Bulls sign Japanese guard Yuki Kawamura
The 24-year-old, who made his NBA debut last season with Memphis, played five games for the Bulls team in Vegas and averaged 10.2 points, 6.2 assists, 2.4 rebounds and 2.2 steals a game.
Kawamura delivered a team-best 31 assists, second-most by any Bulls Summer League player since at least 2013, according to the club, and was one of only three players to average at least six assists and two steals in Summer League play.
Last season, Kawamura averaged 1.6 points and 0.9 assists over 22 games off the bench for Memphis, with a best showing of 12 points, five rebounds and five assists against Dallas on April 13.
To make room on the roster, the Bulls released guard Jahmir Young.
Before coming to the NBA, Kawamura played five seasons in the B. League, the first with the San-en NeoPhoenix and the rest for the Yokohama B-Corsairs with career averages of 16.7 points, 7.3 assists and 3.0 rebounds.
Kawamura played for Japan in last year's Paris Olympics, where he ranked third overall with 20.3 points a game and shared third with 7.7 assists per contest — making him the only player at the Games to average 20 points and seven assists.
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Japan Times
3 hours ago
- Japan Times
Hall of Fame always held deeper meaning for Ichiro
One of the things Ichiro Suzuki has noted about the National Baseball Hall of Fame is how hard it is to get there. The Hall is located in Cooperstown, New York, over a three-hour drive from Manhattan and more than an hour's drive from the nearest airport and train station. It is, to say the least, off the beaten path. Few active players ever visit, and many Hall of Famers made their first trip only after being elected. Ichiro, as he is in many ways, is the outlier, having visited so often that he could probably lead the tour that new inductees receive. 'I don't think before I came here I realized how rare that is,' Hall of Fame President Josh Rawitch said. 'I guess I figured a good amount of guys in the offseason, if they happen to live in the northeast or if they are visiting family during the offseason, that they would make a stop by here. 'But one of the things that Ichiro said many years ago, that I think he's said better than most people, is that part of what makes Cooperstown special is that it's not easy to get to. That you have to actually put an effort into going there, and that it would be different if it was, say, in New York City, where anybody from around the world visits and could go there. This requires wanting to go to Cooperstown. It's not on the way to anything. It's not the sort of place that you accidentally come across. I think once I knew that was the way he looked at it, it made it even more special.' Ichiro will be enshrined in the Hall of Fame on Sunday after being elected in his first year on the ballot — he garnered 99.7% of the vote, coming a single vote away from being a unanimous selection. He is the first Japanese player elected. His induction comes as no surprise. Ichiro hit .311 over 19 MLB seasons and finished with 3,089 hits. The 2001 American League MVP broke the single-season hits record in 2004 and compiled 10 consecutive 200-hit seasons from 2001 to 2010, an MLB record. There is no greater honor in baseball than being inducted into the Hall of Fame. Only 351 people have been elected — 278 former players, 40 executives and pioneers, 23 managers and 10 umpires. The annual induction ceremony is usually filled with emotion as the inductees, often tearfully, reflect on their journeys and take their place in baseball history. For Ichiro, who will be inducted alongside CC Sabathia and Billy Wagner, the Hall seems to hold an even deeper meaning. While players visiting Cooperstown is rare, Ichiro made seven trips during his career. 'I think for Ichiro, it was about understanding everything about his craft, and people who are successful in their craft, no matter what that craft is, the ones who are the most successful know the most about it,' said Jeff Idelson, who served as president of the Hall from 2008 to 2019. Idelson, who later co-founded Grassroots Baseball, a nonprofit organization that released a documentary on women's baseball titled "See Her Be Her" that Ichiro was also featured in, returned on an interim basis in 2021 and was succeeded by Rawitch. "They know it inside and out. And he's someone who's always appreciated baseball history. He knew Japanese baseball history, and once he came to the States, he made it his mission to understand American baseball history and world baseball history. So the seven times he visited while I was there, every time he came, he was interested in something different with the museum.' Ichiro Suzuki speaks during a news conference at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York, on Jan. 23. Ichiro was elected to the Hall in his first year on the ballot. | JIJI Ichiro soaked up the history around him during each visit. On one tour, he took a particular interest in the connection between baseball and art. On another trip, his interest was piqued by equipment. 'He is really able to identify with the players from history,' Idelson said. 'Not only by holding the bats, but he can tell what the grains are like within the bat. So he can hold the bat up next to his ear and tap the bat to understand the density of the wood and the grains, and it helped him understand those players even more deeply.' The Hall was always given advance notice when Ichiro visited, and a curator accompanied him on his tours. He was given access to the back catalog, which is not available to the public, where he saw some of the rarest artifacts in baseball history. He always asked lots of questions, Idelson said. 'I really believe that his visits to Cooperstown helped him at some level, on the mental side of the game, to have a full understanding of baseball history,' Idelson said. 'Touring with him always involved a lot of depth. There was nothing superficial about his visits.' Ichiro also took an interest in artifacts from players whose records he had broken, such as George Sisler, whose 257 hits in 1920 stood as the single-season mark until Ichiro finished with 262 in 2004. Ichiro also visited Sisler's grave in St. Louis to pay his respects. 'The first time I really met him was a few years ago when he got inducted into the (Seattle) Mariners Hall of Fame,' Rawitch said. 'I went out there, and Jeff Idelson, my predecessor, and I went to dinner with him because Jeff was going to introduce us and let us spend some time together. 