KOTA IGARASHI

Japanese Point Guard Kota Igarashi Signs in Valencia, Spain

Spain is where Japanese point guard Kota Igarashi will play his first season abroad. The 19-year-old has signed with a team in Valencia for 2026-27, and he is already competing with his new club.

Kota Igarashi’s Background in Japan

Kota came to Valencia out of Maebashi Ikuei High School in Japan with a strong junior résumé. He made the Tokyo All-Star team in 2022-23, was named one of the Top 5 Players in Tokyo in 2022, and earned a place on the Prefectural All-Star team in 2023-24.

He is a dynamic point guard who plays at pace and attacks a defense from two spots. He shoots it accurately from outside, and he can get downhill and finish at the rim, so defenders can’t play him for one and forget the other.

What a coach notices first is the communication. Kota leads with his voice: he talks on both ends, organizes the floor and keeps the group connected when a possession breaks down. He is a great teammate and very coachable, two things that show up fast when a player changes countries and languages.

Nine Weeks in Valencia

Kota arrived at the start of August for the nine-week Euro Professional Program with EuroProBasket. From the first week he was competing every day against older players, with every game on film.

In his first four games he averaged 3.8 assists in 22 minutes and shot 40% from three. Those numbers fit the player: a point guard who looks to set up the people around him first and makes a defense pay when it leaves him open.

Over the course of his program, Kota tried out with three teams in Valencia. The first tryout came roughly a month in, and he kept working through every one of them.

A Japanese Point Guard Signs in Spain

Kota Igarashi, a 19-year-old Japanese point guard from Maebashi Ikuei High School, has signed with a team in Valencia, Spain, for the 2026-27 season. He signed less than two months after arriving for EuroProBasket’s nine-week Euro Professional Program in August 2026, and he is already competing with his new team.

He did not have to move far. His new team plays in the same city where he spent his program.

At 19, with Japanese high school basketball as his last stop before Valencia, Kota is now competing in Spain against grown men. That room is hard to get into, and from here his production decides how far up the Spanish system he climbs.

Play Basketball in Spain With EuroProBasket

EuroProBasket has helped many Japanese players start their careers in Spain, and Kota signed with his new team through our contacts with the club. We bring over a decade of experience, and 400+ players have signed and committed in 25+ different countries since 2015. Receipts, not promises.

If you are a guard ready to compete for a contract in Europe, start with the Euro Professional Program.