Rumors have been swirling about Rui Hachimura’s time with Japan’s national team during the Olympics in Lille, sources tell BasketNews, hinting at some turbulence within the camp. There were whispers that Hachimura might have unexpectedly left a practice session, which could have contributed to his surprising exit from the team.
Source: BasketNews
Source: BasketNews
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Players with the highest PPG in the Paris Olympics group stage 📊
#Paris2024
🇬🇷 Giannis Antetokounmpo – 27.0 PPG
🇯🇵 Rui Hachimura – 22.0 PPG
🇩🇪 Franz Wagner – 21.7 PPG
🇨🇦 RJ Barrett – 21.0 PPG
🇯🇵 Yuki Kawamura – 20.3 PPG
🇩🇪 Dennis Schroder – 19.7 PPG
🇨🇦 Shai pic.twitter.com/zw6PkBSZ0q – 10:11 AM
Players with the highest PPG in the Paris Olympics group stage 📊
#Paris2024🇬🇷 Giannis Antetokounmpo – 27.0 PPG
🇯🇵 Rui Hachimura – 22.0 PPG
🇩🇪 Franz Wagner – 21.7 PPG
🇨🇦 RJ Barrett – 21.0 PPG
🇯🇵 Yuki Kawamura – 20.3 PPG
🇩🇪 Dennis Schroder – 19.7 PPG
🇨🇦 Shai pic.twitter.com/zw6PkBSZ0q – 10:11 AM
More on this storyline
The team said Hachimura felt discomfort in his calf fallowing Japan’s 94-90 overtime loss to France on Tuesday. He received an MRI confirming an injury to his gastrocnemius muscle. He has since left the team. “As my injury required early treatment, I was unfortunately unable to accompany the team in accordance with NBA/FIBA rules,” Hachimura, who plays for the Los Angeles Lakers, said in a statement. “I would like to thank all the spectators who supported me at the venue, basketball fans around the world, and all the fans in Japan. I think that together with my teammates, we played a very good game for Japanese basketball. I am proud to have been able to play as a member of Akatsuki Japan.” -via ESPN / August 2, 2024
Japan national team suffered a major blow ahead of a crucial game against Brazil, as the team’s star, Rui Hachimura, left the camp. According to the statement by the Japan Basketball Federation, Hachimura felt discomfort in his left calf after the game against France. The MRI tests confirmed that Hachimura has a left calf injury (gastrocnemius muscle). -via BasketNews / August 2, 2024
Despite the defeat, this can be considered one of the best performances by the Japanese national team in history. “Yeah, we competed for 45 minutes. I was actually dying out there today; I was so tired. I just came back from a calf injury, but you know, guys like Kawamura, Josh… I mean, after Rui got ejected, Hugh came in, made some great plays, you know, Yoshi, Mako—they were just playing hard defense against them. I’m just so proud of them; I’m so proud of us. We fought for 45 minutes; that’s not easy, but we did it. So, I’m so proud,” former NBA player Watanabe said. -via EuroHoops.net / July 30, 2024