NBA veteran forward Nassir Little signed a one-year contract with the Chiba Jets to exit the league for the first time and will compete overseas for the first time, the team announced Wednesday.
“I’m glad to have the opportunity to help the Chiba Jets win the championship!” Little said in a statement issued by the club. “I know some of the players on the team, I’m going on vacation in Japan, so I’m really looking forward to the experience.
“I heard Chiba is a great club with a great new arena and great fans. I look forward to meeting everyone and I’m so happy to have a great season!”
Nassir Little played in the NBA for five years
Little was the 25th place in the Portland Trail Blazers in 2019 at the 2019 NBA Draft at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, playing in the league for five years.
The 6-foot-5 wing spent four seasons in Portland and joined the Suns in the 2023-24 campaign. He signed with the Miami Heat last September but was abandoned a month later.
The 25-year-old also plays for Skyforce, the G League in Sioux Falls Falls.
In 237 NBA regular season professional games (36 games), each game averaged 5.5 points, 2.9 rebounds and 15.8 minutes of games, while shooting 45.2% while shooting 3 points territory was 33%.
Very little play with Yuta Watanabe from Japan
In his final seasons in Portland, Little was a major contributor to the Trail Blazers rotation, but the Florida native handled shoulder and abdomen injuries during that time.
UNC products are also working to find their place in Phoenix, with an average of 3.4 points, 1.7 rebounds and 10.2 minutes (two games). He shot only 30% from shots outside the arc.
According to the team’s website, the Chiba Jets featured former NBA forward Yuta Watanabe, who was Little’s teammate during his only season in Phoenix.
The club participated in the B.League, the top basketball league in Japan.
