By Sean Miyaguchi,
During their unexpected run to the gold-medal game at the Tokyo Olympics, the Japanese women's basketball team won over a slew of new fans, perhaps none more significant than U.S. greats Diana Taurasi and Sue Bird.
After claiming their fifth Olympic gold for the United States on Sunday, the veteran backcourt leaders declared their admiration for Japan's first-ever basketball medal winners.
Taurasi, who appeared at the post-game press conference with champagne bottle in hand, said the silver-medal winning team has shown Japan is "in a good spot" with women's basketball.
"This team can play. We watched every single game. You can't help but cheer for this team," Taurasi said.
"They play hard, they play together, and they play a style of basketball that makes you want to watch. The future is really bright for Japanese basketball."
The 39-year-old star of the WNBA's Phoenix Mercury said the underdog Japanese team had "made basketball fun again" during its run through the group and knockout stages that ended with the 90-75 loss to the U.S. behind closed doors at Saitama Super Arena.
"It's really enjoyable to watch a team that plays together, that isn't fazed by any moment and we were lucky that there weren't 30,000 Japanese fans in that arena today, because it could have been a different ballgame," Taurasi said.
Taurasi singled out guard Rui Machida, who dished a record 18 assists in Japan's semifinal win over France, for special praise.
"We knew if Rui had come locked in and ready to go, we could lose," she said.
Bird, who announced her retirement from international basketball after the game, said Japan had been a worthy opponent for a U.S. juggernaut that has conquered every team in its path.
"They earned the silver medal, and they just test you for 40 minutes. There's no letup with them. They're tough to play against and they're really fun to watch," the 40-year-old Bird said.
Bird said forward Ramu Tokashiki, her former teammate at the WNBA's Seattle Storm, will make Japan even more of a threat when she returns from an ACL injury that ruled her out of the Olympics.
"I've seen her firsthand, she would give them a whole other layer...with her size and her ability shooting. Japan is going to be a problem. They already are a problem, clearly," she said.
