Yuta Watanabe in North America

[CKR13]

Yuta Watanabe, the youngster that was included in the Japanese men's senior national team that played in Manila in August, made a good account of himself in the prep showcase in Connecticut.

http://coxsportsonline.com/2013/11/japans-67-yuta-watanabe-a-standout-at-national-prep-showcase/

One player to keep a very close eye on is Japanese-born Yuta Watanabe, who will play prep ball at St. Thomas More Preparatory School in Connecticut.

“Watanabe is intriguing coaches with his combination of size, skill, and athleticism,” says Finkelstein. At his young age, Watanabe already made the men’s national team.

A 6’7″ forward with a textbook elbow jumper, Watanabe will be certainly one of the most recruited players in New England this season. “He’s shown every indication of being the real deal thus far.”

After settling in Connecticut early October, Watanabe worked on his conditioning and upper body strength.

[CKR13]

16 points and 5 rebounds as St. Thomas More won over Brewsters Academy. Watanabe plays SF and PF for the team and is currently working on his shooting. What he lacks in upper body strength for now, he makes it up with his stamina and improved conditioning. That sprint speed is credited to his younger days of track and field.

Lot more work to be done with Watanabe.

[CKR13]

First double double of Yuta Watanabe: 18 points and 10 rebounds against Vanier College of Canada.

[CKR13]

Yuta's younger brother, Taiga Watanabe (205 cm / 15yrs) leads Niigata into the 81st All High School Winter Cup.

[CKR13]

Yuta Watanabe has been consistent in his production on points, rebounds and increasing his assists average as he learns to play within the concept. He and Eric Paschall have been St. Thomas More's most productive players.

[CKR13]

St. Thomas More vs. Hargrave Military #12 Dark jersey Yuta Watanabe

[zoman114]

#13 guy is Taiga Watanabe. 6'9 and just 15 years old!!!

[CKR13]

Watanabe visited George Washington's campus and watched the game of the Colonials victory against Rhode Island.

[CKR13]

Yuta Watanabe had 17 points and 4 rebounds to help St. Thomas More over New Hampton 76-68. Watanabe's teammate Eric Paschall was the man though, 29 points and 11 rebounds.

[CKR13]

Five players scoring in double figures as St. Thomas More routed Army Preparatory 91-76. Good overall game for Watanabe: 18 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists.

According to the staff, Watanabe is drawing interest from mid D1 schools.

[CKR13]

Watanabe on the clincher for the Coaches vs. Cancer Winter Classic Tournament: 10 points and 5 rebounds as St. Thomas More beat Bridgton Academy 83-74. It was all about Eric Paschall who put up a monstrous 37 points and 14 rebounds double double.

[CKR13]

Watanabe with 12 points and 8 rebounds in the national prep invtl to help St. Thomas More. Next game is against GB Academy (Czech Republic) in February 2.

[DarknessFalls]

Final game update. I'm very intrigued that he's a point forward (given his growth spurts) and can shoot.

Adam Finkelstein @AdamFinkelstein 2h
Watanabe decision apparently been pushed off until tomorrow per STM head coach Jere Quinn


Corey Evans @coreyevans_10 2h
Yuta Watanabe is out here eating! Poster dunk on one possession with step back 3 on one a few minutes later. Love this kid!

http://netscoutsbasketball.com/blog/national-prep-school-invitational-final-day/

NPSISun1-300x218.jpg

10:30 – Canarias Basketball Academy (Spain) (61) vs St. Thomas More (CT) (70)


6’7 Yuta Watanabe (Japan) scored 20 points and grabbed six rebounds to help St. Thomas More to the win. Watanabe, a skilled lefty point forward will choose between Fordham and George Washington this week.

[CKR13]

Thanks for the updates DarknessFalls. I read somewhere that Watanabe is really interested in enrolling at George Washington.

[DarknessFalls]

No problem, CKR13. Thank you for all the updates that you post in general here on Interbasket as well.

Found some older pics and news of Yuta Watanabe 渡邊 雄太 that I thought I should share, so we can see the progression of this kid as he tries to make a name for himself.

With the 2020 Olympics to be in Japan, depending on how well he develops, he may very well be the face of Japanese basketball.

http://ulaanbaatar2012.fibaasia.net/TournamentInterviewDetails.aspx?id=241

FIBA Asia: Did you find any new players who have the potential for the future for Japan?

Hisao: All of the players that I have selected for this team have the potential for the future for our National team. Therefore, I hope that players would learn from this Championship and take their experience to the next category in order to have stronger National team.

Yuta Watanabe is the top prospect in Japan, and definitely one of the best big players in Japan. But, from this Championship, he needs to develop more in various areas to play against big players in Asia as well as the World. For Japan, it is urgent to strengthen and develop big players to play equally against top teams.

FIBA Asia: Have the youngsters in Japan team improved from the time they started training to now?

Hisao: Yes. The players are still in learning stage, but they have shown tremendous development throughout this Championship. They might not be a very talented group, but they have learnt to play as a team, and they have shown development mentally. I am satisfied how they are performing but I still feel that they have more potential.

FIBA Asia: How do you look at the future of Japan basketball?

Hisao: In Japan, players start playing basketball at age of 6. However, talented athletes are playing baseball and football. Those two sport take most of the talented athletes. The main problem is that basketball team has not been successful in international Championships compared to those two sports. Our men’s national team needs to become a team that could be successful in international Championships. I feel that we have potential, but have not unfulfilled our strengths.

FIBA Asia: What other things needs to be done?

Hisao: As I have mentioned before, we need to develop big players. Currently, that is our weakness in every level compared to the powerhouse such as China, Korea, and West Asian countries.