There are not a few Asian players on the NBA stage, including Yao Ming, Yi Jianlian, Wang Zhizhi and many other familiar names. Although they have not played in the NBA for a long time, they still contributed many wonderful moments, and they successfully entered the NBA, the world's highest basketball league, and made outstanding contributions to the development of Asian basketball. So far, a total of 16 Asian players have successfully entered the NBA, and one champion has also been produced. Let's take a look at the highest single-game NBA scoring points of Asian players, and see which player is the most unexpected.
We divided them into four echelons, water cooler managers, fringe rotations, core starters, and leaders.
Fourth echelon: NBA water cooler administrator, Sun Yue (China), Yuta Tian Wo (Japan), Zhou Qi (China), Ha Seung Jin (South Korea).
Sun Yue: The highest score is 4 points. Sun Yue, known as Asia's No. 1 guard, was selected by the Lakers for his eye-catching performance at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and played only 10 games in one season with the Lakers. In his debut against the Bucks, Sun Yue played 5 minutes and scored 4 points on 2-of-3 shooting, which is also his NBA single-game highest scoring record, and he is the most inconspicuous player on the team, but he won the NBA championship with Kobe!
Yuta Tawo: The highest score is 4 points. This is the first player from the Japanese men's basketball team to enter the NBA, and the shortest Asian player in the NBA, standing only 1.76 meters tall. After signing with the Suns in 2004, Yuta Tawo played only four games, scoring in all but seven points in his debut.
Zhou Qi: The highest score is 6 points. He played 2 seasons in the NBA and played only 19 games, including 18 games in the first season and only 1 game in the second season. From the data, it can be seen that the rocket gave the "big devil" a chance, but the "big devil" didn't catch it, so he could only choose to cut it.
Ha Seung Jin, the highest score of 13 points, entered the 2004 draft, was selected by the Trail Blazers with the overall pick of 46th, and the highest score in the NBA in his career was only 13 points. At that time, South Korea called him the No. 1 center in the universe, and even said that he was stronger than Yao Ming, and even said that he was Yao Ming's nemesis.
Tier 3: Fringe rotation players. Battle (China), Haddadi (Iran), Wang Zhizhi (China), Yuta Watanabe (Japan).
Battle: The highest score is 12 points. As the first yellow to start in the NBA, he had regular rotation time with the Nuggets, but he didn't take advantage of that opportunity. On April 17, 2002, in a game between the Nuggets and the Timberwolves, Battle started the game and scored 12 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists and 3 steals.
After trading to the Spurs, he received his first NBA championship ring, which is also the first Asian player to win an NBA championship in the NBA!
Haddadi: Highest score of 14 points. On April 18, 2013, Haddadi, wearing a Suns jersey, scored 14 points and 7 rebounds on 7-of-11 shooting from the Nuggets, setting a new scoring record in the NBA.
It is worth mentioning that this was Haddadi's last NBA game.
Wang Zhizhi: The highest score in a single game is 21 points. We are the first Chinese star to land in the NBA, and his talent and strength have been recognized by the league. Due to the environment at that time, Wang Zhizhi did not choose to participate in the NBA earlier, he missed the best period of the ball, and naturally there were not many opportunities in the NBA. If he goes to polish it early, it won't be a problem to stay in the NBA.
Yuta Watanabe: The current highest score in a single game is 21 points (because he is still playing in the NBA, so he can only score the highest score so far). On April 17, 2021, when the Raptors played against the Magic, Watanabe played 27 minutes off the bench, scoring 21 points and 6 rebounds on 7-of-11 shooting, which was the hero of the Raptors' victory.
Second echelon: core starters. Yi Jianlian (China), Hachimura (Japan).
Yi Jianlian: His athleticism and explosiveness are better than Wang Zhizhi and Yao Ming, which is why he was selected with the sixth pick. And if it weren't for the impact of communication and injuries, its total score on the NBA stage would be far more than 2,148 points.
Hachimura: The highest score in a single game is 30 points. (Like Yuta Watanabe, because he is still playing in the NBA, he can only score the highest score at the moment, and he is currently the strongest NBA player in Asia) is not a star and cannot be said to be a starter, but he has 2620 points in terms of scoring, which has surpassed the United Arab Emirates, and there is currently no achievement in terms of achievements, on March 31, 2021, the Wizards played back-to-back against the Hornets, Hachimura shot 12 of 25, and scored 30 points in a single game again.
First echelon: Leaders. Yao Ming (China)
Yao Ming, the highest score in a single game, 41 points. As the first Asian champion in NBA history, he dominated the All-Star starting center position during his time in the NBA. Peak Yao Ming is undoubtedly one of the best centers in the league, even against superstars like O'Neal and Howard. On February 22, 2004, the Rockets hosted the Hawks in a three-overtime game that the Rockets narrowly defeated the Hawks 123-121. In this game, Yao Ming made 15 of 21 shots, 11 of 13 free throws, and scored 41 points to set a career-high personal record. He was inducted into the NBA Hall of Fame in 2016 and was the first player in Asia to be inducted into the Hall of Fame.
The 2023 FIBA FIBA Hall of Fame induction ceremony was held in Manila, the capital of the Philippines. Yao Ming, president of the Chinese Basketball Association, was officially selected, becoming the third Chinese to enter the FIBA Hall of Fame after Mou Zuoyun and Zheng Haixia.
A snapshot of the total points scored by Asian players in their NBA careers:
Sun Yue 6 points
Yuta Tagi 7 minutes
Ha Sheng town 70 minutes
Battle 156 points
Haddadi 339 points
Wang Zhizhi scored 604 points
Yuta Watanabe 778 minutes
Yi Jianlian 2148 points
Rui Hachimura 2620
Yao Ming 9427 points