Yasutaka Okayama

Yasutaka Okayama
Personal information
Born	November 29, 1954 (age 69); Mashiki, Kumamoto
Nationality	Japanese
Listed height	7 ft 8 in (2.34 m)
Listed weight	330 lb (150 kg)
Career information
High school	Kyushu Gakuin; (Kumamoto, Kumamoto)
College	Osaka University of Commerce
NBA draft	1981: 8th round, 171st overall pick
	Selected by the Golden State Warriors
Playing career	1979–1990
Position	Center
Coaching career	1993–present
Career history
As player:
1979–1990	Sumitomo Metal Sparks
As coach:
1993–1995	Sumitomo Metal Sparks (assistant)
1996–1999	Osaka University of Commerce (assistant)
Career highlights and awards
	As player: 2× JBL Scoring Leader (1981, 1982); 5× JBL Best Five (1979–1983); 3× JBL Rebound Leader (1979, 1981, 1982);
Representing Japan
Asian Games
William Jones Cup

Yasutaka Okayama (岡山恭崇, Okayama Yasutaka, born November 29, 1954) is a Japanese former professional basketball player and coach.^[1] He was selected by the Golden State Warriors as the 171st pick of the eighth round of the 1981 NBA draft, although he did not sign with them.^[2]^[3] At 7 ft 8 in (2.34 m), he is the tallest player to be drafted in National Basketball Association (NBA) history. Okayama was the only player from Japan drafted in the NBA until Rui Hachimura was selected in the 2019 NBA draft.

Okayama practiced judo at junior high school and high school, and obtained a second degree black belt. He started playing basketball when he was eighteen at Osaka University of Commerce. In 1975, when his height was about 2.08 metres (6 ft 10 in), he was recruited by the University of Portland; he spent two years there, but a medical check revealed gigantism and he never played for the varsity team.^[4] After graduation, he joined the Sumitomo Metal Sparks basketball club. He represented Japan between 1979 and 1986 before he retired in 1996.

After being selected in the 1981 NBA draft, Okayama opted to stay in Japan.^[5]

As of 2005, he worked for Sumitomo Metal Industries and was active as a basketball coach.^[6]

Okayama wrote a book for young basketball players in 1989.^[7]