Best players of Japanese B1 League round 53

- April 17, 2026

POSTED BY: Eurobasket News

Yante Maten

Yante Maten

American Yante Maten (201-F-1996) put on an extraordinary performance in the last round for San-en NeoPhoenix and that's him to receive a Hoops Agents Player of the Week award for round 53.
The 29-year old forward had a double-double of 29 points and 11 rebounds, while his team beat Shiga L-Stars (#9, 21-32) 98-91. NeoPhoenix maintains the 5th position in their group in the Japanese B1 League. They would have been even better if they hadn't lost a few games earlier this season. San-en NP will need more victories to improve their 32-21 record. Maten has many years of experience at NeoPhoenix, through which he has constantly improved. University of Georgia graduate has very impressive stats this year. Maten is in league's top in points (6th best: 19.7ppg) and averages solid 1.0bpg and 59.8% FGP.

The second most remarkable performance in last round's games was another San-en NP's star - young American swingman David Nwaba (195-G/F-1993). Nwaba impressed basketball fans with 26 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists. Of course San-en NeoPhoenix cruised to a 98-91 relatively comfortable win over the lower-ranked Shiga L-Stars (#9, 21-32). NeoPhoenix's 5th position in West has not changed. His team lost some distance to top teams. But a 32-21 record is not bad and everything may still change. Nwaba is well-known by NeoPhoenix fans and together with Yante Maten they both established positions among team's most reliable players. He belongs to the best scorers in the league with 20.2ppg (#5). His other stats are also decent: 7.6rpg and 3.9apg. Cal Poly - San Luis Obispo University alumni Nwaba played also at Eurobasket Summer League, which is considered top summer league for players who want to play basketball overseas.

The third best performed player last round was Australian Brock Motum (208-F-1990, agency: Slash Sports) of Toyama Grouses (#13). Motum showcased his all-around game by recording 28 points, 9 rebounds and 5 assists in the last round. He was a key player of Grouses, leading his team to a 109-86 easy win against slightly higher-ranked FE Nagoya (#12, 17-36). Motum has a very solid season. In 51 games in Japan he scored 16.9ppg. He also has 5.8rpg and a FGP of 58.0%.

Other top performing players last week:
4. Kevin Jones (203-F-1989) of Hokkaido L. - 28 points, 10 rebounds and 2 assists
5. Boubacar Toure (213-C-1995) of Sendai 89ers - 19 points and 14 rebounds
6. Stanley Johnson (201-SF-1996) of Nagasaki - 35 points and 8 rebounds
7. Victor Law (201-F-1995) of Ryukyu GK - 23 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists
8. Trey Kell III (193-G-1996) of Toyama G. - 20 points, 6 rebounds and 8 assists
9. Dererk Pardon (203-C-1996) of Chiba - 13 points, 15 rebounds and 4 assists
10. Maik-Kalev Kotsar (210-C-1996) of Yokohama BC - 16 points, 10 rebounds and 5 assists

The Player of the week is selected based on efficiency calculation, but also including game result, importance of the game, if played recorded double-double/triple-double, etc.
The efficiency formula is a combination of various formulas used by different basketball organizations/leagues. We got involved many basketball scouts and journalists to assure it's accuracy.
The formula: 1.5*PTS + 3*(REB+AST+ST+BL-TO) - 2*BSAG - 4*PF + 3*PFRV + 4*(2FGPM+3FGPM) + 1.5*FTM - 3*(2FGPA-2FGPM) - 3*(3FGPA-3FGPM) - (FTA-FTM)

The Player of the Week awards are presented by Hoops Agents. Hoops Agents is the most complete website about the agencies and players they represent. With more than twenty years of experience, Hoops Agents is already recognized as the most reliable destination for the players who wish to continue their career in professional basketball and are searching for a reputable and connected representation. Hoops Agents is also most complete source of transactions news.

Tags : YANTE MATEN, SAN-EN NEOPHOENIX, JAPANESE BASKETBALL,