Wat Misaka
Ogden (Ogden, Utah) | |
College |
|
---|---|
1947: 7th round, 61st overall pick | |
Selected by the New York Knicks | |
Position | Point guard |
Number | 15 |
Career history | |
1947 | New York Knicks |
Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Stats at NBA.com | |
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
Wat Misaka | |||||
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Japanese name | |||||
Kanji | 三阪 亙 | ||||
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Wataru Misaka (December 21, 1923 – November 20, 2019) was an American professional basketball player. A 5-foot-7-inch (1.70 m) point guard of Japanese descent, he broke a color barrier in professional basketball[1][2] by being the first non-white player and the first player of Asian descent to play in the National Basketball Association (NBA), known then as the Basketball Association of America (BAA).[3][4][5]
Misaka played college basketball for the Utah Utes and led the team to win the 1944 NCAA and 1947 NIT championships. He took a two-year hiatus between these titles to serve in the United States Army in the American occupation of Japan.[6][7] Misaka subsequently played three games for the New York Knicks during the 1947–48 season.
Early life
Misaka was born a Nisei (second-generation Japanese American) in Ogden, Utah, to Tatsuyo and Fusaichi Misaka.[8] He grew up poor with his two younger brothers. His family lived in the basement of his father's barber shop between a bar and a pawn shop in a bad area on 25th Street, which was also rife with prostitution.[9][10] He recalled the neighborhood as being a "ghetto".[11]
Misaka was raised in an era of "virtual
College career
After high school, Misaka continued his education at the same time that many other
Misaka subsequently enrolled at the
On January 22, 2022, Misaka's number 20 jersey was honored by the Utah Utes.[18]
Professional career
Misaka was selected by the
Misaka played in three games and scored seven points in the
Later years
Misaka declined an offer to play with the
Misaka went on to pursue bowling after his basketball career ended, notably hitting a near-perfect 299 game at the age of 80.[24]
Legacy
Misaka was inducted into the Utah Sports Hall of Fame in 1999.[9] In 2000, Misaka was featured in a landmark exhibit, More Than a Game: Sport in the Japanese American Community, at the Japanese American National Museum in Los Angeles.[20][25] A documentary film, Transcending: The Wat Misaka Story by Bruce Alan Johnson and Christine Toy Johnson, premiered in 2008. It recounts Misaka's playing career and his status as the first non-white player in the NBA.[14][21][26]
In 1997 Misaka was inducted into the Japanese American National Bowling Hall of Fame.[24]
BAA career statistics
Legend | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
GP | Games played | ||||
FG% | Field-goal percentage | ||||
FT% | Free-throw percentage | ||||
APG | Assists per game | ||||
PPG | Points per game |
Regular season
Year | Team | GP | FG% | FT% | APG | PPG |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1947–48 | New York | 3 | .231 | .333 | .0 | 2.3 |
Career[27] | 3 | .231 | .333 | .0 | 2.3 |
See also
- List of shortest players in National Basketball Association history
- Race and ethnicity in the NBA
Footnotes
- ^ New York City was a venue for both the NCAA tournament and NIT in 1944, but because of the regional nature of the NCAA event, only the four teams in the East Regional were guaranteed games in New York, specifically at the third Madison Square Garden. The West Regional was held in Kansas City, Missouri, with the winner advancing to the championship game at the Garden. In that era, all NIT games were played in the Garden. (The modern Garden is the fourth venue of that name.)
References
- ^ Wataru Misaka, who broke pro basketball's color barrier, dies at 95. Yahoo Sports. November 21, 2019.
- ^ a b Brockell, Gillian (June 15, 2019). "He broke pro basketball's color barrier. Now Jeremy Lin joins him in the history books". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
- ^ Vecsey, George (February 15, 2012). "The Old Guard Welcomes the New Guard". The New York Times. p. B10. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
For a long time, he was remembered, if at all, as the first Asian-American player — the first nonwhite player, really — in the N.B.A.
- ^ Zwerling, Jared (January 17, 2012). "'Kilowatt' Misaka still beaming at 88". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
Misaka is Japanese-American, and when he was drafted in 1947 -- after helping lead the Utes to the 1944 NCAA and 1947 NIT championships -- he became not only the first Asian to enter the NBA (then called the Basketball Association of America), but the first non-white player in the league. He came before Earl Lloyd, Chuck Cooper and Sweetwater Clifton broke the color barrier for black players.
