Cotton played college basketball for four seasons with the Providence Friars, where he was a two-time first-team All-Big East honoree in 2013 and 2014.

[1] He was diagnosed with a rare form of epilepsy[3][4] and his mother was told that he "wasn't going to make it past sixth grade, and that she should start planning for the funeral".

[8] He was a bench player in his freshman season and was unable to break through in a rotation that featured MarShon Brooks, Vincent Council, Gerard Coleman and Duke Mondy.

[13] As a sophomore in 2011–12, Cotton became a starter and was the team's second leading scorer, averaging 14.3 points per game while shooting 37.9 percent from 3-point range.

Cotton was forced to step into the forefront for Providence to make up for injuries in the backcourt to Council and highly touted freshman guard Kris Dunn.

[24] He made his NBA debut three days later, recording three points, two rebounds, one assist and one steal in just under seven minutes off the bench in a 104–82 win over the Denver Nuggets.

[39] He subsequently returned to the Austin Spurs[40] where he played two more games[41] before joining the Xinjiang Flying Tigers of the Chinese Basketball Association in late January.

[45] After playing for the Atlanta Hawks during the 2016 NBA Summer League,[46] Cotton signed with Turkish club Anadolu Efes on August 27, 2016.

[47][48] A mutual termination of his contract took place on December 12, 2016,[49][50] with Cotton citing that the country's safety concerns were a major factor in him leaving.

[52][53] By late December 2016, reports surfaced of Cotton's move to Australia to join the Perth Wildcats for the rest of the 2016–17 NBL season.

[64][65] In game one of the Wildcats' best-of-three semi-final series against the second-seeded Taipans in Cairns on February 17, Cotton had a 34-point effort to lead his team to a 91–69 win.

[67] Cotton scored nine points in game two in Perth three days later, as the Wildcats defeated the Taipans 74–66 to sweep the series and move on to the NBL Grand Final.

He shot 12-of-17 from the field, 7-of-12 from 3-point range, and 14-of-15 from the free throw line in game three, with his 45 points setting the new all-time NBL Grand Final scoring record.

[41] After attempting to re-enter the NBA via minicamps and the Summer League,[72] Cotton made the decision to return to Perth, re-signing with the Wildcats for 2017–18 NBL season on July 14, 2017.

[73] Cotton was considered a long-shot to re-join the Wildcats and reportedly turned down an offer from Spanish club Unicaja Málaga.

[97] On November 9, he scored a season-high 37 points and hit the game-winning 3-pointer with 0.4 seconds left on the clock to lift the Wildcats to a 90–87 win over the Brisbane Bullets.

[154] On April 30, 2020, Cotton opted out of the final year of his contract due to the salary cuts that were implemented by the NBL to protect the league during the COVID-19 pandemic.

[160] In the Wildcats' season opener on January 24, Cotton recorded 27 points, seven assists and five steals in an 88–76 win over the South East Melbourne Phoenix.

[189][190] In the season finale on April 24, Cotton scored a game-high 28 points in a 102–100 overtime loss to the South East Melbourne Phoenix.

[211] In the play-in qualifier, Cotton scored 20 of his game-high 26 points in the fourth quarter of the Wildcats' 106–99 win over the South East Melbourne Phoenix.

[232] Cotton averaged 26.6 points on 43 per cent shooting during a 13–2 run between rounds six and sixteen that set up the Wildcats for a top-two finish on the ladder.

[236] For the sixth straight season and the seventh time in eight years, Cotton was named NBL scoring champion with a league-high 23.1 points per game.

[240] He went on to set a record-equalling sixth Wildcats Club MVP, joining Ricky Grace and Shawn Redhage as six-time winners.

Teams attempted to wear him down all season by sending multiple opponents to defend him, which resulted in him being the most fouled player in the NBL.

[291] His uncle, David Adams, played football at the University of Arizona and had a short stint with the Dallas Cowboys in the NFL.

[296][297] Prior to 2020, Cotton would typically return to the United States after each NBL season, splitting time in Tucson and Providence, Rhode Island.

[299][300] Delays as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic led to Cotton applying for an Australian Distinguished Talent visa in order to gain permanent residency with the idea this would fast-track his citizenship process.

[301][302][303] Over the next two years, Cotton continued to wait for citizenship approval amid public outcry and minimal status updates.

That small period without a visa was classified as Cotton being in Australia unlawfully and as a result of this technicality, the Federal government deemed him ineligible to become a citizen[303] and he was banned from being eligible to apply again until 2025.

[303][309] In January 2024, Cotton stated that he was no longer interested in representing Australia, citing his frustration at the numerous delays and setbacks he experienced in his bid to gain Australian citizenship.