Three games with the Sacramento Kings in the California Classic will probably amount to nothing for Jay Nagle. The 2018 Will C. Wood High graduate knows better than to think it could lead to an opportunity to play in the NBA. That remains his ultimate goal, but the 24-year-old is no closer to it today than when he was invited to play for the Kings.
The 6-foot-9 Nagle played a total of 13 minutes in the first two games, scoring five points and grabbing two rebounds. The California Classic will conclude Tuesday night when the Kings play the Warriors at Chase Center in San Francisco. As much as Nagle is enjoying the experience, he knows it is a temporary gig and is not taking it for anything more.
Nagle will not be away from basketball for long. He recently signed a one-year contract to play for Maroussi B.C. in the Greek Basketball League and will leave Aug. 18. He is growing accustomed to playing overseas after spending one season with BC Orbi in Tbilisi, Georgia. He averaged 16.7 points, 4.1 assists and a team-high 7.8 rebounds per game.
Georgia was not what Nagle expected. As much as he enjoyed the national dish of Khachapuri (a cheese-filled bread), Nagle was surprised to find fast food such as McDonald’s and Wendy’s. He shared a two-bedroom apartment with an American teammate, so it was not much different than a college dorm except for all the high tops and soiled socks.
“It was an experience for sure,” Nagel said. “It was better than what I expected. I was pleasantly surprised. The basketball was high level.”
The Greek Basketball League will be more challenging, but having to prove himself is nothing new for Nagle. He went from averaging 12 minutes a game as a freshman at UC Santa Barbara to 7.2 as a senior in 2021-22. Having earned a degree in sociology, Nagle entered the transfer portal as a graduate student and jumped to Idaho State.
His playing time also jumped. Nagle averaged 28.8 minutes a game with the Bengals and was their second-leading rebounder with 137. “I needed to go somewhere else,” Nagle said of his decision to enter the portal. “I needed to find a place where I could play and produce.”
A solid season in Pocatello would have been a fitting end to a solid career. And after earning a master’s degree in athletic administration at Idaho State, he had everything he would need to find a solid job. There was just one problem, however. He could not let basketball go.
“It hit me and I had to look in the mirror,” Nagle explained. “I couldn’t see myself straying too far away from it. I have to be around basketball. I’ve got to play my passion. I’m going to play until the wheels fall off.”
