TOKYO (Japan) - It is a return to the national team after three years for Rui Machida.
The last time she played for Japan was the Tokyo Olympics, where she set a tournament record of 18 assists in the Semi-Finals against France and led all players with an average of 12.5 assists per game. She led Japan to a historic silver medal as a point guard and gained worldwide recognition for her performance.
From there, the past three years have been intense for Machida in many ways. The summer after the Olympics, she joined the Washington Mystics and played 38 games, including the playoffs. This year in April, she led the Fujitsu Red Wave to victory in the W League.
Even though she experienced many firsts and achieved great things, she also faced challenges in conditioning and injuries during the national team activities and could not make it to the roster at the Women's Basketball World Cup in the fall of 2022 and the FIBA Women's Olympic Qualifying Tournament 2024 in February this year.
When asked if she had changed after these intense three years, Machida immediately expressed her feelings about the national team.
“When I was motivated to do my best for the national team, injuries kept coming, so my desire to go to Paris has grown stronger. Also, having gone to the WNBA, I feel that I no longer get overwhelmed by the idea of facing the Team USA.”
Though she is proud of the silver medal won at the Tokyo Olympics, the frustration of losing to the USA in the finals still lingers. She genuinely wanted to beat the USA and win the championship, so the “frustration from the finals has always stayed with me.”
After the Tokyo Olympics, head coach Tom Hovasse was replaced by Toru Onzuka, bringing a new system. Machida herself has been overcoming challenges and growing. This is her first time joining the national team under Onzuka, and she is eager to catch up and see how well she can perform in Paris.
“It’s hard to know how the USA will analyze and adjust their defense against us until we play them in Paris, but Coach Tom’s basketball is different from Coach Onzuka’s basketball. I think we need to adjust based on how the opponents defend against Onzuka’s style. We will have to figure it out while playing.”
In the Group Phase, Japan will face USA, the same group as in the Tokyo Olympics, and will meet them in the first game of the tournament.
“Either way, we are the challengers. My approach of playing with all whenever I’m on the court hasn’t changed, but I no longer feel that we can’t compete just because it’s the USA.”
Machida always stays natural. Even when talking about tough or challenging times, she smiles. Though she doesn’t show it much, she has a strong inner drive and a competitive spirit. She has always enjoyed taking on big challenges since childhood, and when she received the offer from the Mystics, she immediately thought, “I want to try it.”
The four months in the WNBA were not entirely as what she wanted in terms of performance, but she still cherishes the experience of diving into a new world and spending fulfilling days with her teammates. Even now, she says, “If I get another chance, I’d like to go back.”
“The first year was all about getting used to the WNBA’s flow and rhythm. In the second year, I would know the flow and what to focus on, so I think I could concentrate more on my performance. So those things make me think I want to go back again.”
If she performs well in the Paris Olympics like she did in Tokyo, there’s a high chance that WNBA teams will come calling again. However, Machida gently denies considering Paris as a stepping stone to the WNBA.
“Rather than wanting to appeal to the WNBA, my stronger desire is to win a gold medal with this team. It’s not about my own stats; I want to contribute to the team by doing what I can. If that leads to the WNBA, that’s great, but I don’t want to do something just to play in the WNBA when I am playing for the national team.”
A passionate inner drive and the ability to make clear decisions support Machida both on and off the court.
(By Yoko Miyaji)
FIBA