00:00Japan was one of the stories of the FIBA World Cup in 2023.
00:05Japan, get on your feet.
00:07You are going to the Olympics.
00:13And this year, the nation's biggest star could be back to help them recapture that magic.
00:19Oh! Rui Hachimura! He just ripped through the ozone layer.
00:26Rui Hachimura has been named in new head coach Dai Okitani's extended squad of 53 players ahead of a busy
00:33summer.
00:34One that includes the third and fourth windows of World Cup 2027 qualifiers, along with the Asian Games on home
00:41soil starting in September.
00:43Inside Hachimura! Pounce and hold!
00:47If that doesn't get it going, I don't know what would.
00:50It would be a huge boost if Hachimura is available.
00:53The forward averaged 22 points and 7 rebounds at each of the past two Olympics in Tokyo and Paris, but
01:01missed that 2023 World Cup run.
01:05And following the end of his NBA season with the Los Angeles Lakers, he is going into free agency.
01:12And said after his side's playoff exit that his immediate focus is on his next NBA deal.
01:18I love this team, you know, I love this organization since I got here, you know, it's my fourth season
01:23with them, you know.
01:24I really appreciate them, you know.
01:26So what they've done for me, you know, they did a lot for me, you know.
01:30And, yeah, I just, you know, I love here.
01:32But at the end of the day, you know, I'm not the one negotiating.
01:37Also in this squad is Yuki Kawamura, one of the heroes of that memorable 2023 campaign, who spent this season
01:44on a two-way contract with the Chicago Bulls.
01:56While the team's leading scorer in Okinawa, center Josh Hawkinson, has been included as well, alongside forward Yuta Watanabe and
02:04shooting guard Keisei Tominaga.
02:11That quartet produced Japan's best moment in recent memory, coming back from 18 points down against Finland to record its
02:19first ever win over a European opponent.
02:22Ball finds his hands, Tominaga!
02:27Japan has made history.
02:30They have defeated their first European squad.
02:35The Akatsuki Five would finish the tournament as Asia's best team, earning a place at the Paris Olympics.
02:42And though they were unable to taste victory, they pushed host nation and eventual silver medalist France to overtime,
02:49while an early exit at last year's FIBA Asia Cup came with several key players missing.
02:57Under Okitani, who took over from Tom Hovas earlier this year,
03:01Japan heads into the third qualifying window, leading Group B with a 3-1 record,
03:06facing China on July 3 and Korea three nights later.
03:13And the team that showed what it is capable of at the last World Cup
03:17will be looking to go on another historic journey at the next one.
03:24For all the latest on the road to FIBA World Cup 2027,
03:28head to FIBA.Basketball.
03:31A world lookout on the road!
03:34Rory Hachimura!
03:36House at home!
03:37And screams in the face of William Silva!
03:39Hox囉!
03:41Hoxano!
03:42Hoxano!
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