Early Years and Bio

Yuta Watanabe was born in Yokohama, Japan, on October 13, 1994. This basketball player is 28 years old and is of Japanese nationality, according to his birthdate. In addition, he is of Asian descent and was born under the sign of Libra. His parents are Kumi Kubota and Hideyuki Watanabe (mother). He also shared a childhood with his sister, Yuki Watanabe.

He was raised in Kagawa’s Miki. Watanabe has a long history of basketball players in his family. His mother played basketball for both the Japanese women’s national team and the Chanson V-Magic. Similar to him, his father played basketball professionally with the Kumagai Gumi Bruins. His sister had once been an Aisin AW Wings player.

After High School

In terms of his academic background, he enrolled at Jinsei Gakuen High School in Kagawa. In the All-Japan High School Basketball Tournament, he also guided the basketball team to a second-place finish. He spent the 2013 academic year at St. Thomas More Preparatory High School in Oakdale, Connecticut. He averaged 13 points and six rebounds outside of Japan in high school.

A 26-8 overall record and a trip to the National Prep Championship game were accomplishments under his direction. Likewise, on his debut at the National Prep School Invitational in January 2014, he defeated Suffield Academy with 12 points. He also contributed 20 points and six rebounds to a 70-61 win over the Spanish Canarias Basketball Academy.

What is the Professional Career of Yuta Watanabe?

College Career

In 2014, he enrolled at George Washington University as a freshman. The first basketball player from Japan to receive an NCAA Division I scholarship was Watanabe. He became only the fourth college basketball player to play at a high level after that. Following his acceptance to George Washington, prominent publications including The New York Times and The Washington Post featured him in feature articles. In his 20 minutes of action against Grambling State in November 2014, Watanabe averaged eight points, seven rebounds, and a block.

Since 1999, the team’s largest victory was 92-40. He helped the club win the 2014 Diamond Head Classic as a result, and in December 2014 he was named Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week for averaging 9.0 points and 4.7 rebounds. Similar to that, he set a career high against Massachusetts on March 7 with 21 points and seven 3-pointers. Watanabe received the Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week for a second time at the same time. He thereby became the first player to earn consecutive Rookie of the Week honours in the same season since Lasan Kromah in 2009–2010.

Junior Team

In November 2016, he beat Siena 77-75 and registered his first double-double. He also moved up to second place among scorers for George Washington, averaging 12.2 points per game. He was thus selected for the Atlantic 10 All-Defensive Team.

Senior Team

Against Rider in November 2017, he grabbed a career-high 13 rebounds. He recorded a career-high five steals on November 29 against Morgan State. Then, in the championship contest, Watanabe led his team to a 72-56 triumph over Fordham with a career-high 31 points. He was chosen as the Atlantic 10 Defensive Player of the Year as a result. He was also selected for the Atlantic 10 All-Defensive Team and the Third Team All-Conference teams. In the end, Watanabe’s time at George Washington was spectacular; he received praise and compensation for his abilities and output.

Memphis Grizzlies

Watanabe participated in the NBA Summer League for the Brooklyn Nets after going undrafted in the 2018 NBA Draft. Later, he agreed to a two-way contract with the Memphis Grizzlies and Memphis Hustle of the NBA G League. In October 2018, this player made his NBA debut against the Phoenix Suns, starting off the bench and averaging 2 points and 2 rebounds. He consequently replaced Yuta Tabuse as the second Japanese player in the NBA.

Watanabe also played the most of the season for the G League’s Memphis Hustles. In 32 of 33 games for the NBA G League, he averaged 14.2 points, 7.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and 1.1 assists. Watanabe scored a team-high 28 points in the Memphis Hustle’s 130-126 victory over the Iowa Wolves in January 2020. He made 12 of 19 field goal attempts and 2-of-4 three-point attempts. He also added 7 rebounds, 4 blocks, 2 assists, and 2 steals. Also, He was selected as Western Conference Midseason All-NBA G League as a result.

Toronto Raptors

Watanabe and the Raptors agreed to work together to fill out their preseason roster on December 19, 2020. In nine minutes of action on December 31 against the New York Knicks, he made his Toronto Raptors debut, contributing four rebounds, an assist, a block, and a steal. Then, in January 2021, he defeated the Sacramento Kings and recorded a career-high 12 points on an 80.0 percent field goal shooting effort. He also added 6 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals. On February 9, Watanabe hurt his left ankle while working out.

Because of this, on February 18 against the Milwaukee Bucks, this guy made a comeback and averaged 2 rebounds and 1 block. Watanabe achieved a career high in April 2021 when he defeated the Orlando Magic 113-102 by scoring 21 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the field and 2-of-4 from three-point range. He also added 6 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1 block.

Watanabe’s left leg was strained as a result, and he missed about 18 games this season. As a result, he averaged three points and two blocks in 14 minutes of action against the Memphis Grizzlies. Later, in December 2021, he recorded a double-double by scoring 26 points and pulling down 13 rebounds against the Cleveland Cavaliers.

National Team Career

At the 2013 East Asia Basketball Championship, he made his senior Japanese basketball debut, helping the team to a bronze-medal result. During that time, he outscored Macau 101-53 with 22 points and 14 rebounds.

Similar to this, he placed ninth with 5.2 points, 1.2 rebounds, and 0.5 assists in four games at the 2013 FIBA Asia Championship. With 7.0 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 1.0 assists in the 2016 FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament, Watanabe was thus selected for the 12-man roster. He was consequently selected to compete in the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup. He recorded 15.6 points, 5.6 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game on average.

Awards and Achievements

He has received numerous accolades and awards for his basketball playing. In 2018, he was selected the third-team All-Atlantic 10 player and the defensive player of the year for the conference. In addition, he was named to the Atlantic 10 All-Defensive Team twice in a row (2017, 2018). 2013 Men’s Basketball East Asia Basketball Championship Bronze went to him and his squad.

Is Yuta Watanabe married?

Watanabe and television broadcaster Akiko Kuji recently made an engagement announcement on May 26, 2022. Regarding their initial encounter and the timing of when they began dating, there isn’t much information available. Also, the couple is currently enjoying their relationship.

This basketball player is about 98 kg and 6 feet 9 inches tall. He also has black hair and brown eyes, and nothing is known about the rest of his physical characteristics. There are more than 254k followers on his Instagram. On Twitter and Facebook, respectively, there are more than 195.8k and 10k followers, respectively.