Basketball: Ex-NBA forward Yuta Watanabe eyeing B-League title with Chiba

TOKYO (Kyodo) — Former NBA player Yuta Watanabe set his sights on the B-League title Tuesday after joining the Chiba Jets, his first club in his native Japan.

The 206-centimeter Japan forward, who enrolled at George Washington University after graduating from high school in his home prefecture of Kagawa, made his NBA debut in 2018 with the Memphis Grizzlies. He went on to play 213 games in total for the Toronto Raptors, Brooklyn Nets, Phoenix Suns and again for Memphis.

“I feel really honored to have the chance to play for this team,” the 29-year-old, known for his three-pointers and defense, told a press conference as he was unveiled by Chiba. “I’ll be giving my best to win the league title.”

Watanabe, who spent six seasons in the NBA, played for Japan at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, the FIBA World Cup in Okinawa last year as well as the recent Paris Olympics.

“(I chose the Jets) as they showed me more passion than any other team,” Watanabe said.

Chiba, home to Japan guard Yuki Togashi, won the B-League in the 2020-21 season and also counts five Emperor’s Cup titles.