5 NBA players who are anime fans feat. Jaylen Brown

Endurance, perseverance and the iron will of a ninja aren't that different from the qualities of many NBA players. As much as these athletes work hard in the gym, they also need a tonic of inspirational entertainment, and anime fulfills this need for a few of them.

It is not just the lives of characters that appeal to these players, as some are also drawn to the art of writing that anime creators offer. With that in mind, here is the list of NBA players who are big anime fans:

5 NBA players who are anime fans

#1. Daniel Gafford

Daniel Gafford is among those NBA players who have an undying love for anime. So much so that the Dallas Mavericks center has some of his favorite characters from Dragon Ball Z, Vegeta, Goku and Gohan, tattooed on his left knee.

"My favorite, of course, when I was growing up was Dragon Ball Z, but right now it's Black Clover," Gafford said. "You know, Black Clover is fire. I always like the underdog stories." [H/T Crunchyroll]

As per Sporting News, he shared that during his childhood, his father, who thought the anime was violent, would always intervene to stop him from watching. However, Gafford would still find ways to sneak away and watch it elsewhere.

#2. Cole Anthony

Cole Anthony is another one among NBA players with an immense love for anime. He has been a fan since he was in the fifth grade, and one of his favorites is Attack on Titan:

"So I'd say it's shuffled through a few different anime throughout the years, but I think now it's definitely, I wanna say Attack on Titan. Yeah. It just, that show just, it's a show that the more I watched it, the more I was like, 'Yo, this is wild!' Then the origin stories that you find out as you get into the seasons, I was just like, yeah, this is a really good show." [H/T Crunchyroll]

#3. Joel Embiid

Embiid uses anime as a way to mentally prepare for big games. The Philadelphia 76ers star often turns to the Dragon Ball series for inspiration. He was seen watching the anime before facing the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference semifinals.

When the creator of Dragon Ball, Akira Toriyama, passed away in March earlier this year, Embiid was heartbroken, as he tweeted:

"Man RIP Akira Toriyama😭😭"

#4. Jaylen Brown

Jaylen Brown is one of the NBA players who has an enormous interest in anime. The Boston Celtics star spends a good chunk of his spare time engrossed in the world of Japanese animation. In an interview with GQ, he listed some of his favorites:

“I finished Demon Slayer like a couple of years ago, tough! Also like Death Note, you should go check it out. Also, like, Neo Yokio. I like Seven Deadly Sins too. The writing in anime is like next level. That’s really why I fell in love with it." (Timestamp: 1:26)

He also added that he used extensive conversations with his former teammate Tacko Fall and that they watched Baaki together.

#5. Zion Williamson

Williamson closely follows anime and has taken refuge in it at times. In an interview with GQ, he said that his NBA career was influenced by an anime series, as he thought his life had taken the same curve as that of Naruto.

Williamson has even carried his love for anime into his sneaker line, collaborating with Nike to release ninja-themed Air Jordan sneakers.