ODDS and EVENS | JBA Parts Ways with Tom Hovasse Weeks Before 2027 FIBA World Cup Qualifiers

In professional sports, it's been said that coaches are hired to be fired. Leading a national team also has tenuous job security, and Tom Hovasse now joins the long list of unemployed coaches.

On Monday, February 1, the Japan Basketball Association announced that it had terminated men's national team coach Hovasse's contract. A day later, Ryukyu Golden Kings bench boss Dai Oketani, one of the nation's best basketball coaches, was named Hovasse's replacement. Joining Oketani on the new coaching staff are Daisuke "Dice" Yoshimoto and SeaHorses Mikawa sideline supervisor Ryan Richman, both of whom have worked in the NBA as assistants.

Sometimes a shakeup delivers meaningful improvement. Other times, teams regress. Or there's not much difference.

We shall see what the impact of Hovasse's exit and Oketani's hiring will be.

There's a very short amount of time for the national team to get acclimated to their new coach, and vice versa.

Japan, which is ranked 22nd in the world, faces China (February 26) and South Korea (March 1) in 2027 FIBA Basketball World Cup qualifiers in Okinawa City. It's the same city where Oketani's Golden Kings play their B.League home games.

The timing may seem strange to change course. Consider: Japan opened Basketball World Cup qualifying with consecutive wins over Taiwan on November 28 and December 1, 2025 ― 80-73 and 90-64, in Kobe and New Taipei City, respectively.

So why did the Hovasse era end just weeks before Akatsuki Japan's next two Basketball World Cup qualifiers?

"The decision was made due to differences in direction regarding the future strengthening of the national program and is not attributable to any individual responsibility on Hovasse's part," the JBA stated in a news release.

Different Visions for the Team's Future

In other words, it essentially boils down to philosophical differences, real or perceived.

The wording of the statement above is a bit odd, however, in my view. "Future strengthening" is ambiguous. To be stronger in the future, a team must also take meaningful positive steps now. And how far into the future does that statement refer to?

Also, Los Angeles Lakers forward Rui Hachimura, Japan's most prominent basketball player, has been an outspoken critic of Hovasse's training tactics.

How much clout does Hachimura wield within the JBA?

By all accounts, Hachimura and Hovasse had a fractured relationship. But it's the coach's job, not the players' role, to concoct a vision and devise strategies for a team.

Hachimura skipped the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup but played under Hovasse at the 2024 Paris Olympics, where Japan went 0-3. A year later, Japan finished ninth in the 16-nation FIBA Asia Cup without Hachimura.

Don't forget, though, that sans Hachimura, Japan found a way to qualify for the Olympic basketball tourney in 2024, doing so for the first time since 1976. That was a coaching milestone for Hovasse.

Reactions to Hovasse's Dismissal

Yudai Baba, a longtime Japan national team player and a star for the B.League's Nagasaki Velca, reacted to the news of Hovasse's firing on X (formerly Twitter).

Paying tribute to the 59-year-old Hovasse, Baba wrote: "He brought light to the entire Japanese basketball world. … Thank you so much, Tom."

Moving forward, Baba urges his fellow national team players to be united in their mission to improve regardless of who the coach is.

"I know there are various opinions [about Hovasse]," Baba wrote on Monday. "But we players can only move forward with strong resolve. We will continue striving to prove this decision was correct and to make the organization, and the Japanese national team, even better."

Norio Sassa, a Japan men's national team assistant coach, posted a happy photo of himself and Hovasse on Monday on Instagram. Next to the photo, Sassa wrote, "Thank you for letting me be a part of a special journey."

Here's a sampling of fans' remarks on X:

"Since I only know the national team through Tom-san's basketball, it's really sad, but I hope you'll shine again somewhere," one fan wrote.

Another posted the following, "I mean, come on. ... Tom-san is a huge benefactor to Japan's basketball world, right? What's with this cut? He should've been kept on through the World Cup! It's not like [Hachimura's] around anyway."

Leadership Changes Within the JBA

It's worth noting that the man who handpicked Hovasse to lead the men's national team left his post in June 2025. Ex-JBA technical committee chair Tomoya Higashino had considerable influence within the JBA leadership ranks. (He's now employed as president of the B.League's Nagoya Diamond Dolphins.)

It appears in the post-Higashino era that new JBA chief Shinji Shimada, who also serves as the B.League chairman, is working to put his own stamp on the team. The decision to fire Hovasse ― clearly endorsed by Shimada ― is a prime example.

