Johny Narkle

Johny Narkle (born 1 August 2001) is an Australian basketball player for the Geraldton Buccaneers of the NBL1 West. With the Buccaneers, he won back-to-back Sixth Man of the Year awards in 2022 and 2023 and led the team to the championship in 2023 behind his grand final MVP performance.

Johny Narkle

Narkle with the Geraldton Buccaneers in 2023
No. 6 – Geraldton Buccaneers
Position	Guard
League	NBL1 West
Personal information
Born	(2001-08-01) 1 August 2001 (age 22)
Nationality	Australian
Listed height	199 cm (6 ft 6 in)
Listed weight	79 kg (174 lb)
Career information
Playing career	2020–present
Career history
2020; 2022–	Geraldton Buccaneers
Career highlights and awards
NBL1 West champion (2023) NBL1 West Grand Final MVP (2023) NBL1 National Finals All-Star Five (2023) 2× NBL1 West Sixth Man of the Year (2022, 2023)

Early life

Narkle grew up in Geraldton, Western Australia, with four brothers and five sisters.^[1] He attended Clontarf Academy^[2] and juggled being a two-sport athlete,^[3] playing both basketball and football as a teenager.^[4][5]

In 2018, Narkle played for the Australian Indigenous All Stars in a Trans-Tasman series against the New Zealand Maori national team.^[6][7] In 2019, he played at the inaugural Australian Indigenous Basketball (AIB) National Tournament in Cairns.^[8][9][10]

Career

In 2020, Narkle joined the Geraldton Buccaneers of the State Basketball League (SBL).^[9] After the SBL season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Narkle debuted for the Buccaneers in the West Coast Classic.^[4] With the team having lost their imports and also key local players, Narkle was required to fill a starting role in his first season which fast tracked his development.^[3][4] He finished the season with four-straight double digit games.^[3] In 12 games, he averaged 9.17 points, 5.17 rebounds and 2.83 assists per game.^[11]

Narkle impressed with Chapman Valley in the Great Northern Football League (GNFL) at the end of 2020.^[3][5] He subsequently joined the Subiaco Football Club of the West Australian Football League (WAFL) in 2021. He played seven games for Subiaco's WAFL reserves team.^[12][13] He switched back to basketball in 2022.^[14][15]

Narkle returned to the Geraldton Buccaneers for the 2022 NBL1 West season. He was named Sixth Man of the Year^[16] and helped the Buccaneers reach the NBL1 West grand final, where they lost 91–79 to the Rockingham Flames.^[17] In 24 games, he averaged 8.0 points, 3.67 rebounds and 1.17 steals per game.^[18]

In 2023, Narkle re-joined the Buccaneers and once again earned NBL1 West Sixth Man of the Year honours.^[19] Towards the end of the regular season, he was moved into the starting line-up.^[1] He helped the Buccaneers return to the NBL1 West grand final, where they defeated the Joondalup Wolves 86–80 to win the championship.^[20] Narkle had 21 points, 11 rebounds, three assists and four steals to earn grand final MVP honours.^[21] He became the first Indigenous man to win the award.^[1][22] In 25 games, he averaged 12.12 points, 5.64 rebounds, 2.32 assists and 1.76 steals per game.^[23] At the NBL1 National Finals, he scored 27 points against the Sutherland Sharks and 30 points against the Ipswich Force.^[24] He was subsequently named in the National Finals All-Star Five.^[1][13][25] A week later, he played for the NBL1 West Select Team against the Perth Wildcats in two National Basketball League (NBL) pre-season games.^[1][13][26] Following this, he had a two-day trial with Melbourne United of the NBL.^[13][27]

In October 2023, Narkle re-signed with the Buccaneers for the 2024 NBL1 West season.^[28][29]

References

1. Cox, Kearyn (28 August 2023). "Johny grew up playing backyard basketball with his cousins. Now he's got his eyes on the big league". SBS.com.au. NITV. from the original on 28 August 2023. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
2. Neuweiler, Sebastian (4 December 2015). "Police lose Movember fuzz, but not spirit". Geraldton Guardian. Archived from the original on 31 August 2023.
3. Garlepp, Josh (3 November 2020). "On demand: West Coast Classic: 11 players that impressed before the inaugural NBL1 West season". The West Australian. Archived from the original on 31 August 2023.
4. "YOUNG BUCCS STAR CHOOSES HOOPS OVER OVAL BALL". SBL.asn.au. 13 August 2020. from the original on 22 September 2020. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
5. Sweeney, Peter (25 September 2020). "Boots or hoops: Geraldton sporting talent Johny Narkle has a big decision". Geraldton Guardian. Archived from the original on 31 August 2023.
6. "NBL trio head Indigenous All Stars lineup". BotiNagy.com. 18 August 2018. from the original on 31 August 2023.
7. . Basketball Australia. 28 August 2018. Archived from the original on 31 August 2018. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
8. Arsenis, Damian (22 December 2019). "Inaugural Australian Indigenous Basketball National Tournament a resounding success". pickandroll.com.au. from the original on 20 September 2020. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
9. Carder, Reuben (30 January 2020). "SBL 2020: Geraldton Buccaneers go global and local with new signings". Geraldton Guardian. Archived from the original on 31 August 2023.
10. "Player statistics for Johny Narkle". Australian Indigenous Basketball. from the original on 2 September 2023.
11. "Player statistics for Johny Narkle". SBL.asn.au. from the original on 31 August 2023.
12. "Johny Narkle". WAFL.com.au. from the original on 31 August 2023.
13. O'Donoghue, Craig (31 August 2023). "Geraldton Buccaneers guard Johny Narkle flies to Victoria for NBL trial with Melbourne United". The West Australian. Archived from the original on 31 August 2023.
14. Carder, Reuben (18 February 2022). "Buccs Johny Narkle, Will Galvin shine as Pumas grab Geraldton men's basketball minor flag, Chapman in finals". Geraldton Guardian. Archived from the original on 31 August 2023.
15. Carder, Reuben (4 March 2022). "Battle of the young Buccs in men's grand final as Pumas aim to roar in both senior basketball deciders". Geraldton Guardian. Archived from the original on 31 August 2023.
16. "BWA AWARDS NIGHT – AWARD WINNERS AND HALL OF FAME". BasketballWA.asn.au. 14 August 2022. from the original on 27 August 2022. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
17. "NBL1 West Recap | Men's Grand Final". NBL1.com.au. 3 September 2022. from the original on 3 September 2022. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
18. "Johny Narkle – 2022 Stats". NBL1.com.au. Archived from the original on 31 August 2023.
19. "2023 BWA AWARDS NIGHT, NBL1 WEST & HALL OF FAME – AWARD WINNERS". BasketballWA.asn.au. 23 July 2023. from the original on 26 July 2023. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
20. Pike, Chris (12 August 2023). "NBL1 West Recap | Men's Grand Final 2023". NBL1.com.au. Archived from the original on 12 August 2023. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
21. Williams, Fraser (14 August 2023). "Hometown hero Johny 'Sparkle' Narkle wins grand final MVP after impressive scoring performance". Geraldton Guardian. Archived from the original on 14 August 2023. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
22. Clarke, Rhiannon (17 August 2023). "Narkle's MVP performance leads Buccaneers to NBL1 West championship glory". National Indigenous Times. from the original on 31 August 2023.
23. "Johny Narkle – 2023 Stats". NBL1.com.au. Archived from the original on 31 August 2023.
24. "Johny Narkle – 2023 Stats NF". NBL1.com.au. Archived from the original on 31 August 2023.
25. "2023 Coles Expres NBL1 National Finals All-Star Five". NBL1.com.au. 21 August 2023. Archived from the original on 21 August 2023. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
26. Williams, Fraser (29 August 2023). "Meunier and Narkle impress on the big stage against the Perth Wildcats for the NBL1 West select team". Geraldton Guardian. Archived from the original on 31 August 2023.
27. Morse, Callan (2 September 2023). "Narkle trials with United following 'outstanding' NBL1 West season". National Indigenous Times. from the original on 2 September 2023.
28. "We've kept you in suspense long enough..." facebook.com/geraldtonbuccaneers. 24 October 2023. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
29. "Two National Finalists sign for 2024". NBL1.com.au. 25 October 2023. Archived from the original on 29 October 2023. Retrieved 29 October 2023.

External links

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Johny Narkle.

• NBL1 profile
• WAFL profile