The Most Famous

BASKETBALL PLAYERS from Japan

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This page contains a list of the greatest Japanese Basketball Players. The pantheon dataset contains 1,757 Basketball Players, 2 of which were born in Japan. This makes Japan the birth place of the 46th most number of Basketball Players behind U.S. Virgin Islands, and Netherlands.

Top 7

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the most legendary Japanese Basketball Players of all time. This list of famous Japanese Basketball Players is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity.

Photo of Rui Hachimura

1. Rui Hachimura (b. 1998)

With an HPI of 39.71, Rui Hachimura is the most famous Japanese Basketball Player.  His biography has been translated into 28 different languages on wikipedia.

Rui Hachimura (Japanese: 八村 塁, Hepburn: Hachimura Rui, born February 8, 1998) is a Japanese professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Gonzaga Bulldogs and has played for the Japan national team. He plays both the small forward and power forward positions. After being selected ninth overall by the Washington Wizards in the 2019 NBA draft, he was named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team in 2020. Born in Toyama Prefecture, Hachimura achieved success at the youth level in Japan, leading Meisei High School to three straight All-Japan High School Tournament titles and being a top player for the Japanese under-17 and under-19 national teams in FIBA competition. He joined Gonzaga in 2016 as the fifth Japanese-born men's NCAA Division I player and in 2017 became the first Japanese national to play in the NCAA Division I men's tournament. As a sophomore, he earned first-team All-WCC honors. He was named a finalist for the Naismith Player of the Year.

Photo of Yuta Watanabe

2. Yuta Watanabe (b. 1994)

With an HPI of 37.76, Yuta Watanabe is the 2nd most famous Japanese Basketball Player.  His biography has been translated into 18 different languages.

Yuta Watanabe (渡邊 雄太, Watanabe Yūta, born October 13, 1994) is a Japanese professional basketball player for the Chiba Jets Funabashi of the B.League. He played college basketball in the United States for the George Washington Colonials (now Revolutionaries), becoming the first Japanese-born student athlete to secure an NCAA Division I basketball scholarship. He was named Atlantic 10 Defensive Player of the Year in 2018. He has also represented the Japan national team, helping them win the bronze medal at the 2013 East Asia Basketball Championship. Before moving to the collegiate level, Watanabe attended Jinsei Gakuen High School in Zentsūji, Kagawa. He later transferred to St. Thomas More Preparatory School in Oakdale, Connecticut in 2013. Watanabe rose to fame in his high school program, and was one of their most valuable players in the National Prep School Invitational as a senior in 2014. In college, he became the fourth-ever Japanese-born Division I basketball player.

Photo of Yuta Tabuse

3. Yuta Tabuse (b. 1980)

With an HPI of 37.76, Yuta Tabuse is the 3rd most famous Japanese Basketball Player.  His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.

Yuta Tabuse (田臥 勇太, Tabuse Yūta, born October 5, 1980) is a Japanese professional basketball player for Utsunomiya Brex of the B.League. A point guard, Tabuse is 1.75 metres (5 ft 9 in) and 75 kilograms (165 lb). He was the first Japanese-born player to appear in a National Basketball Association (NBA) game. Tabuse has enjoyed popularity in Japan since his high school playing days, when he led his school to three straight national championships, and has been referred to as "the Michael Jordan of Japan" for his celebrity status.

Photo of Rui Machida

4. Rui Machida (b. 1993)

With an HPI of 25.72, Rui Machida is the 4th most famous Japanese Basketball Player.  Her biography has been translated into 18 different languages.

Rui Machida (町田瑠唯; born 8 March 1993) is a Japanese basketball player who plays for the Fujitsu Red Wave of the Women's Japan Basketball League (WJBL). She represented Japan in the women's tournament at the 2016 Summer Olympics and at the women's tournament at the 2020 Summer Olympics, winning a silver medal. At the 2020 Summer Olympics, she set an Olympic record with 18 assists in Japan's 87–71 semifinals win against France.

Photo of Stephanie Mawuli

5. Stephanie Mawuli (b. 1998)

With an HPI of 0.00, Stephanie Mawuli is the 5th most famous Japanese Basketball Player.  Her biography has been translated into different languages.

Stephanie Mawuli (馬瓜ステファニー, Mauri Sutefani, born November 25, 1998) is a Japanese basketball player for Casademont Zaragoza of the Liga Femenina de Baloncesto, in Spain. Previously, she played for the Toyota Antelopes of the Women's Japan Basketball League. She also plays for the Japan women's national 3x3 team. The younger Mawuli led the national U23 3x3 team to the World championship in 2019. She became the first-ever player to win both 5x5 and 3x3 medals at Asian Games in 2018. In 2023, Mawuli signed a contract to play on the training camp roster of the New York Liberty. On 11 May 2024, Mawuli was waived by the New York Liberty. On May 22, 2024 she signed for Casademont Zaragoza for the 2024-2025 season.

Photo of Avi Schafer

6. Avi Schafer (b. 1998)

With an HPI of 0.00, Avi Schafer is the 6th most famous Japanese Basketball Player.  His biography has been translated into different languages.

Avi Koki Schafer (シェーファーアヴィ幸樹, Shēfā Avi Kōki, born 28 January 1998) is a Japanese professional basketball player for SeaHorses Mikawa of the B.League. He played college basketball for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. Schafer has been a member of the Japan national basketball team.

Photo of Yudai Baba

7. Yudai Baba (b. 1995)

With an HPI of 0.00, Yudai Baba is the 7th most famous Japanese Basketball Player.  His biography has been translated into different languages.

Yudai Baba (馬場 雄大, Baba Yūdai, born November 7, 1995) is a Japanese professional basketball player for Nagasaki Velca of the B.League. He played college basketball for the University of Tsukuba. Baba has been a member of the Japan men's national basketball team.

People

Pantheon has 7 people classified as Japanese basketball players born between 1980 and 1998. Of these 7, 7 (100.00%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Japanese basketball players include Rui Hachimura, Yuta Watanabe, and Yuta Tabuse. As of April 2024, 5 new Japanese basketball players have been added to Pantheon including Yuta Watanabe, Rui Machida, and Stephanie Mawuli.

Living Japanese Basketball Players

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Newly Added Japanese Basketball Players (2024)

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