Sure, there are five players on the court per team, but often it's a trio that stands out and leads a team to prominence. The Big Three.
In the NBA, everyone remembers Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parrish, for instance. Or Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman.
Let's take a look at the best trios in the bj-league.
And indeed, some teams do a good job of relying on six or seven players on a regular basis.
Starting in the West ...
Ryukyu: Jeff Newton, Anthony McHenry and Narito Namizato -- and David Palmer, Naoto Kosuge, Dillion Sneed, plus Dzaflo Larkai and Tsubasa Yonamine.
Osaka: Lynn Washington, Cohey Aoki and Wayne Marshall -- and Masashi Obuchi, Mike Bell, Bobby St. Preux, plus Satoshi Takeda and Kevin Tyner.
Kyoto: Rick Rickert, Lance Allred and Jermaine Boyette -- and Lee Cummard, Naoto Nakamura, Babacar Camara, plus Taizo Kawabe and Kyosuke Setoyama.
Fukuoka: Kevin Palmer, Carlos Dixon and Jermaine Dearman -- and Gary Hamilton, Jun Nakanishi and Akitomo Takeno
Shiga: Dionisio Gomez, Ray Nixon and Yu Okada -- and Julius Ashby, Josh Peppers and Shinya Ogawa, plus Kazuya "J." Hatano and Takamichi Fujiwara.
Shimane: Michael Parker, Jeral Davis and Edward Yamamoto -- and Reggie Golson, Jumpei Nakama, B.J. Puckett and Tatsuhiro Yokoo.
Miyazaki - Taishiro Shimizu, O'Neal Mims and Dexter Lyons - and Darryl Dora, Shinnosuke Oishi and Tsubasa Yonezawa.
Oita: T.J. Cummings, Wendell White and Matt Lottich -- and Naoto Takushi, Kohei Mitomo and Taj Finger.
Takamatsu: Paul Butorac, Michael Nunnally and Kevin Smith.
Now to the Eastern Conference....
Hamamatsu: Jermaine Dixon, Wayne Arnold and Jeffrey Parmer -- and Kenya Tomori, Shoji Nakanishi, Lawrence Blackledge, plus Atsuya Ota, Masahiro Oguchi and Gyno Pomare (roster depth is a key to long-term success).
Akita: Kyle Swanston, Ricky Woods and Kazuhiro Shoji -- and Mychal Kearse, Yuki Kikuchi and E.J. Drayton, plus Lionel Green and Ryosuke Mizumachi.
Toyama: Masashi Joho, Brian Harper and Ira Brown -- and Takeshi Mito, Devin Searcy and Larry Turner.
Niigata: Chris Holm, Nile Murry and Yuichi Ikeda - and Erron Maxey, Kimitake Sato, Shuhei Komatsu and Dwight Gordon..
Yokohama: Justin Burrell, Masayuki Kabaya and Marcus Simmons -- and Chas McFarland, Pape Mour Faye and Draelon Burns
Sendai: Johnny Dukes, Dan Fitzgerald and Takehiko Shimura -- and Rashaad Singleton, Hikaru Kusaka and Filip Toncinic
Shinshu: Derek Raivio, Lee Roberts and Takato Saito -- and Edward Morris, Tyler Hughes and Tadashi Utsunomiya.
Chiba: Jamel Staten, Maurice Hargrow and Takaki Ishida -- and Antoine Broxsie, Kensuke Tanaka, Reina Itakura and Shota Isshiki.
Saitama: John "Helicopter" Humphrey, John Flowers and Daiki Terashita -- and Kenny Satterfield, Jayme Miller, Yuki Kitamuki and Yasuaki Arai.
Iwate: Thomas Kennedy, Gordon Klaiber and Makoto Sawaguchi -- and Shawn Malloy, Jamal Boykin and Yoshiaki Yamamoto.
***
As the season marches on, bj-league's assist leader, Saitama's Kenny Satterfield, has had reduced or no playing time in several games, and he wants to move on. Via his Twitter comments and conversations with a number of league sources, it's clear he's not happy with the situation. "Misery" might be the best word to describe his feelings.
