Team Profile: Will Japan be ready to jump back on track?

SOPRON (Hungary) - After the highs of a historic silver medal at Tokyo 2020 and fifth straight FIBA Women's Asia Cup title in 2021, Japan has faced some challenges in recent years and now they're looking to bounce back.

 

 

The Roster

Losing the grasp on their FIBA Women's Asia Cup crown last year in Sydney hurt - as did missing the Quarter-Finals in the same city a year earlier at the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup 2022. Now they are looking to show their teeth again and maybe it will be the emergence of a new star in Mai Yamamoto that can help fuel this. She made the All-Star Five last year and will show her guard skills as usual. 

Mai Yamamoto impressed last year in Sydney at the FIBA Women's Asia Cup 

Elsewhere on the roster, the experience comes from the likes of Maki Takada and Himawari Akaho, who will do the business in the paint for their team. There is more dynamism from Stephanie Mawuli, while the prospect of Tokyo 2020 record breaker Rui Machida making a return to action is something that will give Japan an immeasurable boost. 

Japan can destroy teams from downtown, but will they be able to do the business in the paint?

The Question

Have Japan become overly reliant on their three-point shooting prowess? In Tokyo they used their main power to incredible effect, but it was their defense, fast-breaking and ball movement that provided the foundation for their downtown deluge. They also did a decent job physically inside too. Can they recapture these elements and the overall energetic vibe they had?

The Hope

Will Rui Machida step out for Japan again and be the difference-maker that can get them firing in the same way as they did in Tokyo? The guard showed she is the baller who truly makes Japan tick with her amazing record-breaking passing ability - something which is so tough to slow down for Japan's opponents. 

Is a possible return to NT action for Rui Machida the difference-maker for Japan?

The Fear

It will be a huge disappointment if Japan miss out and questions will be asked about whether their exploits in Tokyo were the gigantic peak before an uncomfortable slide back on the global stage - as their most recent 9th, 9th, 8th and 14th placed finishes (excluding Tokyo) suggests.

 IN THE LAST 10 FIBA EVENTS

YEAR	EVENT	LOCATION	ACHIEVEMENT
2023	FIBA Women's Asia Cup	Sydney (AUS)	2nd
2022	FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup	Sydney (AUS)	9th
2021	FIBA Women's Asia Cup	Amman (JOR)	1st
2021	Olympic Games	Tokyo (JPN)	2nd
2019	FIBA Women's Asia Cup	Bengaluru (IND)	1st
2018	FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup	Tenerife (ESP)	9th
2017	FIBA Women's Asia Cup	Bengaluru (IND)	1st
2016	Olympic Games	Rio (BRA)	8th
2015	FIBA Women's Asia Cup	Wuhan (CHN)	1st
2014	FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup	Istanbul (TUR)	14th

The poll

FIBA