in the a recent article about GQNew Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson speaks about his love for Narutoto the point where it eventually becomes the center of the entire feature.
If you think I’m joking, in just two paragraphs we see things like:
Williamson speaks of Naruto with the same reverence that other NBA players speak of the Bible—bringing comfort and clarity in equal measure. Over the past year – an unusually tumultuous year in his otherwise starry career – Naruto has been his North Star.
That “turbulent” year was one in which Williamson got injured, couldn’t get any better, gained a lot of weight, and his future in New Orleans (and the league itself) was constantly in question. It is clear that Zion Yes, really loves Narutoto the point where he showed up to a Comic-Con panel in a Hokage robe, and the fact that he gives him so much credit for helping him recover and prepare for the upcoming season .
However, what really caught my attention in the feature is this (emphasis mine):
Zion estimates that around 80% of players in the league are into anime; they just won’t admit it. Those familiar with the conventions of this form know that it would be difficult to come up with a genre better suited to professional athletes: shōnen anime (the term for shows aimed at boys) often revolve around one Protagonist who strives to achieve greatness in his chosen field, be it pirating on the high seas (One Piece) or battling alien warlords with blasts of energy so powerful they turn your hair golden (Dragon Ball Z). They’re long tales of what it takes to be the best – not coincidentally the same goal that drives athletes.
This statistic is both wild and totally believable. Most NBA players are in their 20s, which means they grew up in a culture where anime has long since outgrown its (often unfair) Weeaboo associations and where Japanese series have fallen Dragon Ball Z aren’t just part of the furniture, they’re particularly popular with young black men who make up the majority of the league.
Well, I’m not going to say that Zion is the only NBA player who has made his love of anime public. Here is Steven Adams in 2016:
And more famously, here’s superstar Joel Embiid in 2018 relaxing during his pre-game routine:
And that’s before we get into the small but important lineup of players who went on the record to talk about their love Dragon Ball Zsuch as Embiids teammate Tobias Harris and Cavs forward Lauri Markkanen.
But if Zion’s 80 percent number is anywhere near true — he’s entering his third season in the league, he’s been in enough locker rooms and discussions on the practice field to make at least a good guess — then it should be a lot more give of it. There are 450 players in the NBA, which would put anime fans in the hundreds, not the tens. We could and should maybe see more things like pre-game dance routines or post-game interview quotes slam dunk and players with nicknames Kill la Kill instead of old DC comics.
Perhaps many players feel that there is still some kind of stigma attached to it, that it makes them look nerdy and weak by (obsolete and incorrect) association. But shit, if Zion and Joel Embiid — two of the biggest, meanest guys in the NBA — can be out here like this, anyone can.