Don't expect him back in a Broncos uniform next season.
There have been only a handful of ex-NBA players to play on bj-league teams, and it's important to find ways to have their presence make a positive impact for their team and the league.
(Like Kyoto's Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf last year and current Hannaryz big man Lance Allred, Satterfield should be an ambassador for the league, it says here, and the league office has done a horrible job of marketing its NBA ties on a nationwide level. Even Tokyo Apache coach Bob Hill's presence in Japan was almost a secret, it seemed, due to lack of media attention.)
Here's how one league insider views Satterfield's situation in Saitama:
"Don't disrespect former NBA players. Start them or mutually agree on their role off the bench, or let them go. The current situation is bad for everyone: team, league, fans, Kenny, (coach) Natalie (Nakase."
***
Long-range marksmen and the best at the charity stripe
3-point accuracy (all stats through games of Feb. 19)
1. David Palmer (Ryukyu) - 52.5 percent
2. Cohey Aoki (Osaka) - 47.9
3. Kazuhiro Shoji (Akita) - 44.4
4. Yuichi Ikeda (Niigata) - 43.1
5. Ray Nixon (Shiga) - 39.6
6. Wayne Arnold (Hamamatsu) - 38.3
6. Taizo Kawabe (Kyoto) - 38.3
Free-throw shooting
1. Cohey Aoki (Osaka) - 89.8 percent
2. Derek Raivio (Shinshu) - 88.0
3. Masayuki Kabaya (Yokohama) - 85.7
4. Matt Lottich (Oita) - 85.2
5. Shinya Ogawa (Shiga) - 84.6
5. Kohei Mitomo (Oita) - 84.6
7. Nile Murry (Niigata) - 83.3
***
Which players have racked up the most minutes this season?
1. Michael Parker (Shimane) - 1,225 minutes
2. Masashi Joho (Toyama) - 1,180
3. Takeshi Mito (Toyama) - 1,153
4. Ray Nixon (Shiga) - 1,152
5. Edward Yamamoto (Shimane) - 1,137
6. Thomas Kennedy (Iwate) - 1,132
7. Justin Burrell (Yokohama) - 1,116
In the NBA, everyone remembers Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parrish, for instance. Or Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman.
Let's take a look at the best trios in the bj-league.
And indeed, some teams do a good job of relying on six or seven players on a regular basis.
Starting in the West ...
Ryukyu: Jeff Newton, Anthony McHenry and Narito Namizato -- and David Palmer, Naoto Kosuge, Dillion Sneed, plus Dzaflo Larkai and Tsubasa Yonamine.
Osaka: Lynn Washington, Cohey Aoki and Wayne Marshall -- and Masashi Obuchi, Mike Bell, Bobby St. Preux, plus Satoshi Takeda and Kevin Tyner.
Kyoto: Rick Rickert, Lance Allred and Jermaine Boyette -- and Lee Cummard, Naoto Nakamura, Babacar Camara, plus Taizo Kawabe and Kyosuke Setoyama.
Fukuoka: Kevin Palmer, Carlos Dixon and Jermaine Dearman -- and Gary Hamilton, Jun Nakanishi and Akitomo Takeno
Shiga: Dionisio Gomez, Ray Nixon and Yu Okada -- and Julius Ashby, Josh Peppers and Shinya Ogawa, plus Kazuya "J." Hatano and Takamichi Fujiwara.
Shimane: Michael Parker, Jeral Davis and Edward Yamamoto -- and Reggie Golson, Jumpei Nakama, B.J. Puckett and Tatsuhiro Yokoo.
Miyazaki - Taishiro Shimizu, O'Neal Mims and Dexter Lyons - and Darryl Dora, Shinnosuke Oishi and Tsubasa Yonezawa.
Oita: T.J. Cummings, Wendell White and Matt Lottich -- and Naoto Takushi, Kohei Mitomo and Taj Finger.
Takamatsu: Paul Butorac, Michael Nunnally and Kevin Smith.
Now to the Eastern Conference....
Hamamatsu: Jermaine Dixon, Wayne Arnold and Jeffrey Parmer -- and Kenya Tomori, Shoji Nakanishi, Lawrence Blackledge, plus Atsuya Ota, Masahiro Oguchi and Gyno Pomare (roster depth is a key to long-term success).
