Legal and cultural segregation has excluded many potentially elite nonwhite athletes from the highest level of professional and amateur competition for much of America’s history, particularly in “American” big team sports: football, basketball, and baseball.

Jackie Robinson’s entry into professional baseball was an historically critical moment, and it is recognized as such by contemporary observers. But a similar moment of barrier-crossing that same year—the selection by the New York Knicks of Japanese American point guard Wataru “Wat” Misaka in 1947’s amateur draft, making him the first nonwhite player to debut in pro basketball—has gone largely ignored by historians and media. “It wasn’t a big thing; nobody cared,” said Misaka. Misaka only played in three games before being cut in midseason, reportedly because the Knicks had too many point guards on its roster.

As of 2020, players of Asian descent made up 0.4 percent of the National Basketball Association (NBA), less than 0.1 percent of the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA), 0.1 percent of National Football League (NFL) players, and 1.9 percent of Major League Baseball (MLB).

Yet, Asian Americans have continued to play sports and achieve—in community clubs, in the professional leagues, in national and international amateur contests, and often in the face of skepticism from many of those around them, including opponents, teammates, coaches, and even their own friends and family.

This module looks at Asian American representation in organized individual and team sports.