Sabers/Saberettes Youth Basketball Organization (Sabers) was established in 1970 at the East San Gabriel Valley Japanese Community Center (ESGVJCC) by Don Mita and Bob Yamashita with a handful of boys and girls teams.

Sabers gave Japanese American youth the opportunity to play organized basketball during a time when they couldn’t compete in other organized basketball programs.

Now 50+ years later, the Sabers organization has over 20 teams and 100 boys and girls of all ages, not only learning basketball skills but also developing life skills and values of teamwork, commitment and community.

The NBHA panel discussion featuring Jamie Hagiya, Natalie Nakase, and Mark Nitake at the Gardena Valley Japanese Cultural Institute was held on Sunday, August 18, 2019 from 1:00 to 3:00 PM.

From the NBHA website: The Nikkei Basketball Heritage Association (NBHA) is a nonprofit organization that seeks to secure and perpetuate the foundational cultural values and traditions of the Japanese American community basketball leagues in Southern California. NBHA’s mission is to provide leadership development and education of the cultural history of Nikkei values and community.

NBHA formed out of the concern of a number of problems occurring in today’s Japanese American (JA) basketball leagues. These problems include a lack of sportsmanship, over-competitiveness, and disrespect for officials and others. These are problems that were rarely seen during the early decades of Japanese American basketball, when players, parents, and others acted in accordance with Japanese cultural values.