TPOS Podcast Episode 12 – JR Sakuragi (“The American Star Of Japanese Basketball”)

In this episode, we speak with J.R. Sakuragi, a professional basketball player who has thrived is his adopted homeland of Japan. J.R. first gained fame as J.R. Henderson, in his native Bakersfield, California, and at UCLA where he helped the Bruins win the 1995 NCAA men’s basketball championship. Upon graduation, J.R. was drafted into the NBA, where he played for the Vancouver Grizzlies. But after 1999-2000 season was cut short due to conflict between NBA owners and players, J.R.  traveled to Japan to continue his career. It was there that J.R. found a home away from home, becoming a bona fide star on several championship teams, and becoming a naturalized Japanese citizen. All told, J.R. played over 700 games spanning 19 seasons, and scored nearly 11,000 points. So, listen in to J.R. tell us about his international basketball journey, about his experiences becoming affectionately known as “Mr. SeaHorses”, about his views of the two professional leagues that existed in Japan up until 2014, and about the FIBA sanctions that were placed on Japan which helped usher in a new professional league and a new age of basketball in the land of the rising sun.