Wataru Misaka

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Wataru "Wat" Misaka (Japanese: 三阪 亙 Misaka Wataru) (born December 21, 1923 in Ogden, Utah, U.S.) was the first ethnic minority to play in the National Basketball Association (then known as the Basketball Association of America). Misaka, a Japanese American, was born in Utah. Playing for the University of Utah, he led his school to the 1944 NCAA and 1947 NIT championships. A 5'7" point guard, he was a first round draft pick by the New York Knicks. During the 1947-1948 season, he played in three games and scored seven points before he was cut from the team. Misaka was inducted into the Utah Sports Hall of Fame in 1999.

[edit] References

"'Wat' a player." NBA.com. Retrieved April 7, 2005 from http://www.nba.com/features/global_misaka_010417.html.

"Wat Misaka: an Asian basketball pioneer", Basketball Digest, Feb, 2002 by Douglas Stark. http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FCJ/is_4_29/ai_82258798