But on Tuesday, Shimada expressed optimism about Oketani's new role with the national team.

"We expect the brilliant achievements Coach Oketani built in the B.League will guide us to even greater heights," the JBA head honcho said. "Under Coach Oketani's leadership, our outstanding coaching and team staff will unite with the Japanese national team players to form the strongest team with the greatest sense of unity, aiming for victory at the Los Angeles Olympics. I am very much looking forward to seeing us grow and evolve daily towards that goal."

*The Japan women's basketball team's players pose with their silver medals after the Tokyo Olympics gold-medal game against the United States at Saitama Super Arena in August 2021.*

Tom Hovasse's Top Achievement

Shimada's JBA predecessor, Yuko Mitsuya, presided over the organization when Hovasse was hired to lead the Japan men. He began that job after closing his four-year stint at the helm of the Japan women's team by leading it to a silver-medal finish at the Tokyo Olympics in August 2021. It was the best-ever result for a Japan basketball team in a major global competition.

That accomplishment endeared Hovasse to sports fans throughout Japan. After the Tokyo Games, he succeeded Argentine Julio Lamas as the men's team's sideline supervisor. And Hovasse became a popular guest on numerous Japanese TV programs, sharing stories about the Tokyo Olympics and ideas about leadership.

When you add up the time Hovasse spent as a Japan women's national team assistant coach, followed by his two head coaching posts, it's 15-plus years of his career.

"I am so grateful to the JBA for giving me this opportunity 10 years ago," the Penn State alumnus said in a statement. "It has been an incredible time, filled with many ups and downs, but it is a journey I would never change. Thank you."

Hovasse then cited some details about that unforgettable journey.

"Thank you to all the fans who have passionately supported our teams, both men and women, for the last 10 years!" he added in the statement. "Your positivity, patience, empathy and understanding are things that I will always remember and carry with me.

"To my staff, I have never been around a more dedicated group. Your love and knowledge of basketball is infectious and your support and friendship have created memories that will last a lifetime. Thank you."

Gratitude for Japan's National Team Players

Hovasse continued: "For all of the players who worked tirelessly to strengthen Japan basketball, it has been an honor to coach all of you.

"Due to your dedication and relentless work, we have accomplished so much over the years. Winning a silver medal in the Tokyo Olympics with the women's team, and coaching the men's team at the World Cup in Okinawa and qualifying for the Paris Olympics are just a few of the highlights that we can all be proud of."

Insights on Oketani

Like Tom Hovasse, Dai Oketani's success in coaching has also been linked to his rapport with players.

Furthermore, Oketani is one of the most successful professional sports coaches of his generation in Japan. He's led five pro basketball franchises ― Oita HeatDevils, Ryukyu, Iwate Big Bulls, Osaka Evessa, and Senda 89ers ― to the playoffs over the past two decades.

Most impressive, the Kyoto native has guided the Golden Kings to a trio of championship-winning seasons, doing so in three different decades during his two stints with the team. In 2008-09 and 2011-12, Ryukyu won bj-league titles under Oketani. During the B.League era, he has led the Golden Kings to four consecutive appearances in the finals and another title in the 2022-23 campaign.

"In observing Dai and talking to him, I feel that he has developed the ability to get the most out of each one of his players, and improve their individual skills," former Arizona State and University of Mississippi head coach Rob Evans told JAPAN Forward in 2022.

"He then molds the individuals into a very cohesive unit," added Evans. "[And] he gets them to believe in themselves and in him."

Evans has followed Oketani's coaching career for decades. The latter was a volunteer assistant on Evans' ASU coaching staff from 1999-2003.

*Golden Kings coach Dai Oketani cuts down one of the nets at Yokohama Arena after his team's title-clinching game in May 2023. (©KYODO)*

Oketani's New Challenge

Now, a new era has begun for the Japan men's national team.

One that follows a period of growth and rising expectations on the global stage.

Three weeks before his national team coaching debut, Oketani outlined his goals.

"Building upon the foundation laid by our predecessors, I aim to work with the players and staff to create a team that consistently competes at the highest level alongside the world's top nations," Oketani said in a statement.

"I will dedicate myself to fighting alongside you and sharing the moments of victory together. [And] I ask for your continued support for the Japan national team."

Author: Ed Odeven

Follow Ed's [Japan Sports Notebook] on Sundays, [Odds and Evens] during the week, and he can be found on X (formerly Twitter) ＠ed_odeven.