Even when Jaylin Galloway is gaming, he isn’t playing around.
His current favourite game is the new NBA 2K26, but he isn’t messing with role players or rookies; he goes straight to the top. “I play as LeBron,” he laughs. “You’ve got to go with the GOAT!”
Galloway, it seems, is one for thinking big. With his eye-catching athleticism, size, length and ability to defend multiple positions, he knows he’s an NBA-level talent. He is determined to dominate in the NBL and earn a long-term spot in the world’s premier competition.
Credit: May Bailey Photography
“It’s definitely something I think about a lot,” Galloway tells The Pick and Roll after a Kings training session.
“It’s not a negative thought process; it’s more in terms of that I truly believe that I can, and will, get back to the NBA. I definitely believe that I can get back for sure.”
The Sydney Kings wing has, of course, already had a taste of NBA action. He made his Summer League debut with the Minnesota Timberwolves at Vegas in 2023, and in March 2024, he joined the Milwaukee Bucks on a two-way contract. After logging seven games with the Wisconsin Herd, Milwaukee’s G League affiliate, he was waived in August of that year.
Stung by that disappointment, he returned to the Sydney Kings for NBL25, only to sustain a shoulder injury early in the season that ruled him out for the rest of the campaign.
“That was huge,” Galloway says of the double setback. “I wanted to prove myself after what happened in Milwaukee and then having my shoulder injury. I mean, everything happened in such a short span of time. But Goorj [Brian Goorjian] and I decided to describe that injury as a blessing in disguise.
“I hadn’t had a break from basketball in a while, and having such a long time off from the game helped me step away and get my mental side of things right and build my confidence back.”
Once he got back on the court, Galloway moved to the NBL1 East with the Bankstown Bruins, putting up career best numbers at that level for points, steals and rebounds per game.
He continued to work closely with Goorjian and Kings captain Xavier Cooks as he rebuilt his fitness and confidence and established himself as one of the best players in that league, ranking in the conference’s top five for average points (23.14 pg), three-pointers made (3) and steals (2.29) per game. Bruins teammate Jason Cadee saw enough in Galloway across the NBL1 season to tip him for the NBL’s Most Improved Player award.
Then, of course, there was the FIBA Asia Cup campaign in Saudi Arabia, where Galloway played a starring role, leveraging her stellar athleticism and an aggressive mindset to pick up the tournament MVP award after posting 15.7 points (in just 24.6 minutes), along with 3.5 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game and shooting 84.2% on free throws. He had 23 points in the final as he helped Australia outlast China and claim their third successive win at the event.
Perhaps the most encouraging aspect of Galloway’s game at the Asia Cup, however, was his long-range shooting. He made 18 of 28 three-pointers at the event at a scorching 64.3%. While his three-point shooting had previously been less developed than his ability to play above the rim and get downhill, it has become a strength lately, as seen in his 20-point effort against Serbian powerhouse KK Partizan, where he made six out of ten threes.
“I worked on [three-point shooting] a lot; it was just about getting the reps in,” Galloway says.
“It was definitely a big offseason for me, and Goorj was a huge part of that. The biggest thing for me was him saying he wants me to be a knockdown three-point shooter. I think that’s the biggest step for me to get back to the NBA. NBL1 helped a lot with that, too.”
Galloway says the Kings team, with high-profile new additions like Matthew Dellavedova and Kendric Davis, is gelling well. He feels the hit-out against KK Partizan was an ideal way to fine-tune preparations for NBL26. “It made me realise how good the guards are over there; they’re great, very skilled. I wasn’t too familiar with the EuroLeague, so it was a cool experience to have.”
While a talent-laden Kings roster underwhelmed last season, Galloway says the team hasn’t dwelt on that disappointment too much. “It’s been more drawing a line [and moving on].
“The guys here know what we need to work on, but it’s a different team. We’ve got a lot of new guys, some young guys, a lot of college guys. Having experienced guys like X, Delly and Bogut makes it a lot easier to step forward as a team.”
Galloway has enjoyed having Andrew Bogut as part of the coaching staff and says he has learned plenty from the former NBA champion. “I like his professionalism. I mean, he’s done it all. Anybody would want Bogut’s type of career – he was the number one pick. Some of the things he says in practice I’ve never thought about before; it’s good to have that type of knowledge around.”
With the agility, length and instincts to be an elite stopper in the NBL, Galloway has the potential to figure heavily in the Defensive Player of the Year race, though he says he doesn’t focus on individual accolades, preferring to contribute however his team needs him. “I just want to play the best basketball I can. I think I’m versatile enough to defend one through four, and I would like to guard the best player on the other team,” he says.
Having grown up with parents who both played college basketball and an older brother [Cairns Taipans player Kyrin Galloway] who excelled in youth tennis before successfully switching to basketball, Galloway has been a familiar fixture on the scene for some time. It feels like a long time since he was a development player at the Sydney Kings back in 2020, and it’s easy to forget how young he is – at just 22, he is slightly younger than, say, Reyne Smith, a player joining the NBL after a four-year college career.
Having overcome the setbacks of last year and now riding the confidence of his Asia Cup dominance, Galloway seems poised to fulfil his obvious promise and enjoy a breakthrough NBL season.
Perhaps, soon enough, he won’t have to roleplay as an NBA player in his beloved video games; he’ll be doing the real thing.