“I JUST GOT A TEXT!” Chris Seeley exclaimed, echoing the well-known catchphrase of *Love Island* as he gathered the season 7 contestants in the villa to share exciting news. The message indicated they would soon engage in a lively game of 3-on-3 basketball.
The atmosphere erupted with joy as the group responded immediately, racing around, leaping, and cheering. Shouts of “Boys’ day! Boys’ day!” rang out in their confessional. However, one contestant—Jose “Pepe” Garcia—was feeling conflicted.
His apprehension didn’t stem from worries about his basketball prowess or fear of competing against the towering team captain, Seeley, who stands at an impressive 6-foot-8. After all, Garcia is no stranger to high-stakes competition as a former international professional basketball player.
Instead, it was an injury that held him back. Garcia disclosed to ESPN that he had stepped on a nail during the previous challenge, resulting in substantial bleeding and difficulty walking. Nevertheless, that wouldn’t deter him from participating in this thrilling showdown.
“I’m limping everywhere. I’m excited, but I can’t even walk,” Garcia expressed to ESPN. “But I decided to push through. The competitive spirit inside me emerged.”
The basketball game allowed the guys to escape the tropical setting of their Fiji villa for a while and set the stage for another encounter between Garcia and Seeley, who also played basketball professionally overseas. Garcia later discovered from his father that they had previously faced each other in high school.
In this matchup, Garcia opened the scoring with some impressive jump shots, but ultimately, Team Chris triumphed.
“Initially, we were supposed to play to 11 because of my foot,” claimed Garcia. “But I pushed for 15, then suggested we go for 21. By the time we hit 21, my sock was drenched in blood, but I was thinking, ‘Should we make it to 25?'”
For those precious hours, basketball was all that mattered to him, transporting him back to comfortable, familiar territory.
GARCIAS’ EARLY DAYS with a basketball are a blur, yet he distinctly remembers when the sport became a significant focus: eighth grade. That’s when he first joined an official team, and by high school, he ramped up his efforts with a little guidance.
During his freshman year, he encountered coach AC, who became a pivotal figure in his journey. Their relationship kicked off with a seemingly simple invitation: Coach AC invited him to a workout at no cost.
Garcia recalls two things that stood out after that grueling three- or four-hour session, which he still considers one of the toughest workouts of his life. Firstly, he was left so exhausted that he collapsed on the floor. Secondly, he remembers coach AC’s encouraging words.
“He told me, ‘I probably won’t see you next week, but you performed well today,'” Garcia recalled. “I later learned he tells that to everyone, as almost all newcomers quit after that workout. But as a 13-year-old, I was determined. I returned.”
This commitment didn’t fade; by his senior year at Los Alamitos High School (CA), Garcia averaged 18.8 points per game and 3.2 assists.
With AC’s insightful guidance, he inquired about what it took to reach the professional level and learned he didn’t have to go to powerhouse schools like Kentucky or Duke to achieve his goals. Numerous Division I schools could pave the way for his professional dream, and he chose nearby Cal State Fullerton.
“Competing daily against talented players like Kyle Allman Jr. and Khalil Ahmad was the ultimate stepping stone,” he reflected.
Though he saw limited playing time from 2017-19 with the Titans, Garcia knew he had to pursue an agent after deciding to leave college basketball.
“Given that I was born in Spain, I had a chance to play there, even without direct offers. They approached me saying they wanted me to come play, despite my status as an American,” he shared with ESPN.
Seizing the opportunity, he played in Spain from 2019-21, before moving to Mexico’s Fuerza Regia and Toros Torreón between 2021-2022, averaging 9 points, 1.4 rebounds, and shooting 35% from three-point range before returning to Spain in 2023.
Reflecting on his final season in Spain, Garcia described it as “brutal,” largely due to a nagging knee injury. Although he planned to return to Mexico to play, he was informed by a team owner that his patellar tendon was severely compromised, posing serious risks.
“My dad reminded me, ‘It will end eventually.’ As a young athlete, I didn’t internalize that reality. Yet, that’s exactly what I should have considered,” Garcia said.
After much contemplation, he ultimately decided to end his basketball career and pivot to a role as a personal trainer.
Garcia cherishes the memories of playing abroad; it fulfilled his basketball dreams and sparked a newfound passion for guitar. But it wasn’t without challenges—from timezone issues affecting his ability to connect with family to missing holidays and complications in his dating life.
Living half his life in Europe or Mexico and half in Los Angeles complicated his dating efforts, often leading to short-lived connections.
“I’d try dating someone from the States, but being in Spain made it difficult. Conversations would go nowhere,” he admitted.
NEW BEGINNINGS came when a viral TikTok video caught attention. After one post gained traction, reality TV shows, including *Love Island,* started reaching out. Excitedly, he shared Love Island’s message in an old college group chat, eliciting a reaction from his friend Ryan.
“He texted me passionately, ‘I love *Love Island*! If you do any reality show, it should be that one. You’ll have a blast,'” Garcia remembered. “It was such an enthusiastic message that I couldn’t resist.”
The *Love Island* franchise is known for featuring athletes, and in season 7 of *LIUSA*, three contestants, including Garcia, Seeley, and TJ Palma, who was a member of the University of Tampa’s DII national championship baseball team in 2024, graced the screen.
Throughout the season, Garcia, Seeley, and fellow contestants bonded over their shared love for basketball, turning it into a frequent topic of conversation during meals.
Every meal, debates like “I can take you one-on-one” or “We can take you three-on-three” erupted in animated discussions.
The contestants’ enthusiasm was matched by the producers’ willingness; soon after the group game, the upbeat atmosphere continued, with Seeley cheerfully declaring during the final family dinner that basketball had offered him “the most fun I’ve had.”
Garcia and Iris Kendall ended up placing fourth in the competition, though they are rumored to have parted ways after unfollowing each other on Instagram.
Despite that, the summer was transformative for Garcia. He now boasts 1.4 million followers on Instagram, attended the Los Angeles Chargers’ training camp, and recently participated in the Big3 celebrity game.
“It’s unbelievable,” he exclaimed.
“As a kid, I always dreamed of experiences like this,” Garcia shared. “Now, I’m living out those dreams—playing in a Big3 celebrity game and connecting with the Chargers. I feel incredibly blessed.”
When the Big3 reached out, he consulted his management team, and they made it happen.
“I met incredible figures like Ice Cube, Shaq, and Mark Cuban, and had the chance to bond with Ochocinco, who I idolized growing up. Playing basketball alongside people I’ve admired is surreal,” he said.
Garcia envisions a bright future ahead as he continues to chase his new passion. On Monday, August 25, the *Love Island* Reunion is set to air, marking an eagerly anticipated conclusion to this unique chapter of his life (at least for now).
While drama and intense discussions are expected, Garcia remained tight-lipped about any spoilers, offering just one word to encapsulate it all: “Fun.”