The NBL¡¯s Wakayama Trians have gone from title contender to near-the-basement dweller in less than a year.

And now, the cash-strapped Trians have lost star forward Michael Parker to the Toyota Alvark, The Japan Times has learned.

An announcement is expected within the next few days, basketball sources told this newspaper.

The Trians ¡°can¡¯t afford¡± to pay Parker, one source confirmed this week.

The Trians (3-9), led by first-year coach Eric Gardow, are the second-worst team in the NBL¡¯s six-team Western Conference. Only the Kumamoto Volters (0-12) are below them in the standings.

Toyota is 7-7 and tied with the Chiba Jets for the fourth-best record in the seven-team Eastern Conference.

Parker, who starred at Evergreen (Washington) State before beginning his pro career, made the jump from the bj-league to the NBL for the 2013-14 season.

He played under Croatian bench boss Zeljko Pavlicevic for the bj-league¡¯s Shimane Susanoo Magic from 2011-13, and Pavlicevic guided the Trians last season. Before that, Parker was a standout all-around player for the bj-league¡¯s Rizing Fukuoka (2007-11). He led the bj-league in steals in five of his six seasons in the upstart circuit, and was the scoring champion in four straight campaigns (2008-09, 2009-10, 2010-11 and 2011-12).

Last season, the 32-year-old Parker averaged 23.1 points and 12.4 rebounds along with 2.1 blocks and 2.0 steals in 54 regular-season games for the Trians, who captured the West title with a 41-13 record and finished as the championship runnerup to the Toshiba Brave Thunders in the NBL¡¯s inaugural season. (The league is the JBL¡¯s successor.)

Parker has appeared in 10 of Wakayama¡¯s 12 games. He is the NBL¡¯s fourth-leading scorer (20.0 ppg), No. 3 in rebounds (11.0) and seventh in steals (1.7) while producing 1.1 blocks a game.

Under new ownership, Wakayama underwent massive budget cutbacks in the offseason, and the Trians have the 13-team league¡¯s worst home attendance (536 spectators per game).