TEHRAN (Iran) - The common mantra for young aspiring basketball stars is the ever so popular "Ball is Life". When you are consumed for most of your waking hours to become a better player whether it's physically, tactically, or just mentally, at some point ball really does become life.

"It would feel amazing to be able to win for the country of Japan with this team. It's something that we all have been working hard towards and I believe it is very possible."

Sometimes, you need add a bit more dimension as was one of the goal for Japan's Akira Jacobs this past year. In his Japan B.League player profile, Jacobs listed "find a hobby outside of basketball" as one of his personal targets.

"Recently, I have started to enjoy paddle boarding. It's nice and relaxing and serves as a good active rest," said Jacobs.

To understand where Jacobs is coming from when he says he's looking for another hobby, you have to understand that "Ball is Life" is not just a cool saying. It's something he was born into. Again, referring to his B.League profile when asked what he might be doing if he didn't play basketball: "I was born to play basketball, so I can't imagine [what I'd be doing]."

"I started playing basketball [at the age of 4] because my mother really enjoyed watching basketball and would give me basketball merchandise when I was a baby," Jacobs said. "After a while I started playing on the mini hoop that we had at our house and since I seemed to enjoy it, she put me in a youth team."

Some kids just enjoy running around and tossing the orange ball of leather into a ring (which makes sense because that is already enough to have fun with the sport). For Jacobs, he felt passionate and deeply immersed enough in the game that he made up his mind at a young age what was in store for his future.

"I think every day since elementary school, I had always dreamed of playing professional basketball."

So he played and he played. He kept on playing and getting better and kept playing and getting better. But when he turned 16, he ran into a bit of an obstacle - as did the rest of the world - when the COVID-19 pandemic hit.

"School was online and all of the basketball courts were closed so I was unable to do much," he said. "My family and I were already planning on going back to Japan for the winter break but after a while in Japan, I decided that I wanted to see how far I could go in a new situation and decided to stay."

Jacobs had grew up and started playing basketball in California, but here he was, taking advantage of the situation at hand and deciding to go up against the new challenge of playing in the country where he was born.

The 2.01M (6'7") shooting guard describes his game as "versatile". He says that he can defend multiple positions and that even though he "can't give an exact comparison", he's "always looked up to Paul George and his play style" while hoping to "become a player of his skill set".

That might be why he was able to quickly move up the ranks from playing on the U18 team of the Yokohama B-Corsairs to the senior professional team as a special designated player. On 13 November, 2021, Jacobs made history by being the youngest player at 17 years and 7 months old to play in the first division of the B.League. Later on 3 February, 2022 at 17 years, 9 months, and 20 days old, he became the youngest player in the history of the B.League to score in a game.

"It felt nice to be able to play in a professional environment and really appreciate the club for allowing me to have such an opportunity," said Jacobs of the opportunity and experience. "I am excited for the new wave of basketball in Japan and very happy to be a part of it."

Jacobs is not the only one that is excited for the up-and-coming talents in Japan. There's been a lot of buzz in the past few months regarding the exciting young players in the Akatsuki Japan system. Whether it was from Japan's run to the Final of the U16 Asian Championship led by Yuto Kawashima or the outstanding performances of youngsters like Keisei Tominaga and Yuki Kawamura in the Asia Cup, fans just seem to not be able to get enough.

Now, it's Jacob's turn to generate some hype as he is prepared represent the country for the first time. Fresh off an appearance at the Basketball Without Borders Asia Cup in Canberra where he was given the sportsmanship award, Jacobs is expected to be one of the featured players on a Japan national team that could make a deep run in the tournament.

After all, the last time the U18 Asian Championship was played in Iran, it was also Japan that made it all the way to the Final before narrowly losing to the hosts. Who is to say that this team, with Jacobs as well as the U16 Asian Championship MVP Yuto Kawashima, can't do the same - or maybe even win it all for the first time ever?

"It would feel amazing to be able to win for the country of Japan with this team. It's something that we all have been working hard towards and I believe it is very possible."

FIBA