THIRDY Ravena is largely recognized as the pioneer for Filipino players in the Japan B.League.
After all, the second-generation star broke ground as the first Filipino player to be enlisted as an import by a B.League team under the league's Asian Players Quota after signing with the San-En NeoPhoenix back in 2020.
Since then, eight more players, including his older brother Kiefer and Gilas Pilipinas peers Dwight Ramos and Kobe Paras, have taken their act to the Land of the Rising Sun in both of the top echelons of the ambitious league.
Of the nine, only Matthew Aquino is an exception as he is considered a local due to his Japanese lineage.
Meet Edward Yamamoto
But even before the migration of Filipino imports to Japan last year came to be, there was already a Filipino player who has been making his name in the Japanese professional basketball circuit.
Meet Edward Yamamoto, a full-blooded Filipino who was raised in Japan and currently plays for Nagasaki Velca in the third division of the B.League.
The Caloocan-born Yamamoto's father died when he was young which led to his mother marrying a Japanese citizen. Their family moved to Japan when he was still seven years old.
Although he was raised in Japan, the love for the game never left Yamamoto as he quickly picked up the sport even after he made the move.
"In the Philippines, it's like a national sport, so there was an environment where I could play basketball naturally. There is a basketball court outside, and it's like children in the neighborhood gather and play. I grew up in that kind of environment, so I continued to play basketball when I came to Japan," the 5-foot-9 point guard said in an old interview with Basket Count.

Living in Yonago City in Tottori Prefecture while studying at Hokuriku High School in Fukui and Daito Bunka University in Tokyo enabled Yamamoto to be considered as a local under league rules.
He carried that status when he turned professional as part of the Shimane Susanoo Magic when they joined the bj league in 2010.
He spent his next eight seasons there, having his best year in the 2014-15 season when he tallied 12.2 points on 44-percent shooting from deep, to go with 3.4 assists and 2.7 rebounds in 31.3 minutes.
Yamamoto was also a key piece for Shimane in the inaugural 2016-17 season of the B.League, posting 9.4 points on a league-leading 45-percent three-point shooting, on top of 2.8 boards, 2.7 dimes, and 1.0 steal as the Susanoo Magic topped the eliminations in the second division at 51-9 and finished as runner-up to earn promotion to top flight.
In 2018, he signed with Fighting Eagles Nagoya in B2 before returning to B1 two years later when he played his lone season with the Shinshu Brave Warriors, averaging 5.2 points on 34-percent clip from deep, alongside 1.7 assists and 1.4 rebounds in 15.4 minutes.
Now 35, Yamamoto remains a consistent contributor for Nagasaki this season, nabbing 6.2 points on 38-percent shooting from deep, 1.4 assists, 0.9 rebounds, and 0.7 steals in 16.9 minutes to steer the Velca to a league-best 24-2 record in the third division - and potential promotion to the second division next year.
His best game this season came in Nagasaki's 88-61 triumph over Altiri Chiba last Dec. 26 where he led the way with 20 points on 6-of-10 shooting from beyond the arc, along with three rebounds, three steals, and one assist.
Safe to say, Pinoys were indeed well represented in Japan even before this current batch of Pinoy imports.
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