George Washington¡¯s Yuta Watanabe made a solid impact as a freshman forward this college basketball season. As a result, this has sparked greater interest in his career in Japan among hard-core fans and casual observers ¡ª plus the national media spotlight on NHK and other major news outlets.
The 203-cm Watanabe appeared in all 35 Colonials games, earning 10 starts and averaging 22.5 minutes, 7.4 points and 3.5 assists. He made 39 3-pointers and exhibited a shooter¡¯s touch from the free-throw line (83.1 percent). The long-limbed Kagawa Prefecture native blocked 21 shots and amassed 15 steals. He was twice selected as the Atlantic 10 Conference Rookie of the Week award recipient. And he helped GW compile a 22-13 overall record and advance to the second round of the Postseason NIT.
A member of the Japan men¡¯s national team, Watanabe has his sights set on an NBA career after his collegiate days. And, of course, Japan hoop supporters have every reason to turn their attention to Colonials games for the duration of Watanabe¡¯s college career. (After all, he¡¯s part of a small fraternity of Japanese men who have played Division I ball in the United States, including Keijuro Matsui of Columbia and Taishi Ito of the University of Portland.)
The Colonials do not have a future game scheduled in Japan, where Watanabe¡¯s team would attract an expected big crowd for official matches or a traveling tour against local teams in the offseason, such as Georgetown University¡¯s China trip in the summer of 2011.
¡°GW is always exploring international experiences for its student-athletes,¡± the GW athletics department wrote in a recent email statement to The Japan Times. ¡°While Japan is not on the men¡¯s basketball team¡¯s schedule right now, it is looking into this possibility.¡±
Next fall, Gonzaga University will take on the University of Pittsburgh in the Armed Forces Classic, which is scheduled for Nov. 13 at U.S. Marines Corp Base Camp Shedley D. Butler in Okinawa. The Armed Forces Classic, which began in 2012, rotates to various U.S. military installations around the world, including in Germany, South Korean and Puerto Rico. ESPN subsidiary ESPN Events owns and operates the event, and it wouldn¡¯t be shocking, partly based on Watanabe¡¯s growing popularity, if the Colonials were invited to participate in a future Armed Forces Classic.
If that happens, that would only enhance Watanabe¡¯s rising fame in Japan.
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