Kyle Anderson, who is about to become the first naturalized player of the Chinese men's basketball team, is better than Hachimura and Yuta Watanabe in Japan.
Let's first take a look at the strength of Japanese NBA current star Hachimura. In 2016, Hachimura joined NCAA Gonzaga University. In 2017, Hachimura was runner-up in the NCAA Finals with Gonzaga University, becoming the first Asian player in history to reach the NCAA Finals
In the 2019 NBA Draft, Hachimura was selected by the Washington Wizards with the 9th pick in the first round and was named to the All-Rookie Second Team in 2019-20.
In the 2019-2020 regular season, he averaged 13.5 points, 6.1 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game, shooting 28.7% from three-point range.
In the 2020-2021 regular season, he averaged 13.8 points, 5.5 rebounds, 1.4 assists, and shot 32.8% from three-point range
In the 2021-2022 regular season, he averaged 11.3 points, 3.8 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game, shooting 44.7% from three-point range
In 2023, Hachimura was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers (Wizards, Lakers): averaged 23.3 minutes per game, 11.2 points, 4.5 rebounds and 0.9 assists, and shot 33.1% from three-point range;
Let's take a look at another current Japanese NBA star, Yuta Watanabe, who was defeated in the 2018 NBA Draft on June 21, 2018. On July 21 of the same year, Yuta Watanabe joined the NBA Memphis Grizzlies on a two-way contract.
2018-2019 regular season averaged 2.6 points, 2.1 rebounds and 0.5 assists per game, shooting 12.5% from three-point range
In the 2019-2020 regular season, he averaged 2.0 points, 1.1 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game, shooting 37.5% from three-point range
In the 2020-2021 regular season, he averaged 4.4 points, 3.2 rebounds and 0.8 assists per game, shooting 40.0% from three-point range
201-2022 regular season averaged 4.3 points, 2.4 rebounds and 0.6 assists per game, shooting 34.2% from three-point range
On August 29, 2022, Yuta Watanabe joined the Brooklyn Nets. In 37 games, he averaged 18.2 minutes per game, 6.9 points, 2.7 rebounds and 0.8 assists, shooting 49% from three-point range, ranking first in the league!
Next, let's see how Chinese naturalized player Kyle Anderson performs in the NBA
In 2012, Kyle Anderson joined the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) to represent UCLA in college basketball. Kyle Anderson averaged 9.7 points and 3.5 assists per game and was named to the Pacific XII All-Twelve Second Team and All-Rookie Team.
In 2013-14, Kyle Anderson averaged 14.9 points and 6.5 assists per game, becoming the first player in NCAA Division I history to achieve 500 points, 300 rebounds and 200 assists in a single season, helping the team win the Pacific XII League Championship with a 28-9 record, reach the NCAA Sweet 16, and be named to the AP All-American Team 3, the U.S. Sports News All-America Team 3, and the Pacific XII All-12 First Team.
In the 2014-2015 regular season, he averaged 2.2 points, 2.2 rebounds and 0.8 assists while shooting 27.3% from three-point range
In the 2015-2016 regular season, he averaged 4.5 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game, shooting 32.4% from three-point range
2016-2017 regular season averaged 3.4 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game, shooting 37.5% from three-point range
In the 2017-2018 regular season, he averaged 7.9 points, 5.4 rebounds and 2.7 assists while shooting 33.3% from three-point range
In the 2018-2019 regular season, he averaged 8.0 points, 5.8 rebounds and 3.0 assists while shooting 26.5% from three-point range
In the 2019-2020 regular season, he averaged 5.8 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game, shooting 28.2% from three-point range
In the 2020-2021 regular season, he averaged 12.4 points, 5.7 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game, shooting 36.0% from three-point range
In the 2021-2022 regular season, he averaged 7.6 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game, shooting 33.0% from three-point range
In the 2022-2023 regular season, he averaged 9.4 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game, shooting 41.3% from three-point range
Let's take a look at Kyle Anderson and the two Japanese stars compared to this year's statistics
Overall, Kyle Anderson's numbers are better than Hachimura's, let's look at the career comparison between the two men
Kyle Anderson's Career Summary
Hachimura Career Summary
Statistically, Kyle Anderson is better than Hachimura, but Kyle Anderson is 30 years old this year and Eight Inch Base is only 24 years old this year, his statistics and ball skills can still rise, and by the age of 30, he may have a career more beautiful and outstanding than Kyle Anderson.
Let's take a look at how Yuta Watanabe, another Japanese star, performed
Statistically, Yuta Watanabe is much inferior to his own Hachimura in Japan, and let's look at his career
Yuta Watanabe's career summary
There is a clear gap with Kyle Anderson, and Yuta Watanabe is 29 years old this year, and Kyle Anderson is only one year away, and it is too late to continue to improve his skills and statistics, and it is basically impossible to surpass Kyle Anderson.
Can shoot mid-range, three-point shooting continues to improve, is an all-round player can break through, shooting, dribbling, passing and other skills are very good players, height 206 meters and weight 104 kilograms of professional small forward, suitable for playing the Chinese men's basketball team temporary position shortage problem. So Kyle Anderson as a naturalized player of the Chinese men's basketball team is still very good, and he is still young, is playing in the NBA, the game is still growing, but also can bring practical improvement to the Chinese men's basketball team, from a practical point of view, a very good choice, of course, in the selection of naturalized players also need to carefully consider and discuss, make more refined judgment and wise choices and decisions.