Masaaki Nakatani.
Head coach and team supervisor of the basketball club at Shutoku, one of the Three Kings.
He was younger than Harasawa, 39 years old this year. He took over Shutoku's reins not long after retiring.
Although Shutoku was called one of the Three Kings of Tokyo alongside Seiho and Senshinkan...
Since Nakatani took over Shutoku, they began to reign above the other two kings.
During his years coaching Shutoku, they consistently occupied a qualification spot for the National Tournament.
Senshinkan and Seiho had to compete with Tōō for the remaining two.
Aside from his coaching ability, this was also related to his iron-fisted approach.
He strictly demanded that every player at Shutoku, whether substitute, regular, or even Ace...
Must put the team first.
Every player needed to be like a gear, keeping the massive machine of Shutoku running normally.
He didn't like players acting on their own initiative; he was a completely different type of coach from Harasawa.
"I guess that guy Harasawa must have promised you the power to play freely. That's probably something many players dream of."
"But regrettably, Yuuto, I will tell you directly: at Shutoku, you won't possess that much freedom."
Masaaki Nakatani's expression was as meticulous as his coaching style.
He looked at Yuuto seriously and said, "Giving players enough freedom—to put it nicely, it's giving players more chances to display their talents. But in my view, that's just a lazy excuse for the coach not wanting to take responsibility."
"What plans do you have for your future?"
Hearing this, Yuuto raised his eyes.
Among so many coaches, Nakatani could be said to be the one he crossed off from the start.
He needed enough freedom and wouldn't play strictly according to tactics. Yet Nakatani actually talked about future plans.
From this aspect, Nakatani was a good coach; he didn't just hope to win, but also cared about the players' future.
"Future plans?" Yuuto thought for a moment and said, "I'll probably choose a high school as a springboard. After that, I hope to go play in the NCAA."
NCAA?
Nakatani still underestimated Yuuto's ambition.
He originally thought Yuuto would use a high school powerhouse as a springboard, then enter a local professional club to start his career.
But Yuuto's ambition was greater.
He planned to start his professional career directly from the US, obtaining an NBA entry ticket through the NCAA.
However...
"If anyone else said this, I would treat it as a joke. But if it's you, you indeed have the qualifications."
"So..."
"So you should come to Shutoku even more."
Nakatani had already seen that Yuuto wasn't very interested in Shutoku.
But he felt Yuuto should come to Shutoku to accept his guidance even more.
"The professional world is different, Yuuto. Don't equate professional basketball with amateur basketball."
"On the professional court, you can't easily get 40 or 50 points like now. That's impossible."
"To put up consistent performances and earn stable playing time, the first thing you must do is strictly abide by the coach's strategic deployment, using the simplest, most energy-saving ways to score and win his trust."
Nakatani appreciated Yuuto's playing style very much.
No superfluous movements—clean, tidy, effective.
This was a genius born for basketball!
He didn't want to miss such a genius!
"I know what you're thinking. You think as long as you're strong enough, you can ignore tactics and use individual ability to score."
"Sometimes you might be able to do it, but that's not a long-term plan. The basketball world doesn't lack geniuses. Geniuses like you..."
Nakatani said a lot, even pointing out better choices Yuuto could have made at certain moments in the match against Teiko.
However, Yuuto's expression still didn't change much.
Helpless, Nakatani could only actively make a concession.
"If you insist, we can do this."
"You come to Shutoku, and I allow you to be 'willful five times' per game. You will get five chances to act recklessly at Shutoku."
Five times—two more than Midorima's 3 willful shots.
One could see that Nakatani really appreciated Yuuto.
This was his biggest concession.
"This way, you have the opportunity to prove who is correct."
He actually didn't like the NBA at all.
He believed one couldn't learn much useful knowledge from the NBA.
It was all a bunch of physically gifted geniuses flying around; what could be learned from that?
To put it bluntly, the Asian race isn't suited for that style of play.
On the contrary, Nakatani liked watching European leagues.
That was the correct way to play basketball.
Star players still needed to shoulder the team's scoring burden, but they all took reasonable shots under reasonable tactical arrangements.
Nakatani was confident enough that Yuuto could play even more threateningly at Shutoku.
He would use his tactics and personnel adjustments to create excellent opportunities for Yuuto.
In this way, this player who was infinitely close to perfection would definitely become even more perfect.
Good tactics also need good players to execute them.
The two do not conflict.
If the tactic succeeds and a good opportunity appears but the player doesn't seize it, that's the player's problem.
But if the tactic doesn't succeed and doesn't create opportunities for the player, that's the coach's problem.
He was very sincere, having arranged the tactics in advance.
"I hope you can give Shutoku a chance. We have Taisuke Otsubo, one of the best centers in the country. He can provide you with the most solid screens..."
After a spiel, Yuuto still didn't nod in the end.
"I only want to win the upcoming match now. Wait until I get the championship, then I'll give you an answer."
After the conversation, Yuuto admitted his view of Nakatani had indeed changed.
He walked away without any hesitation.
Watching his back as he left, Nakatani sighed.
He felt there was a high probability Yuuto wouldn't choose Shutoku because he really couldn't provide Yuuto with that much freedom.
On the other side.
The coach was persuading Yuuto, saying, "Nakatani is right. More targeted tactics can bring out a player's strengths better."
"Shutoku is a traditional powerhouse. They stand out every year in the fiercely competitive Tokyo area not just because of Nakatani, but also due to the continuous influx of talent."
The attraction of a powerhouse—the old coach had experienced it this year.
Last year they rose suddenly, and this year they immediately attracted a large number of players.
Once the number of people in the basketball club increased, the probability of geniuses appearing rose, and the lineup depth became solid.
"I didn't say he was wrong; I just don't know how to choose for the time being."
"Coach, if you were me, how would you choose?"
How to choose?
The old coach expressed that he had never encountered such good treatment. Back when he played, he licked faces to join teams; he had never been invited.
Asking him to choose, he really didn't know for a moment.
This could affect Yuuto's future basketball path.
It should be treated with caution.
...
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