Flint Southwestern and Mott Community College grad Lamar Rice has put up big scoring numbers all over the globe, but he seems to have found a home in Japan the last couple seasons. Rice should once again be one of the top scorers in Japan this season, and he’s already proving it in exhibition games. He had 23 points to lead his new team, the Shiga Lakestars, to a win earlier this month, and has went for more than 20 points a few other times already.
When Rice was in town this summer, I talked to him after he played in a Mott alumni game, and he explained some of the Japanese league rules
It’s a pretty good league. We only get two import players (per team) and we can’t play both at the same time, so I play about 20-22 minutes a game. It’s kind of like a college atmosphere, kind of like how I played here. I fit right into the system because a lot of the things I’ve learned here helped me at the professional level.
For his size, Rice has to be one of the most skilled players overseas. At a legit 6-foot-7 and really strong, he can do things that few people his size can
— Patrick Hayes