Yuta Watanabe to quit NBA, play in Japan next season

Yuta Watanabe. (NBAE/Getty/Kyodo)

Memphis Grizzlies swingman Yuta Watanabe said Friday he will play in his native Japan next season.

The 29-year-old revealed the plan on Instagram Live after the Grizzlies missed the playoffs in his sixth NBA season, the longest stint for a Japanese player in the world’s top league.

The former star at George Washington University made his NBA debut in October 2018 with the Grizzlies, becoming the second Japanese to appear in the NBA after Yuta Tabuse played a short stint for the Phoenix Suns in 2004.

The 2.06-meter Watanabe played for the Grizzlies, Toronto Raptors, Brooklyn Nets and Phoenix Suns.

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