Bravethunders hope to start with a bang
By James Kon

Japanese champion basketball team, the Toshiba Bravethunders arrived with a dash of confidence of doing well in the 5th Shell Rimula Cup - Brunei Basketball Tournament, which starts today at the National Indoor Stadium.

Bravethunders who were crowned the champions of Japan Super League (Japan's most prestigious basketball league) last season will open their campaign against the might of PBA All-Stars after the opening ceremony today and hoped to get off to a flying start.

Taking on some of Philippines' top cagers in the first game might be an uphill battle for the Japanese champions but head coach Nitsunori Kamata is not too worried.

Kamata said: "We don't have much information on our opponents (PBA All-Stars) but we will play our usual game as the champions of Japan Super League."

Kamata said his team didn't have much training as the new season hasn't started yet.

Boosted by the presence of three imports namely No.5 Fredrick Lewis, No.6 Tom Kleinschmidst and No.33 Song Yanxin, the Japanese outfit will surely be one of the serious title contenders for this year's title.

Kamata concluded by saying that it's an honour to be the first Japanese team to take part in the competition and he hoped that his team would get a good result from the tournament.

Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin