Jeff Wallace Nordgaard (born February 23, 1973 in Dawson, Minnesota

Dawson, Minnesota

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,539 people, 677 households, and 398 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,043.4 people per square mile . There were 756 housing units at an average density of 512.6 per square mile...

) is a naturalized Polish

Poland

Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...

 professional basketball

Basketball

Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...

 player who grew up in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

.

When playing basketball at Dawson-Boyd High School in Minnesota, in 1991 Nordgaard became the first player in Minnesota state history to achieve a quadruple double. After playing college basketball at the University of Wisconsin–Green Bay, Nordgaard was drafted by the Milwaukee Bucks

Milwaukee Bucks

The Milwaukee Bucks are a professional basketball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. They are part of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1968 as an expansion team, and currently plays at the Bradley Center....

 in the second round of the 1996 NBA Draft

1996 NBA Draft

The 1996 NBA Draft was the 50th draft in the National Basketball Association . It was held on June 26, 1996 in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The draft was broadcast in the United States on the Turner Network Television...

. He began his professional career in Europe, spending the 1996-97 season with two different clubs, Dijon (France

Ligue Nationale de Basketball

The Ligue National de Basket is the top men's French professional basketball league. There are two divisions: French Pro A League and French Pro B League .-Pro A:...

) and Bilbao (Spain

Asociación de Clubs de Baloncesto

The Liga ACB, known as the Liga Endesa for sponsorship reasons, is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in Spain. It was founded in 1956 with the name of Liga Nacional. The league changed its name to the current one in 1983. The league is rated as one of the three "A" level European...

). The following season

1997-98 NBA season

The 1997–98 NBA season was the 52nd season of the National Basketball Association. The season ended with the Chicago Bulls winning their third straight championship and sixth in the last eight years, beating the Utah Jazz 4 games to 2 in the 1998 NBA Finals...

, he briefly played for the Bucks before finishing the season with the CBA's

Continental Basketball Association

The Continental Basketball Association was a professional men's basketball league in the United States, which has been on hiatus since the 2009 season.- History :...

 Fort Wayne Fury

Fort Wayne Fury

The Fort Wayne Fury was a team in the Continental Basketball Association from 1991 through the cessation of the CBA on February 8, 2001.-History:...

.

He then returned to Europe, first going to Viola Reggio Calabria

Viola Reggio Calabria

Viola Reggio Calabria is the name traditionally given to the main men's professional basketball team from the city Reggio Calabria, Italy. The team colors are black and orange....

 in Italy

Serie A (basketball)

Lega Basket Serie A is the highest level club competition in Italian professional basketball where play determines the national champion. The season consists of a home-and-away schedule of 30 games, followed by an eight-team playoff round. Quarterfinals and semifinals series are best-of-five, and...

 for the 1998-99 season, where he was a teammate of future NBA star Manu Ginobili

Manu Ginobili

Emanuel David "Manu" Ginóbili is an Argentine professional basketball player. Coming from a family of professional basketball players, he is a member of the Argentine men's national basketball team and the San Antonio Spurs in the National Basketball Association .Ginóbili spent the early part of...

. The next season, he returned to France with Besançon

Besançon BCD

Besançon Basket Comté Doubs was a basketball club based in Besançon, France that played in the Ligue Nationale de Basketball. Their home arena was the Palais des Sports. The club is placed in receivership and disappears on 1 September 2009....

. Nordgaard briefly returned to America in 2000 with the Indiana Legends

Indiana Legends

The Indiana Legends were an ABA team from 2000-2002. The owner of the team is current owner & founder Joe Newman. In 2000, the team played in Hinkle Fieldhouse and reached the semifinals in the playoffs, only to lose to the Detroit Dogs....

 in the ABA before he signed a contract that brought him back to France with Chalon.

In 2001, Nordgaard went to Poland, joining Anwil Włocławek. He then moved to Polonia Warsaw

Polonia Warbud Warszawa

SPEC Polonia Warszawa is a Polish basketball team, based in Warsaw, playing in Dominet Bank Ekstraliga.-Seasons:* 2007/2008** 10th place in Dominet Bank Ekstraliga* 2006/2007** 12th place in Dominet Bank Ekstraliga* 2005/2006...

 in 2003. Nordgaard was especially well-traveled in the 2004-05 season, first returning to Italy to play for Roseto

Roseto Basket

Roseto Basket also known as Roseto Sharks and Pallacanestro Roseto 1946 was an Italian professional basketball team from Roseto, Abruzzo, Italy that was established in 1946....

, transferring to Greek

A1 Ethniki

The Greek Basket League , commonly referred to as the Greek Basketball League or Greek Basketball Championship, is the highest professional basketball league in Greece. It is run by HEBA...

 power Olympiacos

Olympiacos BC

Olympiacos B.C. , also known simply as Olympiacos and Olympiacos Piraeus, is a Greek professional basketball club, part of Olympiacos CFP, based in Piraeus. The basketball club, founded in 1931, is one of the most successful in Greece and a traditional powerhouse in European competitions...

, and finally ending the season back at Polonia. The following year, he signed with another Polish club, Prokom Trefl Sopot

Prokom Trefl Sopot

Asseco Prokom Gdynia is a Polish professional basketball team, based in Gdynia, Poland. The team plays in the Polish Basketball League and the Euroleague...

, and stayed there through the 2006-07 season. Nordgaard moved to AZS Koszalin

AZS Koszalin

AZS Koszalin is a Polish basketball team, based in Koszalin, playing in the Polska Liga Koszykówki , the Polish Basketball League..-Team history:The AZS Koszalin sports club was founded on 8 October 1968...

 for the season 2007-08 and decided to stay for season 2008-2009.

During his time in Poland, he took out Polish citizenship, and has played for the Polish national team

Poland national basketball team

The Polish national basketball team is the national basketball side that represents Poland in international competitions. It is administrated by the Polski Związek Koszykówki...

.