Basketball in Japan
Basketball in Japan unfortunately is still a minor sport, but that is changing and one example was when the FIBA World Basketball Championships were held in Japan. I watched many of those exciting games on TV and even went to the final two games in Saitama with a good friend. It was fantastic basketball and a real showcase of the world`s best players in Japan.Unfortunately Steve Nash and the rest of the Canadian team were not in it. Come on boys! Next time?! Japan`s very exciting, fast paced national team competed at the FIBA World Basketball Championships and it was a joy to watch them play. The BJ League,.....No jokes Please!If names like the Shiga Lakestars or the Saitama Broncos turn you on, then you are probably already a fan of Japan`s pro basketball league! BJ League Basketball is a professional basketball league with thirteen teams located throughout Japan. The league is divided into two conferences: the Eastern Conference, and the Western Conference.Latest News from the BJ League BJ-LEAGUE NOTEBOOK NBA veteran Swift to bolster Apache front courtThe Japan Times By ED ODEVEN Staff writer Just over a month before preseason action begins in earnest, the Tokyo Apache continue to make moves and reshape their roster for the 2010-11 season. Big-time experience: Center Robert Swift, who has played for the Seattle SuperSonics and Oklahoma City Thunder in the NBA, agreed to terms with the Tokyo Apache on Monday. AP PHOTO Center Robert Swift, whose NBA career includes 97 games and a pair of right knee surgeries, has accepted a contract offer for the upcoming season, the team announced on Monday. He will be reunited with new Apache coach Bob Hill, who coached the Seattle SuperSonics from January 2006 to April 2007. A 216-cm, 122-kg big man, Swift was the No. 12 pick in the 2004 NBA Draft. Seattle selected a player who skipped college, but had committed to USC. He was considered one of the nation's top five high school senior centers during his final prep season, when he played at Bakersfield (Calif.) High School and averaged 18.8 points, 15.9 rebounds and 6.2 blocks per game. He played the previous three seasons at Garces Memorial (Calif.) High School. The Japan Times Covers Basketball News in JapanThe Japan Times does a good job of covering both basketball news from Japan and Asia and of course from the NBA and around the world.Basketball in Japan - the JBL -- Japan Basketball League The JBL like the ABA and NBA (in the United States), will merge with the BJ League in a few years. I think it will be good for basketball in Japan. Why? Because the JBL is a company league. The teams represent companies like Toyota, so their is no loyal following other than the few employees from each company that support the company team. Japan has well illustrated that the company format for pro leagues doesn`t work. Teams need a city affiliation with a city following--like the NHL in ice hockey or the NBA in basketball. Below the BJ League is the JBL or Japan Basketball League which has two divisions 1 and 2. Teams from division 2 can be promoted to division one and vice versa. The JBL used to be the premier league in Japan but is a kind of farm league or junior league to the BJ league now. A lot of the Japanese national team players come from the JBL, so the quality of basketball is still very, very good. University Basketball in Japan Japan has a very active sports program in the universities and a fairly well followed university basketball program, with teams all over the islands competing for the national championship--much like the NCAA teams in America. The All-Japan Basketball Federation holds the All Japan Intercollegiate Basketball Championship. It is like the NCAA`s road to the Final Four for Japan. It is held once a year in November/December. Check out their website (in Japanese) to learn more about this
basketball tournament.
You can watch Japanese university basketball, and even the NBA on TV by watching
J Sports.
BK plays beer league basketball in Kanagawa. You can get to know some of the players and perhaps get onto a team if you are interested. Is for people who want to find other basketball players near them, and to find teams to play with. Tell us about your basketball tournaments and events here. If there are basketball tournaments coming up in Japan or exciting games. You can announce them here too. Be sure to visit their HOMEPAGE for Kanagawa basketball news
Basketball Navi Covers all the main basketball leagues in Japan in depth. Unfortunately for English speakers, it is only in Japanese. But it is one of the best sites on basketball in Japan. To Basketball Navi
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