After spending 6 seasons in the NBA, Yuta Watanabe has announced that he is leaving the NBA to play in the Japanese B.League next season.⁠ ⁠ On April 19, Watanabe went on Instagram Live to announce his decision, citing mental health and a desire for consistent playing time, something that did not happen in his last NBA season.⁠ ⁠ “I just want to play basketball. I want to step into the game and do what I do in practice,” he said in Japanese. “I grinded through my 20s but now I hope to play basketball the way I like.”⁠ ⁠ As a key player for Japan’s national team, he is expected to be a major draw for the B.League.⁠ ⁠ ⁠ 🏀Learn more about the announcement in the full article on our website in our linkinbio ⁠ ⁠ ⁠ 💬Comment “email” to sign up to our daily newsletter.⁠ ⁠ 📰Follow us for the latest Asian News NextShark⁠ ⁠ ⁠ ⁠ ⁠ #NBA #BLeague #basketball #sports #yutawatanabe