Namizato, White make return; ex-NBA swingman Childress on move to San-en
Familiar faces are returning to Japan pro basketball as some teams make moves to shake up their rosters. Nearly one-fourth of the way through the inaugural B. League season, a 60-game campaign, the Shiga Lakestars and Sendai 89ers are among the teams adding veterans to ...
Blackledge sparks Osaka in rout of Fukuoka
Lawrence "Trend" Blackledge put his stamp on Friday's game against the Rizing Fukuoka. The talented forward's all-around effort — 26 points on 10-for-15 shooting, seven rebounds, six assists and three steals — helped steer the Evessa to an 89-68 triumph, and the hosts extended ...
The Osaka Evessa's defense pressured the visiting Rizing Fukuoka throughout Thursday's series opener. That effort and energy paid off for the hosts. Osaka earned an 89-70 victory and forced 23 turnovers. The Evessa (24-11) won their third straight game and picked up their seventh victory in eight ...
As the summer marches on and the start of training camp gets closer and closer, it appears that the defending champion Hamamatsu Higashimikawa Phoenix will not have a roster resembling the one that captured the title in May. Star guard Nile Murry, the playoff MVP ...
Sendai's Shimura remains key part of team's identity
During the past four seasons of major personnel changes for the Sendai 89ers, veteran guard Takehiko Shimura has been the one constant on the club's roster. He's the lone player still on the club who competed under original 89ers bench boss Honoo Hamaguchi in the ...
Iwate's Oketani earns 300th career victory
When the bj-league tipped off in the fall of 2005, Dai Oketani was working as an assistant under Oita HeatDevils head coach Jawann Oldham, a former NBA big man. Oldham's tenure in the bj-league lasted just 16 games, and Oita was 4-12 when he was ...
Upcoming bj-league season set for Oct. 4 start
The 2014-15 bj-league season, the league's 10th, is set to tip off on Oct. 4. Each of the league's 22 teams, including the expansion Fukushima Firebonds, will play regular-season 52 games, according to a news release issued on Thursday. With the addition of Fukushima, the Eastern ...
Iwate's Blackledge thriving as important contributor
Blessed with a 218-cm wingspan and a motor that's always ticking, forward Lawrence "Trend" Blackledge is a game-changing presence for the Iwate Big Bulls. And when the Marquette University product is on top of his game, the Big Bulls (6-4) reap the rewards. The following statistics ...
