‘Japanese Steph Curry’ impresses in NBA debut for G League United originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
SANTA CRUZ – There never has been, and never will be, another Steph Curry. But the instant Keisei Tominaga entered Wednesday night’s G League Fall Invitational at Kaiser Permanente Arena, it was clear why the 6-foot-2 sharpshooter has been given the nickname of “The Japanese Steph Curry” and “Samurai Steph.”
Tominaga can let it fly, and his star qualities and showmanship are impossible to ignore.
After sitting the entire first quarter for the newly formed G League United in their 99-81 win against Serbia’s BC Mega MIS, Tominaga didn’t waste a second in showcasing his famed 3-point shot. One minute and a half into the quarter, from his motor to his screen setting and finally his 3-point stroke, Tominaga did his best Curry impression on his first shot attempt of the night. Tominaga set a screen at the free throw line, came loose and found himself free from downtown.
Sound familiar? It looked familiar, too. Without hesitation, Tominaga drilled the catch-and-shoot 3 in motion.
“I just love shooting the basketball,” Tominaga said to NBC Sports Bay Area on Tuesday after the United’s final practice before their first game. “Also, it’s not just shooting the 3-pointer but how you get open, how you create space. Still learning the process, but that’s how I’m always getting better.”
Every word of that assessment is reminiscent of Curry. There’s a reason for that. Curry is Tominaga’s favorite player ever. He can’t recall his first memories of watching Curry play, but he can remember seeing him make shots from unthinkable distances a year or two before Golden State’s superstar led the Warriors to their first championship in 40 years.
And his penchant for the 3-point shot isn’t the only thing that made the native of Moriyama, Japan gravitate to Curry.
“I love his passion to play basketball,” Tominaga says.
Curry clearly is a fan of Tominaga, too. This past June, Tominaga signed a multi-year shoe deal with Curry Brand, making him the first international athlete signed to the brand.
He was…
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