In the 2023 Basketball World Cup group stage, facing the Finnish team, the top eight of last year's European Championship, the Japanese team completed a major comeback after falling behind by up to 18 points and won the first victory for an Asian team.
It was also the Japanese team's first win since 2006. The first victory at the Basketball World Cup (World Championship).
It was Yuki Kawamura who sounded the counterattack horn in the game. He scored 15 points in the final quarter, 25 points in the game, and 9 assists, single-handedly revitalizing the entire team's offense.
Not only can he score by himself, but he can also connect with his teammates. "Commander Tower" Yuki Kawamura became famous in one battle. When he was a student at Fukuoka Daiichi High School, a famous basketball school, he led the team to win many national championships.
In his senior year of high school, he joined the Sanyuan New Phoenix Team of the Japanese B League and became an 18-year-old 8-year-old. At the age of 23 months and 23 days, he became the youngest player in the league.
After returning to school, he dropped out of school to join the B-League's Yokohama Pirates despite his parents' objections in his second year of college. With his strength, he won the best rookie and league MVP last season. This is also the first time in the history of the league that a player has won two awards at the same time.
After defeating Finland, he introduced himself to the world overnight. Although his performance against the Australian team was poor, Yuki Kawamura regained his form against the Venezuelan team and got the first "double-double" by a Japanese player in the history of the World Cup - 19 points and 11 assists. After the victory, the Japanese team also ranks first among Asian teams and is only one step away from entering the 2024 Paris Olympics.
There is no need to consider other factors. As long as we win the next two games, we will definitely get the tickets." Kawamura Yuki's confidence and focus speak volumes.
One record after another, Kawamura Yuki seems to be holding the script of Japanese basketball, writing new history wherever he goes. But behind the "protagonist halo" is his firm belief and hard training that supports him.
" Kawamura Yuki's father Kawamura Yoshiichi said. To cultivate his son's sports talent, he introduced Kawamura Yuki to baseball, swimming, judo, and other sports at an early age.
It was not until the second grade of elementary school that he was attracted by various basketball uniforms in the store, and Kawamura Yuki fell in love with them. From the second to sixth grade, he and his father often played basketball in the yard and watched NBA games together, taking the first step in his basketball career.
When he graduated from junior high school, the height difference between him and his classmates gradually became apparent.
It was the coach of Fukuoka Daiichi High School, Takashi Ideguchi, who discovered his talent and encouraged him to "work together towards Japan's No. 1", and he therefore determined to embark on a professional path. Kawamura Yoshiichi once told him not to regret what he had chosen, and his belief did not waver again.
In high school, after every school team practice, Yuki Kawamura would complete a 600-ball shooting practice.
After the match against the Finnish team, Takashi Ideguchi recalled Kawamura Yuki in high school and sighed: "He controlled the game at his own pace, just like he did in high school. The next step in making history is to participate in the Paris Olympics."
In this World Cup, Yuki Kawamura is already the core organization of the Japanese team. The winning belief and explosive power he has injected into it, perhaps will also continue to create new history for the Japanese team.