Japan and Basketball and Me
Very infrequently mentioned on this blog is my probably-still-a-bit-surprising-to-friends-back-home basketball hobby. Since getting involved in a fantasy basketball game via Randy about half a year ago, I've since become rather enamoured with the sport. Started a bit of a curious snowball, as now I read NBA blogs, have a ball that I take out to the school gym or the park in Odaiba when I can, participate in NCAA betting pools and am in two other fantasy leagues on top of the one I originally started with. XD Decided to top it off by going to a few pro games while I still lived close enough to actually see some.
Thus, three weeks ago I went off to Kyoto to see the Hannaryz play the Ryukyu (Okinawa) Golden Kings. The Hannaryz are an expansion team in their first season, the Golden Kings are last year's league champions. OOPS. I had originally wanted to see an Osaka game (or better yet, see OSAKA play KYOTO) but as luck would have it, Osaka played the weekend prior, and I needed to go to Himeji that Sunday so I could see the castle once before it went under renovations for the next 4 years. So I had the option of seeing the Osaka Evessa play, or going to see a World Heritage Site for the last time prior to its long-term closing. Uh, so off to Himeji I went, and opted to go to Kyoto to see the Hannaryz instead, the following weekend.
The Hannaryz game was somehow not what I expected of a pro basketball event. It was held in a city gym, with pretty low-key ticketing tables. I'd arrived super early for fear of not being able to get a same-day ticket. Ahahaha. I bought a ticket for $15-ish in the non-reserved balcony seats, and was less than 3 feet behind the home team seating, for three times the price. It was cold in the gym and not terribly well-lit. XD I grabbed tea from a vending machine and a box of takoyaki (fried dough balls containing octopus, bet you can't buy THESE at an NBA game) and read a book until they started doing player introductions about 30 minutes before tip-off. The one thing the Kyoto gym had going for it was a big 4-sided TV monitor thing up on the ceiling, showing video clips, player stats and etc. They also gave me a Hannaryz signboard with the logo on the front for waving around and a ton of info (player positions, heights, weights, history, etc) on the back. Sweet. The players were also out on the court shooting around in the meantime.
I took a bunch of photos, despite the awful lighting, and soon after, the game started! I then witnessed the phenomenon known as Japanese sports cheering. Each time Kyoto had the ball and were driving, the crowd (led by the emcee) would perfectly chorus, "Go! Kyoto! Hannaryz!" *clap clap* "Go! Kyoto! Hannaryz!" *clap clap* It was kind of amazing. When Okinawa had the ball, the crowd would go "Defense! Defense!" *clap clap* You would swear they had a hive mind, initially, but even I picked it up less than 2 minutes into the first quarter.
Kyoto played hard (not great offensively, but Okinawa seemed to be a highly defensive team) but lost bit by bit - up by 8 in the first quarter, only scoring 10 in the second, then steadily downhill to lose by 72-95. At the half, I went out and took more photos, then got a bag of castella (honey cakes) to munch. By the end of the game I was totally in love with the obviously-underdog Hannaryz, particularly #55, Reda Rhalimi, a center. Actually I liked both centers, and John Clifford gave me a high-five as he left the gym. :D They also had a former NBA player, Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf, a former Grizzly. *thumbs up* Well, he played for other teams as well, but Canada support. XD All in all I had a great time, loved the players, the game, the cheerleaders (wearing zori sandals and bell sleeves! Really!) the food, even the Golden Kings. Kyoto won the rematch game the following night. :) I do wish I'd gone earlier, like, months ago...gone to many games, seeing the price. But I got to experience it once.
...and then I got to experience it again! Frustrated with missing the Evessa, I tried to figure out some way to hit their second-final home game against the Oita Heat Devils on the day Gen-chan arrived. Thought maybe I could manage to go before heading to Kyoto Station to pick her up. Nope, tip-off was 6 o'clock, but Gen agreed to go to the final game the next day! It was in Ikeda City (further away than the Kyoto game had been >_<) and we barely managed to get there in time. It was also baking outside, the first above-20-celsius day we'd had. The balcony cheap seats were standing-room-only, so we ended up getting less-nosebleedy bleacher seats behind the Evessa basket.
What a stark contrast from the Hannaryz game! The gym in Ikeda was bright, sweltering and LOUD. Every person in the stands had these huge paper fans that them would use to hit their legs and the bleachers. There also seemed to be more cheerleading, but with less clothes. At the half, the concessions area was jammed with people buying coffee and ice cream from the vending machines, and Evessa swag from like 5 tables, and joining the fanclub. The cheerleaders had their own picture book. There was a halftime competition for kids where if they tossed a plastic ball in the basket they got a prize. All this place was missing was the big TV display, else it would have been far and above the Hannaryz. The Evessa (top of the conference, also in contrast) were a solid team who fouled the heck out of every player they touched (how many fouls in the first quarter, like 10?) and I have to admit I didn't really come to like any of their players in particular. One of the good things about this game though was the big push by the Evessa at the end, they came from being down a dozen or so points to being tied...one guy blew a free throw that would have put them in the lead.
