Chikara Tanaka

Chikara Tanaka (born 4 May 2002) is a Japanese basketball player who attended IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida.

Chikara Tanaka
Personal information
Born (2002-05-04) 4 May 2002
Aomori Prefecture, Japan
NationalityJapanese
Listed height1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Career information
High schoolIMG Academy
(Bradenton, Florida)
PositionPoint guard

Early life and career

Tanaka was born in Aomori Prefecture to an American father and a Japanese mother. He briefly lived in Hawaii as a child and was raised in Yokohama, Japan.[1] Tanaka grew up skateboarding but was encouraged by his friends to play basketball due to his height.[2] Tanaka attended Sakamoto Junior High School in Yokosuka and played for the youth team of the Yokohama B-Corsairs. In 2017, he led his team to second place at the B.League Under-15 Championship.[3] In 2018, Tanaka began attending IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida, joining one of the best high school teams in the United States.[1][4] In February 2019, he participated in the Basketball Without Borders Global Camp during 2019 NBA All-Star Weekend in Charlotte, North Carolina.[5]

National team career

In January 2018, Tanaka led the Japanese under-16 team to the title of the Crystal Bohemia Cup in the Czech Republic, earning tournament most valuable player honors.[1] Later that year, he averaged 15.2 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game for Japan at the FIBA Under-16 Asian Championship.[2] Tanaka was invited to training camp with the Japanese senior national team for the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup qualification stage.[6]

References
  1. Nagatsuka, Kaz (8 June 2018). "Teenage star Chikara Tanaka to attend IMG Academy in bid to gain college hoop scholarship". The Japan Times. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
  2. "Chikara Tanaka has best friend to thank for path from skateboarder to hopeful Olympic debut". FIBA. 21 May 2020. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
  3. Nagatsuka, Kaz (8 February 2018). "Teen phenom Chikara Tanaka looking to make mark with national team". The Japan Times. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
  4. Arruda, Joe (19 January 2020). "An international superstar: IMG's Chikara Tanaka". The Springfield Student. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
  5. Givony, Jonathan (12 February 2019). "International prospects to show skills during All-Star Weekend". ESPN. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
  6. "Tanaka takes humbling senior team experience to be U16 leader". FIBA. 14 March 2018. Retrieved 25 June 2020.
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