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Words. Jason Grisby

Most people might tell you their love of the game started when they first saw MJ take off from the free throw line. Others might remember playing 1-on-1 with pops in the driveway. The latter might even reminisce on their first few shots taken on the old school, Fisher Price basketball hoop. For one young kid from the far East though, the fascination with the game of basketball came from a slightly less conventional place than most: Slam Dunk Manga comic books and Rasheed Wallace.

Straight from Seoul, South Korea, Akira Takahashi is the definition of love and basketball. At the age of twelve, Akira made a conscious decision to retire from the sport of soccer and pursue his newfound interest in round ball athletics. When he first began watching the Detroit Pistons and witnessed the fire and attitude Rasheed Wallace brought to the hardwood, it was a turning point in the way he viewed sports. That very attitude and aggressiveness rubbed off on Takahashi and forever changed his mind set on a player’s approach to a game. At some point between watching Rasheed get T’d up and analyzing the smooth, dynamic flow of the Pistons offense, a certified gym rat had been born. From then on Akira took it upon himself to study the NBA and get his game right. It was the fundamentals and team work of the Detroit Pistons he says elevated his knowledge and concept of the way basketball was played. He soon found himself residing day and night in a nearby parking lot getting up shots on an abandoned neighborhood court.  At home after workouts, he was reading Slam Dunk comics, a popular Japanese graphic novel series based on a character Hanamichi Sakuragi, who after discovering his raw basketball talent, gains popularity and becomes a street ball celebrity. In a way, the premise of this comic book mirrors Takahashi’s beginnings with basketball. Like Hanamichi, Akira would soon take his game to the next level and become a monster on the court.

A few years later, Takahashi landed a spot on the high school basketball squad. Like something straight out of a cliché sports movie, Akira Takashi’s team just might have been the worst team in all of high school basketball. Last place in scoring, last place in defense, last place in wins, and last place in any other category one can fathom, this team had never won a single game in the school’s history.  The first two years pretty much played out as expected, all losses, no wins, and the timeless , “We’ll get ‘em next season fellas” post season locker room speech.  Luckily the stars aligned Akira’s junior year and the school’s team was graced with a new coach. The program witnessed a 360 turnaround while Akira’s own game started to come into fruition. That season, he unleashed the beast leading his team to the regional championship, and finished with the honors of League MVP, Highest League Free-throw Percentage, and the League Rebounding Title. Queue the slow credits and Queen’s “We Are the Champions” playing in the backdrop right? Although it may have played out like a Hollywood script, the heart and soul of the kid leading the team was real. Considering the time and work Takahashi had put in, the recognition was definitely well deserved. With a great senior season follow-up, the basketball guru now had his sights set on higher learning in the hopes of attending a 4 year institution; his next stop, the States.

Now a student at the University of Oregon, Akira Takahashi is without question the poster boy for the student rec center basketball courts. His love of the game has grown with his introduction to the American style of basketball which he admits is more physical, faster and competitive. Takahashi notes that he has a great respect for the game’s ability to unite people from everywhere and loves the competitive atmosphere of the gym. He is pursuing a business degree with a focus in sports marketing as a way to channel his love for the game into a successful career. When it’s all said and done, don’t be surprised if Takahashi is your favorite player’s agent in 10 years .The bottom line is, basketball runs through this guy’s veins.

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