Break the stereotype! Tom Hovasse’s new challenge to lead Japanese women’s basketball to the silver medal | nippon.com

The goal was a gold medal from the beginning

“Japanese players tend to lose confidence when playing on the world stage. Why? I started my job as a head coach by finding out why.”

It is the words of former head coach Tom Hovasse (HC) who led the Japan Women’s Basketball National Team to the silver medal at the Tokyo Olympics.

Hovasse, who is from the United States and has played in the Japanese league for more than 10 years, was an assistant coach at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games. At this time, he was eliminated in the quarterfinals.

“I thought I could go higher, but the players weren’t ready. I didn’t believe I could get a medal.”

When he became head coach in 2017, Hovasse set a clear goal in front of the players, saying, “I will win a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics.” “I didn’t say the players, but I think I was surprised,” Hovasse recalls.

“The players were skeptical,’Can you really win?’, But’Become a team that shoots three-pointers like the NBA to compete with tall foreigners. We are good at 3 points, aren’t we? “

Hovasse HC presented the players with a “winning plan” for the Tokyo tournament and took the necessary steps. Although he was 9th in the 2018 World Cup, he won the 19th Asian Cup. The fact that the Tokyo Olympics were postponed due to the corona wreck may have been fortunate for the team, as they had more time to spare and the tactics were thoroughly implemented.

However, I think the players were really confident after the Tokyo Olympics started. In the first match of the group stage, he defeated the powerful country France, which was in 5th place in the World Cup in 2018, by 4 points and advanced to the quarterfinals. After reversing Belgium in the quarter-finals and finally defeating by one point, they faced France again in the semi-finals, this time with a score of 87-71.

Despite losing to the United States in the final, Japan won the Olympic medal for the first time in history. It changed the history of Japanese basketball.

At the Tokyo Olympics, he led a women’s team and won a silver medal.Co-Director Hovasse achieved the first feat in the history of the Japanese national team (August 8, 2021, Saitama Super Arena)

Hovasse HC was impressed by the words of the players who finished the Tokyo tournament.

“Tom believed in me more than I believed in myself. Thank you.”

The confidence of the players came from the fact that the head coach first believed in the players.

Why are Japanese people not confident?

Looking at the Japanese sports world, not just basketball, I feel that there are many top-level players who are not confident in themselves. In a previous interview, Hovasse speculated that in the case of basketball, the cause was the lack of “self-esteem” in his junior years.

“They can be more confident. No matter where you look in the world, no player can practice so hard. So to speak,“ gym rat ”—a practice bug. Shooting practice from the morning. I’m always in the gym if I have a little time. This is a habit I’ve been struck by since high school. “

“Just —” continues Hovasse HC.

“I didn’t like it. I wanted you to think for yourself and spend your time doing what you love, rather than simply practicing for a long time. It’s because there is a lot of play to do. I’ve been forced out of the gymnasium, but they steal my eyes and come back to the gymnasium. I’m weakened by this (laughs). Of course, this I’m proud of my work ethic, but I didn’t feel the confidence and self-esteem that I should have gained from it. My first job is to bring about that change. It was. “

The purpose is not to practice for a long time. Hovasse has made it a habit to think “what should be achieved in practice to succeed in the game” in practice, even if the time is short, and changed the team to pay for performance.

Hobus’ work on the women’s team began with a change in the mindset of players who couldn’t believe the victory (August 4, 2021, Saitama Super Arena) AFP = current affairs

“Don’t do dirty things” values

Hovasse HC points out that “Japanese athletes have been a habit since high school” for a long time of practice. In many club activities, instructors still impose long hours of practice on athletes and use them as criteria for evaluation. In this way, the leader clarifies the control structure with the players and asks the players for loyalty, which may be similar to the labor-management relations of old Japanese companies.

In addition, club activities conducted as part of school activities tend to require “correct play”. This also seems to deprive the players of their thoughts.

In basketball, for example, a team that loses 58 to 60 intentionally fouls the opponent’s player and gives a free throw to the opponent (the team foul must exceed the upper limit), a strategy called “foul game” be.

