Talented wingman Bobby Ray Parks Jr. will be playing for the Nagoya Diamond Dolphins in the 2021-2022 season of the Japanese B.League.
The team made the announcement on its social media accounts on Tuesday morning.
“We are pleased to announce that we have signed Bobby Ray Parks Jr. from the Philippines for the B.League 2021-22 season. Ray will be registered as the Asian Player Quotas. His contract will become official as soon as he gets his medical clearance,” read the post made by the team.
“It is my honor and privilege to represent our team and I can’t wait to get out there and compete and do our best to bring home a championship to the city of Nagoya,” said the 28-year old son of the late great Bobby Parks. “I’m excited to meet my teammates, management, and most especially all the fans,” he added.
Parks will bring with him lots of experience from his time dominating the ASEAN Basketball League, where he won three Most Valuable Player awards and the Philippine Basketball Association, where he played for the TNT Tropang Giga and led them to the 2020 Philippine Cup finals.
Although TNT fell short of the title, losing to Barangay Ginebra, the 6-foot-4 wingman had a spectacular season, averaging 22.35 points, 7.82 rebounds, 3.12 assists, and 1.53 steals per outing.
Controversy, though, hounded Parks in the offseason as he elected not to sign an extension with TNT and go on a hiatus. Fortunately, he was able to gain clearance from the PBA to play in Japan.
Parks is the latest Filipino basketball player to sign on to play in the B.League. He will be joining the likes of Kiefer and Thirdy Ravena, Juan and Javi Gomez de Liano and Kemark Cariño. JNP