The early training system for youth players of Japanese professional basketball is succeeding.

The Nippon Professional Basketball B League held the ‘B League All-Star Game 2023’ at the Adastria Mito Arena in Mito City, Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan on the 14th. B-League Black beat White 127-123 and won.

An impressive match took place prior to the main event. The B-League U18 players split into East vs. West to play the All-Star Game. Future stars who will shine Japanese basketball in the future played a game. The East beat the West 86-76. It was a great experience for young players under the age of 18 to stand on the all-star stage filled with a full crowd.

It was also impressive to see the star players handing out presents to child fans and taking pictures with them after the game.

There are a total of 54 teams in Japanese professional basketball from the 1st to 3rd divisions. Like European football, they are compulsory for U15 and U18 age-specific youth teams. From the beginning of the B-League in 2015, the youth development system of the Japanese professional soccer J-League was introduced.

As a result, Akira Jacobs (19), the youngest adult professional player ever, was born last year and began to see the light properly. At the age of sophomore year of high school in Korea, a player has already appeared on an adult professional team. Yuki Kawamura, who currently ranks first in assists in the B-League and competes for the top point guard, is only 22 years old. The prevailing view is that Kawamura will get free agent status sooner or later and earn an annual salary of 100 million yen (approximately 950 million won). 먹튀검증

Of course, Korean players also have talent. Super high school level players like Song Gyo-chang appear. However, Song Gyo-chang is a mutant, not a player raised by the system. In addition, there is a great burden for high school players to skip college and advance to the pros early. Japan is different from Korea in that it can discover a large number of talented players and develop them at high speed, just like a factory. Players can learn systematic basketball at a young age and earn money early, so the players’ motivation is also very different.

There was an opportunity to peek into the secrets of Japanese basketball training. The U18 All-Star Camp was held the day before the All-Star Game. It was a training ground where U18 players, said to be the best in the B-League, gathered and received guidance from professional coaches. 24 players seriously learned partial tactics from four coaches. The training facility also used two courts at the same time.

Yang Jae-min, who plays for Utsunomiya, participated as a mentor for the players. Youth players could not hide their excitement at the fact that an All-Star player from the B-League adult team came to the training ground. In particular, Yang Jae-min was an object of envy to Fujii Dai (18), who plays for the Utsunomiya U18 team. Yang Jae-min said, “Honestly, when I was a teenager, I didn’t have the opportunity to learn like this. I am envious of this kind of environment in Japanese basketball.”

Another mentor, Filipino Asian quarter player Matthew Wright (32, Kyoto), said, “You are the future of Japanese basketball. I hope there will be players who play in the NBA like Hachimura.”

Yang Jae-min, who plays for Utsunomiya, participated as a mentor for the players. Youth players could not hide their excitement at the fact that an All-Star player from the B-League adult team came to the training ground. In particular, Yang Jae-min was an object of envy to Fujii Dai (18), who plays for the Utsunomiya U18 team. Yang Jae-min said, “Honestly, when I was a teenager, I didn’t have the opportunity to learn like this. I am envious of this kind of environment in Japanese basketball.”

Another mentor, Filipino Asian quarter player Matthew Wright (32, Kyoto), said, “You are the future of Japanese basketball. I hope there will be players who play in the NBA like Hachimura.”