There is a possibility that both opponents will decide a free throw and it will be 58 to 62, but if both free throws are missed and a second rebound is taken, the score remains 58 to 60 and the ball is held. You can regain the right. In the next possession, you will have a chance to tie or make a comeback with a 3-point shot.

The word “good foul” is a very common operation in the United States, and if not done properly, the media may point out misplacement. However, in Japan, even at national level competitions, we see leaders who do not like foul games.

Apparently, they have the belief that “foul = evil”. In fact, I’ve heard the leader say, “Don’t do that dirty thing.”

“Correctness” is thus required in Japanese club activities, and players continue to be under pressure to play according to the standards in order to be evaluated by their leaders. As a result, you have less self-thinking, less confidence in your play, and less self-esteem.

If Japanese women’s basketball is going to fight at the world level in the future, it is necessary to create a place of free expression in which players think and play by themselves not only in games but also in practice from the junior days. Isn’t it?

In fact, in Spain, a powerful country that won the silver medal at the Rio de Janeiro tournament, there are also junior games that do not display any points. Teens should learn to think for themselves, hone their skills, and love games rather than win or lose.

The future of Japanese men’s basketball drawn by Hovasse

Hovasse, whose goal is to win a gold medal at the Tokyo tournament, has proved that he can fight the world by breaking the stereotypes of the Japanese basketball world and changing the consciousness of the players.

Having created a new history in the Japanese women’s basketball world, he is now at the beginning of his next challenge. He retired from the women’s head coach after the Tokyo tournament and became the men’s head coach for the 2023 World Cup.

Hovasse HC talks about his new job:

“I’ve heard people say,’Hovasse has never coached boys,’ but that doesn’t matter. Whether it’s girls or boys, basketball coaches have a relationship of trust with the players. However, it is impossible for the men’s national team, who is 37th in the world ranking (as of December 2021), to aim for a gold medal like women’s. Not the target “

Hovasse HC started practicing with boys in November last year. In the 2023 World Cup Asian qualifying match against China at the end of the month, he suffered two consecutive losses and did not start from the white star. At this time, Hovasse also emphasized the “relationship of trust.”

“I was very good at the practice, but I couldn’t show my strength in the game. I have to find out where the cause is. The most important thing for that is to hold training camps and build a relationship of trust with the players. It ’s about building. ”

In the first qualifying round of the Basketball World Cup Asia, which was the first team to lead the boys, he lost two games in a row against China.Director Hovasse often showed a stern look (November 28, 2021, Xebio Arena Sendai) Current affairs

However, he also points out that boys have different structural problems than girls.

Unlike the women’s W League, where foreign players are not playing and the Japanese are the point getters for the team, the men’s B League score sources are all foreign-born players. Players from Japan often play supporting roles.

Even in the score ranking as of February 10, foreign players occupy the top ranks, and only 4 players from Japan are within the 50th place. Seiya Ando (Shimane Susanoo Magic, average 15.7 per game) in 25th place, Yuta Okada (Shinshu Break Warriors, average 15.5 per game) in 28th place, Yuma Fujii (Kawasaki Brave Thunders, average 13.7 per game) in 40th place. , Yuki Togashi (Chiba Jets, average 13.1 per game) is only appearing in 47th place.

These four have something in common. All four must be in a point guard position, where relatively short players in the team serve. On the flip side, the Japanese big man isn’t functioning as a scorer in the B League.

Hovasse HC also says that this is a big difference between girls and boys.

“The play styles of the women’s national team and the W League team are basically the same, so even the Japanese national team can create a Japanese national team according to the style they usually play. However, in the case of boys, like girls. Even if you try to build a game around 3 points, it’s different from the style you do in the B league. First of all, I think it takes more time than girls to spread the philosophy of team building. “

Until now, Hovasse HC has found the challenges necessary to strengthen the team with extraordinary eyesight. The next match to move the field of fighting to boys is the match against Taiwan and Australia (2023 World Cup Asian Qualifying) scheduled at the Okinawa Arena on February 26 and 27, 2023.

Four years from now, the process has just begun. What kind of prescription will Hovasse HC write for the future of the Japanese men’s national team?

Banner photo: Director Hobus (November 28, 2021, Xebio Arena Sendai) giving instructions to players in the basketball World Cup Asian 1st qualifying match against China in November 2021.