Both of Japan's NBA players are going to play important roles in the 2023-24 season.
Fresh off of signing a three-year extension with the Lakers, Rui Hachimura will be looking to build off of a promising postseason that saw him shoot a scorching 48.7 percent from 3-point range and provide tough defense. He prepared for the upcoming season by working out with LeBron James, who said he sees "a lot" in the Japanese forward.
Less than 500 miles away, Yuta Watanabe could be a big part of a Suns team all-in on winning a championship. His 3-point shooting and versatile defense make him a seamless fit next to Devin Booker, Bradley Beal and Kevin Durant, the latter of whom Watanabe appeared in 25 games with on the Nets last season.
Durant has praised Watanabe's game on a number of occasions and even helped recruit him to Phoenix.
Now that they're in the same conference again, Hachimura and Watanabe could play each other up to four times in the regular season. Here's how they compare in a number of key stats entering their first meeting.
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Rui Hachimura vs. Yuta Watanabe: Regular season stats
Hachimura and Watanabe came into the NBA with very different expectations.
The Wizards selected Hachimura with the No. 9 pick in the 2019 NBA Draft, making him the first Japanese-born player to be selected in the first round. Watanabe didn't hear his name called in the 2018 NBA Draft and got his start on a two-way contract with the Grizzlies.
As a result, Hachimura started his NBA career in a much more featured role. Watanabe spent most of his rookie and sophomore seasons playing in the G League. Watanabe showed flashes as a member of the Raptors in 2020-21 and 2021-22, but his breakout season came in 2022-23 as a member of the Nets.
Watanabe now has a big opportunity ahead of him playing alongside Booker, Beal and Durant in Phoenix.
| Hachimura | Per Game | Watanabe |
| 12.5 | Points | 4.3 |
| 5.0 | Rebounds | 2.5 |
| 1.3 | Assists | 0.7 |
| 0.6 | Steals | 0.4 |
| 0.2 | Blocks | 0.3 |
| 1.0 | Turnovers | 0.4 |
| 26.9 | Minutes | 13.3 |
| 48.0 | Field goal % | 43.9 |
| 34.7 | 3-point % | 39.0 |
| 77.0 | Free throw % | 68.7 |
Hachimura and Watanabe have both played around 200 regular season games, but Hachimura has logged more than twice the amount of minutes Watanabe has.
| Hachimura | Totals | Watanabe |
| 210 | Games | 179 |
| 2,620 | Points | 778 |
| 1,049 | Rebounds | 443 |
| 275 | Assists | 122 |
| 123 | Steals | 71 |
| 50 | Blocks | 54 |
| 207 | Turnovers | 68 |
| 5,650 | Minutes | 2,375 |
Rui Hachimura vs. Yuta Watanabe: Playoffs stats
Hachimura played a key role in the Lakers' run to the 2023 Western Conference Finals. It started with him becoming the first Laker with back-to-back 20-point games off the bench since Magic Johnson and ended with him being inserted into the starting lineup to defend two-time MVP Nikola Jokic.
Prior to that run, Hachimura had appeared in only five playoff games in his career.
| Hachimura | Per Game | Watanabe |
| 12.8 | Points | 1.4 |
| 4.5 | Rebounds | 0.2 |
| 0.7 | Assists | 0.0 |
| 0.5 | Steals | 0.0 |
| 0.2 | Blocks | 0.0 |
| 0.7 | Turnovers | 0.4 |
| 26.7 | Minutes | 3.0 |
| 57.3 | Field goal % | 37.5 |
| 51.9 | 3-point % | 33.3 |
| 80.4 | Free throw % | 0.0 |
The 2023-24 season could be Watanabe's first real taste of playoff basketball.
| Hachimura | Totals | Watanabe |
| 21 | Games | 5 |
| 269 | Points | 7 |
| 94 | Rebounds | 1 |
| 15 | Assists | 0 |
| 10 | Steals | 0 |
| 5 | Blocks | 0 |
| 15 | Turnovers | 2 |
| 561 | Minutes | 15 |
Rui Hachimura vs. Yuta Watanabe: Head-to-head matchups
Entering the 2023-24 season, Hachimura and Watanabe have faced each other five times in the NBA. Hachimura has the edge statistically in their head-to-head matchups, but his team has yet to beat Watanabe's.
| Hachimura | Per game | Watanabe |
| 10.2 | Points | 5.2 |
| 5.8 | Rebounds | 3.0 |
| 0.4 | Assists | 0.0 |
| 0.0 | Steals | 0.2 |
| 0.2 | Blocks | 0.8 |
| 0.4 | Turnovers | 0.4 |
| 24.0 | Minutes | 13.6 |
| 39.6 | Field goal % | 64.7 |
| 40.0 | 3-point % | 42.9 |
| 50.0 | Free throw % | 33.3 |
| Hachimura | Totals | Watanabe |
| 5 | Games | 5 |
| 0 | Wins | 5 |
| 51 | Points | 26 |
| 29 | Rebounds | 15 |
| 2 | Assists | 0 |
| 0 | Steals | 1 |
| 1 | Blocks | 4 |
| 2 | Turnovers | 2 |
| 120 | Minutes | 68 |
The most recent matchup between them saw Hachimura score 16 points while Watanabe scored 12 points. It's currently the only time they've both scored double figures in the same NBA game.
