rillie back for only two games, Knight fresh off his debut and Jo Lual-Acuil Jr still sidelined.

Windler is bullish about the team’s potential, but is eager to see how they handle life away from home, starting against the Kings in Sydney next Saturday night.

“It’s definitely an encouraging start to the season having a lot of different lineups and a lot of guys have been given opportunity, and they’ve made the best of that,” Windler said.

“I don’t think the season truly starts until you play a road game so let’s not get ahead of ourselves, it’s obviously a great start to be 4-1, and it’s just been good to see a lot of different guys contribute.

“We have a lot of guys in good form and obviously we have Jo out and guys getting back in rhythm with Jaron and Brandon now, and I think we’re going to be a dangerous team as long as we can stay healthy.”