[ THE NBA ]
BYUH alum Tabuse
signs with Nuggets
When former Brigham Young-Hawaii point guard Yuta Tabuse dreamed of his days in the NBA, he probably never imagined enjoying a height advantage.
Tabuse signed a contract and will begin training camp with the Denver Nuggets tomorrow, trying to become the first Japanese player in the NBA.
Tabuse, the first BYUH player to sign an NBA contract, will compete for the right to be Denver's third point guard behind starter Andre Miller and backup Earl Boykins, who is 5-foot-5 and the NBA's smallest player.
Tabuse is listed at 5-9 but stands 5-7.
"What Yuta brings is the ability to create a shot for himself and others," Denver assistant and former BYUH player and coach Jarinn Akana said. "That is the NBA game. Not that Yuta is at their level yet, but look at Earl Boykins, Tony Parker and Speedy Claxton. It is the way the NBA is going."
Tabuse will not get to test himself against Boykins, a five-year veteran who signed a five-year deal worth $13.7 million this summer, until Oct. 3, when NBA veterans report to camp. The Nuggets have 16 players under contract but expect to be at the NBA limit of 20 by Tuesday. Tabuse will turn 23 years old Oct. 5. The Rocky Mountain News reported his nonguaranteed contract is for one year at the NBA rookie minimum of $366,931.
Tabuse is expected to compete for the position with Junior Harrington, who was second among rookies in assists last year.
Hawaii's Predrag Savovic played for the Nuggets last year but was waived last month and has joined Charleroi in Belgium.
Tabuse played for the Seasiders during the 2000-01 season. He averaged 7.6 points and a Pacific West-best 6.5 assists per game. He left the school after that season to return to his native Japan, where he was the JBL Super League's Best Rookie but missed out on representing his country in the Asian Games due to an injured left ankle.
Tabuse appeared in six games for the Dallas Mavericks in the Reebok Rocky Mountain Revue this summer, where he averaged 4.5 points but caught the Nuggets' attention with his .625 shooting percentage on 3-pointers, which was good enough for second in the league.
"He's the best player in Japan," Nuggets general manager Kiki Vandeweghe told the Rocky Mountain News. "He didn't want to go back to Japan. So this is a tryout for him."
Tabuse beat former teammate Alexus Foyle, who tried out with the Nuggets but was turned down over the summer, to the honor as the first Seasider to sign a pro contract. The last NCAA Division II basketball player to sign an NBA contract was Hawaii Pacific's John Strickland, who lasted late in the Knicks camp in 1996.
"He's a great young man and it's nice to see him do well," BYUH coach Ken Wagner said of Tabuse. "It has always been his dream and now it's up to him."
