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Japanese men’s basketball star Hachimura: “The purpose of the association is money, not development of the national team.”
The association extends the contract of the manager who held the evaluation match before the Olympics and lost all of the group stage.
Nevertheless, he dismissed the controversy, saying, “We will not change the policy.” Basketball fans are angry
“Korea doesn’t know Japan too well, and Japan knows Korea too well.
Japan’s inner landscape, Salim, 2014
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Domestic media outlets often only convey stories about Japan, our closest neighbor, mainly on politics, economics, and major social issues. A reporter who majored in Japanese in college, did an exchange study in Japan, loves Japanese food, and enjoys Japanese movies and animation will tell you stories that are really ‘hot’ in Japan right now, and that are hard to find in Korea.
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Rui Hachimura (26), a leading forward for the Japanese men’s national basketball team, plays for the Los Angeles Lakers in the National Basketball Association (NBA)/sportiva.shueisha.co.jp
The determined remarks of Japanese basketball star Rui Hachimura (26), who plays in the American National Basketball Association (NBA), are a hot topic in Japan. At press conferences recently held in the United States, strong criticism is being poured out against the Japan Basketball Association (JBA) every day. It reminds me of Ahn Se-young (22), the women’s national badminton representative who raised the absurdity of the Korean Badminton Association at the last Paris Olympics.
Born in Toyama City, Toyama Prefecture, Japan to a Japanese mother and a father from Benin, Africa, Hachimura made a name for himself as a youth basketball player since middle school with his tall 203 cm and 104 kg weight. At the age of 21, he was selected 9th overall in the 2019 NBA draft and wore the Washington Wizards uniform, and last year he moved to the Los Angeles Lakers, a very popular NBA team. He is a Japanese NBA player who currently plays with Yuki Kawamura of the Memphis Grizzlies.
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Rui Hachimura during his time with the Japan men’s youth basketball team/FIBA (International Basketball Federation)
Hachimura first wore the national team uniform at the Asia U16 (Under 16) Championship held in Iran in 2013, and made his senior national team debut in the Japan-Korea friendly match in June 2018. He was selected to represent Japan at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics held in his home country and this year’s Paris Olympics, where he played an active role as a leading forward.
The 14th was the first time that Hachimura made a direct remark toward his country’s national team. Standing in front of reporters after finishing the NBA league game that day, Louis immediately said, “It is difficult to reveal, but it seems that the Japan Basketball Association is more focused on making money rather than growing the national team.”
There was analysis that Hachimura’s remarks were aimed at the Japan-Korea men’s national basketball team evaluation match held last July, when the opening of the Paris Olympics was imminent. At that time, the two national teams held two evaluation matches less than a month before the Olympic Games. The association scheduled this game only for topicality without considering the condition of the players.
In addition, Hachimura announced in advance that he would not be able to participate due to poor physical condition, but is known to claim that the association held off announcing his absence to increase ticket sales.
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Tom Horvath, head coach of the Japan men’s basketball team. The contract was recently extended by four years until the 2028 LA Olympics./basket-count.com
Hachimura also did not spare criticism towards Japanese men’s basketball team coach Tom Horvath (57), whose contract was recently extended by four years. He directly questioned Coach Horvath’s capabilities, saying, “The Japanese national team needs a coach of his caliber right now.” “The coach should be someone who knows Japan’s top players and has also played in men’s professional basketball.”
Horvath, who exceeded expectations by winning a silver medal as the coach of the Japanese women’s basketball team at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, was later selected as the head coach of the men’s national team. However, contrary to expectations, they only finished 7th in the FIBA (International Basketball Federation) Men’s Basketball Asia Cup held in Jakarta, Indonesia in July 2022, and at the Paris Olympics, where they participated with a national team evaluated as the strongest of all time, including Hachimura, they lost three consecutive group stage games. I experienced humiliation.
Nevertheless, when the Japan Basketball Association signed a four-year extension contract with Coach Horvath on the 7th, they showed blatant dissatisfaction. Hachimura said, “It’s unfortunate that it went this way (Director Horvath’s contract extension).” In particular, it was reported that the association individually consulted with other national team players about extending the manager’s contract, but did not inform Hachimura of this. “I have been working hard as a member of the Japanese national team since I was young, and I am still playing a big role today. “Nevertheless, I was disappointed that there was no communication (with me) when deciding on a directing contract,” Hachimura explained.
