「レッツゴー キャム！」Cam, Ikuzo! Come follow Camden’s journey! February 2023

This time in my column, I am going to talk about my impressions of the B.LEAGUE (professional basketball league) game that I went to recently. On January 18th I went to see the Chiba Jets play against the Ibaraki Robots in Funabashi Arena.

I already knew about Japan’s professional basketball league, the B.LEAGUE, before coming to Japan, however until going to this game, I had no idea what kind of feel the professional games here would have.

I am from America, so I have watched quite a lot of the NBA (America’s pro basketball league), and I think a lot of basketball fans do not feel the need to watch any other league. At the end of the day, they are concerned with seeing the best players in the world compete in the sport, and I don’t think there is anything strange about that. However, as much as a like the NBA, I watch college level men’s basketball (NCAA) far more. And I have also watched Japan’s high school level baseball tournament (Koshien) online before, so it is very apparent that I do not watch sports based the high skill level alone. Exciting, back and forth gameplay, as well as the pride that the fans and players have for their city/school are both very important aspects for me.

The Chiba Jets are a strong team primarily made up of Japanese players and players who stood out in the NCAA and came to Japan. The Chiba Jets lead for most of the game and in the end were able to defeat their opponent, the Ibaraki Robots, but Ibaraki was very tenacious and made it an interesting game until the end. Similar to the NBA, both teams played at a fast pace, and there were lots of players who could make three point shots. As far as what area of the NBA’s game is superior, I would have to say the strength of the players, and there are a lot more tall players (6’7 and above) who are very good at dribbling.

Due to covid, there were some restrictions when it came to cheering, but I could still love that the large turnout of fans had for their team. And from this point on I will also be rooting for the Chiba Jets!

今回は、先日、日本のB.LEAGUE（プロバスケットボールリーグ）を観戦した時に感じたことをお話します。私は、1月18日に船橋アリーナに千葉ジェッツ対茨城ロボッツの試合を見に行きました。

日本のB.LEAGUEというプロバスケットボールリーグのことは日本に来る前から知っていたのですが、今回観に行くまでは、試合がどんな感じか分からなかったです。

私はアメリカに住んでいたのでNBA（アメリカプロバスケットボールリーグ）をよく見ますが、NBAを見るだけで満足している人が多いと感じます。基本的に世界一の選手やプレイをみたいので、それは全然おかしくないと思っています。しかし、NBAが好きながらも、私は母校のチームを見るためにNBAよりNCAAという大学のバスケットボールリーグをよく見ますし、日本の高校野球（甲子園大会）もインターネットで見たことがあり、スキルのレベルが最高という理由だけでスポーツを見ているわけではありません。ファンと選手の地域へのプライドや試合のエキサイティングな展開が大事だと思います。

千葉ジェッツは日本人の選手とアメリカのNCAAで特に活躍していた選手を合わせた強いチームです。試合の大部分を千葉ジェッツがリードしていて、対戦相手の茨城ロボッツに勝ったのですが、茨城がとてもしつこくて最後まで面白い試合でした。NBAみたいに両チームのテンポが速くて3点シュートを決められる選手が多かったです。B.LEAGUEに比べてNBAの優れる点が何かというと、おそらく選手の腕力、やドリブルが上手い大きい選手(200cm以上)がもっと多いことだと思います。

コロナのため、応援に少しの制限がありましたが、多くの千葉県民の千葉ジェッツへの愛をすごく感じることができました。これから私も千葉ジェッツを応援したいと思っています！