Northwest College

News Archive (2019-20 and older)

Trapper Men's Basketball Signs 6-9 Player From Estonia

Jay Collins has added some size to his 2020 recruiting class for the Northwest College men’s basketball team. Collins found it in Europe — specifically in Estonia.

The second-year NWC head coach announced that 6-9 Karl Gustav Paloots from Tallinn, the capital city of Estonia, has signed a national letter of intent to enroll at NWC.

“I’m very, very excited to have him” as a Trapper, Collins said of Paloots. “He’s awfully talented. He’s 6-foot, 9-inches tall with really long arms. He finishes at the rim, and he protects the rim.”

“I believe he’s going to play at a high level for us,” the coach added.

Paloots, just 18, started for the 20 and under Estonia national team. He played in Prague in the Czech Republic where he was noticed by one of Collins’ best friends, who recruits European players. Collins followed up from there, recruiting him entirely by video and online.

Additional dividends may come from the connection: Collins hopes to sign a teammate of Paloots’ — a 6-foot point guard who also played on the Estonia national team.

The Trapper coach gave credit to the role played by the international students office at NWC.

“We have the best international office in the country, in my view,” he said. “They’ve been huge for me. When I tell them I’ve signed an international student, I give them the name and number, and they go to work to get the paperwork done.”

Collins recruited Paloots entirely by video and online.