- ^ Saffir, Douglas (February 11, 2012). "Jeremy Lin Receives Encouragement From Ex-Knicks Guard Wat Misaka, First Asian American in NBA". NESN.com. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
Wataru Misaka, the first non-white NBA player and like Lin an Asian American, sent the Chinese-American point guard a letter of encouragement.
- ^ "A Nisei in the NBA: The Wat Misaka Story". Hokubei.com. August 29, 2008. Archived from the original on November 22, 2008. Retrieved October 17, 2009.
- ^ a b c d e Wertheim, Jon (February 11, 2012). "Decades before Lin's rise, Misaka made history for Asian-Americans". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved November 23, 2019.
- ^ Odeven, Ed (December 28, 2018). "Hoop pioneer Wat Misaka reflects on breaking barriers in an incredible life". The Japan Times. Retrieved November 24, 2019.
- ^ a b c d e f Nielsen, Chad. (2010). "That’s Just How It Was". Continuum. Retrieved January 6, 2013.
- ISBN 9781423624950. Retrieved November 23, 2019.
- ^ Powers, Ian. "Utah's Blitz Kids: NCAA's original Cinderella story". The New York Daily News. Archived from the original on February 24, 2021. Retrieved November 23, 2019.
- ^ Ferrin 2012, p. 24.
- ISBN 9781440841903. Retrieved November 23, 2019.
- ^ a b c Chappell, Bill (February 15, 2012). "Pro Basketball's First Asian-American Player Looks At Lin, And Applauds". NPR. Retrieved February 15, 2012.
- ^ "Hall of Fame - Waturu (Wat) Misaka". Weber State University Athletics.
- ^ Gildea, William (March 27, 1998). "'44 Utes: Destiny's Team". The Washington Post. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
- ^ a b c d Goldstein, Richard (November 21, 2019). "Wat Misaka, First Nonwhite in Modern Pro Basketball, Dies at 95". The New York Times. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
- ^ "University of Utah honors Wat Misaka with jersey ceremony". Nichi Bei. Retrieved February 5, 2022.
- ^ a b c d Vecsey, George (August 11, 2009). "Pioneering Knick Returns to Garden". The New York Times. p. B-9. Retrieved October 28, 2010.
He lasted just three games, but is remembered as the first non-Caucasian player in modern professional basketball, three years before African-Americans were included.
- ^ a b c Lota, Louinn (May 11, 2000). "Misaka Recalls Time as First NBA Minority". AsianWeek. Associated Press. Archived from the original on July 15, 2009.
- ^ a b c Sanchez, Jennifer W. (September 10, 2008). "Utahn broke ethnic wall in NBA". The Salt Lake Tribune. Archived from the original on October 1, 2012.
- ^ Robbins, Liz (January 5, 2005). "Size 7 Sneakers Are Still Hard to Fill". The New York Times.
- ^ Kim Fischer (January 28, 2013). "First Asian American basketball player meets Jeremy Lin in Utah". KTVX. Nexstar Broadcasting, Inc. Retrieved February 5, 2013.
- ^ ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved October 18, 2023.
- ^ Boyer, Edward J. (March 4, 2000). "A Story of Japanese American Athletes". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on November 7, 2013.
- ^ Utah Basketball Legend Wat Misaka Passes Away at Age 95. University of Utah Athletics. November 21, 2019.
- ^ "Wat Misaka Stats". Basketball Reference. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
Further reading
- 'Wat' a player NBA.com. Retrieved April 7, 2005
- Wat Misaka: an Asian basketball pioneer, Basketball Digest, Feb 2002 by Douglas Stark.
- Basketball's Jackie Robinson ESPN Magazine May 2002 by Ursula Liang.
- Breaking the Basketball Color Line 70 seasons ago Ozy media 2018 by Hugh Biggar.
- Hoop pioneer Wat Misaka reflects on breaking barriers in an incredible life
External links
- Career statistics and player information from NBA.com and Basketball-Reference.com
- Transcending: The Wat Misaka Story film website