...in the end, though, I came away from the game not really impressed with the Evessa and kinda wishing I could have seen another Hannaryz match instead. XD; Glad I could see both while I was still here, though.
Thus, three weeks ago I went off to Kyoto to see the Hannaryz play the Ryukyu (Okinawa) Golden Kings. The Hannaryz are an expansion team in their first season, the Golden Kings are last year's league champions. OOPS. I had originally wanted to see an Osaka game (or better yet, see OSAKA play KYOTO) but as luck would have it, Osaka played the weekend prior, and I needed to go to Himeji that Sunday so I could see the castle once before it went under renovations for the next 4 years. So I had the option of seeing the Osaka Evessa play, or going to see a World Heritage Site for the last time prior to its long-term closing. Uh, so off to Himeji I went, and opted to go to Kyoto to see the Hannaryz instead, the following weekend.
The Hannaryz game was somehow not what I expected of a pro basketball event. It was held in a city gym, with pretty low-key ticketing tables. I'd arrived super early for fear of not being able to get a same-day ticket. Ahahaha. I bought a ticket for $15-ish in the non-reserved balcony seats, and was less than 3 feet behind the home team seating, for three times the price. It was cold in the gym and not terribly well-lit. XD I grabbed tea from a vending machine and a box of takoyaki (fried dough balls containing octopus, bet you can't buy THESE at an NBA game) and read a book until they started doing player introductions about 30 minutes before tip-off. The one thing the Kyoto gym had going for it was a big 4-sided TV monitor thing up on the ceiling, showing video clips, player stats and etc. They also gave me a Hannaryz signboard with the logo on the front for waving around and a ton of info (player positions, heights, weights, history, etc) on the back. Sweet. The players were also out on the court shooting around in the meantime.
I took a bunch of photos, despite the awful lighting, and soon after, the game started! I then witnessed the phenomenon known as Japanese sports cheering. Each time Kyoto had the ball and were driving, the crowd (led by the emcee) would perfectly chorus, "Go! Kyoto! Hannaryz!" *clap clap* "Go! Kyoto! Hannaryz!" *clap clap* It was kind of amazing. When Okinawa had the ball, the crowd would go "Defense! Defense!" *clap clap* You would swear they had a hive mind, initially, but even I picked it up less than 2 minutes into the first quarter.
Kyoto played hard (not great offensively, but Okinawa seemed to be a highly defensive team) but lost bit by bit - up by 8 in the first quarter, only scoring 10 in the second, then steadily downhill to lose by 72-95. At the half, I went out and took more photos, then got a bag of castella (honey cakes) to munch. By the end of the game I was totally in love with the obviously-underdog Hannaryz, particularly #55, Reda Rhalimi, a center. Actually I liked both centers, and John Clifford gave me a high-five as he left the gym. :D They also had a former NBA player, Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf, a former Grizzly. *thumbs up* Well, he played for other teams as well, but Canada support. XD All in all I had a great time, loved the players, the game, the cheerleaders (wearing zori sandals and bell sleeves! Really!) the food, even the Golden Kings. Kyoto won the rematch game the following night. :) I do wish I'd gone earlier, like, months ago...gone to many games, seeing the price. But I got to experience it once.
...and then I got to experience it again! Frustrated with missing the Evessa, I tried to figure out some way to hit their second-final home game against the Oita Heat Devils on the day Gen-chan arrived. Thought maybe I could manage to go before heading to Kyoto Station to pick her up. Nope, tip-off was 6 o'clock, but Gen agreed to go to the final game the next day! It was in Ikeda City (further away than the Kyoto game had been >_<) and we barely managed to get there in time. It was also baking outside, the first above-20-celsius day we'd had. The balcony cheap seats were standing-room-only, so we ended up getting less-nosebleedy bleacher seats behind the Evessa basket.
What a stark contrast from the Hannaryz game! The gym in Ikeda was bright, sweltering and LOUD. Every person in the stands had these huge paper fans that them would use to hit their legs and the bleachers. There also seemed to be more cheerleading, but with less clothes. At the half, the concessions area was jammed with people buying coffee and ice cream from the vending machines, and Evessa swag from like 5 tables, and joining the fanclub. The cheerleaders had their own picture book. There was a halftime competition for kids where if they tossed a plastic ball in the basket they got a prize. All this place was missing was the big TV display, else it would have been far and above the Hannaryz. The Evessa (top of the conference, also in contrast) were a solid team who fouled the heck out of every player they touched (how many fouls in the first quarter, like 10?) and I have to admit I didn't really come to like any of their players in particular. One of the good things about this game though was the big push by the Evessa at the end, they came from being down a dozen or so points to being tied...one guy blew a free throw that would have put them in the lead.
...in the end, though, I came away from the game not really impressed with the Evessa and kinda wishing I could have seen another Hannaryz match instead. XD; Glad I could see both while I was still here, though.