The NBA is the most diverse major sports league in America. Most NBA teams boast at least two or three players who were born outside of the United States on their active rosters and still many more are under the control of NBA teams but are developing over seas in the Euro Leagues. The one nationality of player that is fairly rare though, is the Asian NBA player. Yes, I know about Yao Ming. In todays game, Yao and Yi Jianlian are about it.
Lets go all the way back to the late 1940s. The days of 6 foot 6 giants and George Mikan leading the league in scoring. In 1948, Wataru Misaka took the court and changed basketball forever. He was the first Asian player to ever step on the hardwood in a professional basketball game. He was only 5 foot 7 inches tall and weighed in the neighborhood of 140 pounds. Unlike other players who were the first of their nationality to play a professional sport, Misaka never got any kind of recognition or praise. Most people have no idea who he is or what he represents. Now you do!
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