Looking to retain its title at August's FIBA Asia Championship for Women, the latest Japan national basketball team plans to play with more vigor and speed, partly to make up for its lack of height on the international stage.
Two point guards, Asami Yoshida and Rui Machida, are key players for "Hayabusa Japan." The team's goal — to once again grab the Asia Championship trophy that it earned in 2013 — would mean more than when the team won the trophy two years ago. Not just because that would be back-to-back triumphs, but also because Japan would punch its ticket for next summer's Rio de Janeiro Olympics.
Former WJBL MVP Yoshida will be asked to lead the squad as its captain. The 27-year-old was actually a little indecisive over whether she would take the captaincy when she was asked by head coach Tomohide Utsumi, because she wasn't sure if she was the appropriate person. Yoshida wasn't on the national squad for last year's FIBA World Championship for Women due to a torn ACL in her left knee that she suffered during the 2013-14 WJBL season.