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Rui Hachimura (left) and head coach Tom Horvath (right) of the Japanese men’s basketball team / Kyodo News
Regarding his resolute remarks, local basketball fans are showing support on social media, saying, “What he said was good,” and “Like Hachimura said, the association should think about the development of the national team rather than money.” However, in its first press conference since the controversy on the 20th, the Japan Basketball Association said, “Hachimura is the most important player in Japanese basketball. “I take it seriously because I think there was a lack of communication with him,” he said, but drew a line, saying, “There is no change in the policy of preparing for the 2028 LA Olympics under Coach Horvath.”
Regarding the association’s passive response, Hachimura said on the 23rd, “I feel that (the association) is prioritizing their own interests rather than ‘players first.’ I don’t know if they really want to develop Japanese basketball. The current national team is not a team that children can look at and think, ‘I want to become a basketball player, too.’ “I don’t want to play for a team like that,” he said. Hachimura, the best ace of the current Japanese men’s basketball team in name and reality, even hinted at the possibility of retirement from the national team.
Hachimura went on to say about Coach Horvath, “If you look at training methods, strategy meetings, etc., he is far from world-class. Japanese Basketball Association executives say they have selected a world-class coach, but it is unclear whether they have ever seen the world stage in the first place. (Hovath) has achieved excellent results in Japanese women’s basketball, but men’s and women’s basketball are fundamentally different. “The (good) results our national team has achieved so far are not due to the coach, but because of our younger generation,” he publicly sniped again.
Despite the flood of requests for coverage, the Japan Basketball Association is keeping its distance, saying on the 25th, “There is no response the association can provide at this time.”
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Tom Horvath (right) Japan men’s basketball national team coach and players/Chunichi Shimbun Digital
Number Web, a local sports media outlet, released a timely diagnosis on the 26th. “It is difficult to replace the coach now that we have already started the journey toward the LA Olympics under Coach Horvath. Conversely, the departure of Hachimura, Japan’s top player, is not an option that can help the national team move in a good direction. In the future, more talented Japanese players will advance to the NBA professional stage, but will they continue to cut (players) every time they express their opinion on the association’s method? “Now that young players are learning about the world stage, the association also needs to improve its organization.”
On the same day, Japanese sports journalist Toshiki Tsuda wrote to Nikkan Gendai, “Hachimura’s (extreme) remarks are also problematic. However, the biggest problem is that Yukyo Mitsuya, the president of the Japan Basketball Association, has not made any statement,” he said. “Since he is receiving salary (as president), he should hold a press conference or at least announce his position regarding Hachimura’s remarks.” It needs to be done. Otherwise, speculation will lead to speculation and unnecessary negative rumors will arise.”
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The Japanese men’s basketball team won the qualifier against Guam on the 24th, despite the absence of leading forward Rui Hachimura, and qualified for the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup to be held next year./basketballking.jp
The Japanese national team won 83-78 in the preliminary round against Guam in Hachimura’s absence on the 24th, becoming the first team to qualify for the 2025 FIBA Men’s Basketball Asia Cup finals to be held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia in August next year. Basketball fans, who expected the team to win the championship for the first time in 54 years since the 1971 tournament with star players such as Hachimura, are losing trust in the association due to his remarks suggesting his retirement.
Will Hachimura, who has publicly attacked the association and the current coach twice, be able to compete in international competitions again with the Japanese flag on his chest? After announcing his retirement from the national team at a press conference just before, he was asked, ‘How do you feel on the inside?’ to which he replied, “Of course, I want to wear the national team uniform.” The attention of local basketball fans is now focused on how the association will resolve the conflict with Hachimura.
We’ll be back next week with the hottest stories in Japan. Check out the links to episodes 64 and 65 below.
National tour after 3 years of debut, the next goal for the J-pop rookie is to ‘enter Korea’ ☞ chosun.com/international/japan/2024/11/13/BVLXSNO6TBED3LSMJBCWIKVS4I/
It pierces the thighs and the heart… Deer antler warning during estrus ☞ https://www.chosun.com/international/japan/2024/11/20/I63F6VMMJJFEFBF56RYGDPV5TU/
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Reporter Kim Dong-hyeon boy@chosun.com
2024-11-26 15:17:00