Akita: Kyle Swanston, Ricky Woods and Kazuhiro Shoji -- and Mychal Kearse, Yuki Kikuchi and E.J. Drayton, plus Lionel Green and Ryosuke Mizumachi.
Toyama: Masashi Joho, Brian Harper and Ira Brown -- and Takeshi Mito, Devin Searcy and Larry Turner.
Niigata: Chris Holm, Nile Murry and Yuichi Ikeda - and Erron Maxey, Kimitake Sato, Shuhei Komatsu and Dwight Gordon..
Yokohama: Justin Burrell, Masayuki Kabaya and Marcus Simmons -- and Chas McFarland, Pape Mour Faye and Draelon Burns
Sendai: Johnny Dukes, Dan Fitzgerald and Takehiko Shimura -- and Rashaad Singleton, Hikaru Kusaka and Filip Toncinic
Shinshu: Derek Raivio, Lee Roberts and Takato Saito -- and Edward Morris, Tyler Hughes and Tadashi Utsunomiya.
Chiba: Jamel Staten, Maurice Hargrow and Takaki Ishida -- and Antoine Broxsie, Kensuke Tanaka, Reina Itakura and Shota Isshiki.
Saitama: John "Helicopter" Humphrey, John Flowers and Daiki Terashita -- and Kenny Satterfield, Jayme Miller, Yuki Kitamuki and Yasuaki Arai.
Iwate: Thomas Kennedy, Gordon Klaiber and Makoto Sawaguchi -- and Shawn Malloy, Jamal Boykin and Yoshiaki Yamamoto.
***
As the season marches on, bj-league's assist leader, Saitama's Kenny Satterfield, has had reduced or no playing time in several games, and he wants to move on. Via his Twitter comments and conversations with a number of league sources, it's clear he's not happy with the situation. "Misery" might be the best word to describe his feelings.
Don't expect him back in a Broncos uniform next season.
There have been only a handful of ex-NBA players to play on bj-league teams, and it's important to find ways to have their presence make a positive impact for their team and the league.
(Like Kyoto's Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf last year and current Hannaryz big man Lance Allred, Satterfield should be an ambassador for the league, it says here, and the league office has done a horrible job of marketing its NBA ties on a nationwide level. Even Tokyo Apache coach Bob Hill's presence in Japan was almost a secret, it seemed, due to lack of media attention.)
Here's how one league insider views Satterfield's situation in Saitama:
"Don't disrespect former NBA players. Start them or mutually agree on their role off the bench, or let them go. The current situation is bad for everyone: team, league, fans, Kenny, (coach) Natalie (Nakase."
***
Long-range marksmen and the best at the charity stripe
3-point accuracy (all stats through games of Feb. 19)
1. David Palmer (Ryukyu) - 52.5 percent
2. Cohey Aoki (Osaka) - 47.9
3. Kazuhiro Shoji (Akita) - 44.4
4. Yuichi Ikeda (Niigata) - 43.1
5. Ray Nixon (Shiga) - 39.6
6. Wayne Arnold (Hamamatsu) - 38.3
6. Taizo Kawabe (Kyoto) - 38.3
Free-throw shooting
1. Cohey Aoki (Osaka) - 89.8 percent
2. Derek Raivio (Shinshu) - 88.0
3. Masayuki Kabaya (Yokohama) - 85.7
4. Matt Lottich (Oita) - 85.2
5. Shinya Ogawa (Shiga) - 84.6
5. Kohei Mitomo (Oita) - 84.6
7. Nile Murry (Niigata) - 83.3
***
Which players have racked up the most minutes this season?
1. Michael Parker (Shimane) - 1,225 minutes
2. Masashi Joho (Toyama) - 1,180
3. Takeshi Mito (Toyama) - 1,153
4. Ray Nixon (Shiga) - 1,152
5. Edward Yamamoto (Shimane) - 1,137
6. Thomas Kennedy (Iwate) - 1,132
7. Justin Burrell (Yokohama) - 1,116
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