USU’s Wesley looks to pro career in Holland

By Matt Sonnenberg, Utah State Athletic Media Relations

 For four years now, Aggie fans have had the luxury of looking forward to each basketball season with the comfort that Tai Wesley would be providing the type of stellar play that earned him a pair of first-team all-conference selections the past two seasons, as well as the 2011Western Athletic Conference Player of the Year award.

Wesley capped his Aggie career earning honorable mention All-American honors from the Associated Press and is one of just several players in USU history to have been a part of three different NCAA Tournament teams, not to mention four-straight regular season WAC titles.

Now, with visions of his playing career embedded deeply both into fans’ memories and the USU record books, Wesley has spent the bulk of his summer preparing for the future of his basketball career by taking on a new endeavor in training, as well as gathering advice and guidance from former Aggie greats and teammates as he gets set to take his basketball talents overseas.

With just a few weeks remaining until his departure, Wesley took some time to talk about his offseason training program; what’s in store for his playing career and some of his favorite memories from his time at Utah State.

What have you been doing since the end of the basketball season?

“Well, I moved to Las Vegas for 10 weeks and trained there at Impact Training with a lot of high profile guys.  At the end of that 10 weeks, I signed a deal to play in Holland, so the last month and a half I’ve just kind of been relaxing. I went out to Hawaii and enjoyed my family, my little sister got married, and then I’ve been back for about a month, I’ve been hanging out and taking it easy.”

Were there any other local or WAC players training with you in Las Vegas?

“Yeah, a lot of pretty big name guys. Of guys in the WAC that I played against, Greg Smith from Fresno State was there and bigger name guys like Jacob Pullen (Kansas State) that I played against was there, Kawhi Leonard (San Diego State) and Alec Burks (Colorado). Guys like that were there.”

How do you feel about the results of that training?

“I saw a lot of results in my body as well as my test results. I increased my vertical quite a bit, my body fat percentage went down; I felt like I was in the best shape of my life when I was out there.  I didn’t really like Las Vegas the city, but as far as training it was great for me and I really enjoyed my time out there.”

What is the name of your new team in Holland and how did that deal come about?

“The team name is the Eiffel Towers, and they’re in Den Bosch. They kind of came after me, contacted my agent and kind of came after me that way. They needed a big guy inside; they’re a pretty good team that finished third.  They just didn’t have an inside presence so that’s why they acquired me.”

Have you had a chance to reflect on your senior season, everything you accomplished and what it meant to you?

“Maybe not as much as I’d like to have reflected, but I’m sure that comes with time and I’m sure that I’ll have a lot of time on my hands as I’m over in Holland by myself, but I’d like to reflect more on it. We had such a great run and such a good season.”

What does your whole career at USU mean to you at this point?

“It’s all I know. Utah State has been my home and my career was awesome. I don’t really know how to describe it. It was everything anyone would ever want in a college career as far as I’m concerned. To win a championship every single year, not many people can say that so there wouldn’t be anything I would change going back.”

Do you have a favorite memory or a favorite game throughout your time at USU?

“I remember the game when it was the loudest in The Spectrum for me, and that was against Nevada at home. I think I was on the bench actually and Stavon (Williams) hit back-to-back 3’s, Brady (Jardine) had a big block, and it just went crazy. But one of my favorite games was against Utah when I had a tip-in to win and it would have been cooler if the clock didn’t mess up, but it still was pretty cool. And it’s always nice to beat Nevada on their home court to win the WAC Championship and senior year, beating Boise State in the WAC Championship. There’s so many that it’s hard to pick one.

Is there anything you regret or didn’t do during your time at Utah State?

“I regret not winning, especially in the NCAA Tournament. I’ll regret that forever, not doing enough to be able to win.”

Is there any advice some of your former teammates have given you about playing overseas?

“Yeah, I’ve talked to all of those guys. Jaycee (Carroll), Gary (Wilkinson) and Spencer (Nelson) are all such good guys, and they’ve given me such good advice that I’m really thankful to have them in front of me and in my corner. Gary told me not to expect to go out and dominate, just to go out and play my game, work hard and good things will come my way. I worked out with Gary and Spencer, and they kind of helped me with some of the different rules. Traveling is a little different, and they said that I’d probably get called for a couple things that I do that aren’t travels here but are travels over there.  I talked to Jaycee, and he was kind of helping me out and telling me things like how I need to keep myself entertained while I’m by myself over there and so I have good guys in my corner that I’m really thankful for, especially those guys who have gone before me.”

Was there any parting advice from Stew Morrill about the future of your playing career?

“I remember the thing coach Morrill told me, that I guess I’m not taking his advice, but he told me to take a girl over there with me and to be married before I go over there, and I guess I’m not doing that. I think I’ll have a nice meeting with coach Morrill before I leave, and he’ll tell me some more things, but he’s another one that’s been in my corner this whole time.  I’ve had a long conversation with him, and I’m sure there will be another one before I take off.”

What do you think you’ll miss most about playing at Utah State?

“That’s easy, the crowd. Playing in front of The Spectrum is an experience that everybody at least needs to be a part of, if they’re not playing, then with the fans. It’s unbelievable. I will never forget that.”