Wataru Misaka
| No. 15 |
| Point guard |
| Personal information |
| Date of birth |
December 21, 1923 (1923-12-21) (age 88) |
| Place of birth |
Ogden, Utah |
| Nationality |
American |
| High school |
Ogden |
| Listed height |
5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) |
| Listed weight |
150 lb (68 kg) |
| Career information |
| College |
Utah |
| NBA Draft |
1947 / Round: -- / Pick: -- |
| Selected by the New York Knicks |
| Pro career |
1947–1948 |
| League |
BAA |
| Career history |
| 1947–1948 |
New York Knicks |
| Career highlights and awards |
|
|
| Career BAA statistics |
| Points |
7 (2.3 ppg) |
| Games played |
3 |
| Stats at Basketball-Reference.com |
Wataru "Wat" Misaka (三阪 亙, Misaka Wataru?, born December 21, 1923) is a retired American basketball player. He was the first player of Asian descent and the first non-Caucasian person to play in the National Basketball Association (then known as the Basketball Association of America).[1]
[edit] Biography
Misaka, a Nisei Japanese American, was born in Ogden, Utah. Playing for the University of Utah, he led his school to the 1944 NCAA and 1947 NIT championships. Misaka took off two years between these titles to serve in the U.S. Army.[2]
A 5'7" point guard, he was selected by the New York Knicks in the 1947 BAA Draft. During the 1947–1948 season, he played in three games and scored seven points before he was cut from the team.[3] Misaka was inducted into the Utah Sports Hall of Fame in 1999.
A documentary film, Transcending: The Wat Misaka Story, by Bruce Alan Johnson and Christine Toy Johnson[4] premiered in 2008.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
| Persondata |
| Name |
Misaka, Wataru |
| Alternative names |
|
| Short description |
|
| Date of birth |
December 21, 1923 |
| Place of birth |
Ogden, Utah |
| Date of death |
|
| Place of death |
|