'That was one of the first things I wanted to know, why are you like this with the Hall of Fame? "What he talked about was just being able to feel the history. That when he would be chasing the record of someone like George Sisler, he could go, and when he touched his bat or touched his glove, he could actually feel the presence of the history that came before him.' Ichiro also holds a special place in baseball history as the first Japanese position player to play in an MLB game, and the Hall of Fame is expecting to welcome an influx of fans from Japan to watch his induction. The timing of Ichiro's induction also coincides with a new exhibition called 'Yakyu Baseball / The Transpacific Exchange of the Game' that will explore the connection between Japan and the U.S. Ichiro also donated some of his memorabilia to the exhibit. 'I think one of the things that's become very clear is just how global the game is, and what a huge part of Major League Baseball that Japan is,' Rawitch said. 'Obviously, our exhibit, Yakyu / Baseball, is gonna be a huge part of that. 'But I think when we look out at the crowd and we see international faces and Japanese flags, in a way it will be as unique as anything we've ever had.' Ichiro stands with former Mariners Edgar Martinez (middle) and Ken Griffey Jr. during a ceremony in his honor in Seattle in September 2019. | USA TODAY / VIA REUTERS Ichiro's professional journey to Cooperstown took him from the Orix BlueWave in Kobe to the Mariners, the New York Yankees and the Miami Marlins before he returned to Seattle for a final curtain call. It was a long road, just like the actual trek to the Hall of Fame. When he is inducted into the Hall, Ichiro will be immortalized as a part of the history that he held in such reverence. 'I just think the game means as much to him as anything in life,' Idelson said. 'It's an important part of his DNA. There's so much baseball history that's taken place over the last 2½ centuries, it's not easy to do in one visit. 'Cooperstown also has a way of reinvigorating the spirit, or giving you a new sense of appreciation for the game. Though he never said those things, I have to think at some level, coming to the Hall of Fame really was something that had deep meaning to him. I mean, he was quoted as saying it's just like an at home feeling going to Cooperstown. "So he felt very much at home coming to Cooperstown and coming to the Hall of Fame. His induction now is truly the capstone to an incredible career.'
Japan Times
4 hours ago
- Japan Times
Barcelona cancels friendly against Vissel Kobe, citing contractual breaches
Barcelona has canceled a preseason friendly against Vissel Kobe, citing contractual breaches by the promoter, while their two scheduled friendlies in South Korea are also at risk of suspension, the club said. The La Liga champion was scheduled to play Vissel on Sunday in Kobe, and to play South Korea's FC Seoul on July 31 and Daegu FC on Aug. 4. "Barcelona announces that it has been obliged to suspend its participation in the game scheduled for next Sunday in Japan due to serious contractual breaches on behalf of the promoter," Barca said in a statement on Wednesday. "Nevertheless, the club will consider readjusting the leg of the summer tour in South Korea," it said, "if certain conditions are met by the promoter. "If these conditions are met, then the club will travel to South Korea in the coming days. Barcelona regrets this incident and the impact it will have on the many, many Barca fans in Japan." In a statement on Thursday, Vissel Kobe apologized to fans. "We sincerely apologize for any concern this may cause to the many fans and related parties who were looking forward to this match," the J1 club said. "Our club is working in collaboration with relevant parties to gather necessary information and take appropriate measures." Barcelona did not identify the promoter in its statement, but when the tour was first announced it had named them as the Yasuda Group. Reuters has contacted the group for comment. The promoter for matches in South Korea, D-DRIVE, said on Thursday they wanted to make the remainder of the tour a success. "To our fans in Korea: please rest assured — D-DRIVE remain fully committed to making the rest of the tour a success. We will continue to do our utmost to deliver unforgettable matches," D-DRIVE CEO Seul Ham said in a statement.
Japan Times
4 hours ago
- Japan Times
Ohtani extends homer streak to five in Dodgers win
Freddie Freeman hit a game-ending two-run single with two outs in the ninth inning, Shohei Ohtani hit a home run in his fifth consecutive game and the Los Angeles Dodgers pulled out a 4-3 victory over the Minnesota Twins on Wednesday. The Dodgers' ninth-inning rally started with two outs on an infield single from Mookie Betts against right-hander Griffin Jax (1-5). Ohtani was walked intentionally to move the tying run to second base and Esteury Ruiz walked to load the bases. Freeman's sinking line drive to left just eluded the glove of a diving Harrison Bader. Right-hander Tyler Glasnow had season highs with 12 strikeouts in seven innings as the Dodgers won for just the fourth time in their past 15 games. Ohtani became the first MLB player to hit home runs in five consecutive games since New York Yankees star Aaron Judge last season. He also tied the Dodgers franchise record, done five previous times, most recently by Max Muncy in 2019. Royce Lewis hit a home run and Chris Paddack gave up one run over six innings with eight strikeouts for the Twins, who went 2-4 on a road trip to Colorado and Los Angeles. Ohtani gave the Dodgers a 1-0 lead with a home run to left-center field in the first. It was his National League-leading 37th of the season as he broke a tie with the Arizona Diamondbacks' Eugenio Suarez. The Seattle Mariners' Cal Raleigh owns the major league lead with 39. The Twins tied the game at 1-1 on Lewis' home run in the third, his fifth. Lewis, from nearby Orange County, California, had a productive homecoming with three hits Monday, three RBIs Tuesday and his third home run in four games Wednesday. The Dodgers loaded the bases in the seventh on a single from Freeman and walks to Andy Pages and pinch hitter Miguel Rojas. Tommy Edman looped a single into right field against Louis Varland to take a 2-1 advantage. Minnesota worked three consecutive walks against Los Angeles right-hander Kirby Yates to open the eighth. Willi Castro grounded into a double play against Alex Vesia that brought home the tying run, then Bader followed with a pinch-hit single just over the mound for a 3-2 lead. Dodgers left-hander Anthony Banda (5-1) fanned three in a scoreless ninth inning.
