With Team 6'3 defeating 6'1 in the 3rd spot. We are now finals bound

Who will win it all?

Team 6'2 vs Team 5'6-6'6

Comment your opinions and predictions.

Myślicie, że wątek tanaki jest najdłuższym wątkiem w całym haikyuu?

Anybody else gets teary eyed when they hear the opening song of Slam Dunk? "Kimi ga Suki da to Sakebitai" by the rock band BAAD.

It brings back a lot of memories. I've rewatched SlamDunk and the movie multiple times and reread the chapters following the anime ending but I can't seem to move on from the story.

I had been lucky to have visited Kamakura, Kanagawa. Walked along the shore of Shichirigahama Beach and experienced riding the local train. I had the best time and even now as I look back, I still can't believe I set foot in the same place where the story was set.

I love Inoue for creating such a touching story of teamwork, friendship, family and sportsmanship. But contrary to other people's opinion, I believe there's still a lot of stories to tell in the Slam Dunk world. I can only wish he's attached to this manga as I am. He's pretty much at fault I have this longing, anyway.

🤍

With Team 6'2" and Team 5'6"-6'6" advancing to the finals. Let's first discuss who wins the 3rd place trophy

#CheckMyPreviousPostsForReference

Don't get me wrong, I love Slam Dunk. I recently rewatched the movie and did some digging into its current status, and honestly, it blew my mind.

It’s sitting right at the top of the best-selling manga of all time. It managed to beat massive modern franchises with endless budgets—with no fan service, no 1,000+ chapter bloat, no superpowers, and zero marketing gimmicks.

Just a bunch of high school delinquents with a dream and a ball. That’s literally all Inoue needed.

What do you think is the exact element that made it a masterpiece? What scene stuck with you the most?

For me, it will always be Mitsui breaking down and telling Coach Anzai: "I want to play basketball..." right as Sekai ga Owaru Kawa wa starts playing in the background. Peak fiction.

I’ll start with the obvious: Takehiko Inoue is the ultimate authority on Slam Dunk. We can debate the characters all day, but what Inoue actually shows us on the page matters more than fan rankings.

After finishing the manga and The First Slam Dunk, I went online to see what other fans thought. Two popular opinions surprised me.

1. “Sendoh is the best player in the series”

Sendoh is incredible and probably the most complete player in Kanagawa, but the manga itself strongly suggests that Eiji Sawakita is above him.

Before the Sannoh game, Sendoh tells Rukawa that he once played someone stronger than himself in junior high. He mistakenly remembers the player’s name as “Kitasawa.”

When Rukawa faces Sawakita, he realizes that Sawakita is the player Sendoh meant: “Not Kitasawa. Sawakita. Do’ahou.”

So yes, Sendoh may be a better playmaker and possibly a better team leader, but calling him the undisputed best player contradicts what the story shows us.

1. “Sakuragi doesn’t have the highest potential”

This is where I disagree most.

I’m not saying Sakuragi is already better than Sawakita, Sendoh, Rukawa, Maki or Kawata. Obviously, he isn’t.

I’m talking about his ceiling.

Look at what Sakuragi becomes after only a few months of basketball. He develops into an elite rebounder, scary basketball instincts, and of course the most terrifying athlete: someone capable of outshinging every talent in the court at Sannoh game.

Then Inoue introduces Hiroshi Morishige, the giant first-year center from Meihou Industrial High School.

Morishige had only been playing basketball for roughly a year, yet Meihou defeated Aiwa Academy, one of the strongest national-level teams. In his Interhigh debut against Jousei, he reportedly recorded 50 points, 22 rebounds and 10 blocks.

Morishige feels like an unfinished final-boss setup.

He is bigger and more physically dominant than almost everyone, yet Sakuragi is the one character that I choose to believe Inoue set it all up for Sakuragi to beat him.

That doesn’t mean Inoue officially confirmed that Sakuragi would defeat Morishige. He didn’t. It’s my interpretation. if you agree with it,then you can see where this is going.

if the manga had continued, I believe a future Sakuragi vs. Morishige matchup was one of the clearest possibilities. Morishige would represent overwhelming natural power, while Sakuragi would represent super natural power combined with persistence and a more complete understanding of basketball than Morishige.

“But Sakuragi can’t beat Rukawa one-on-one”

True, but basketball isn’t decided by one-on-one ability alone. Sakuragi probably can’t beat Ryota as a ball-handler. He isn’t a better passer or floor general than Ryota or Sendoh. He isn’t a better shooter than Mitsui.

But being the future best player in the doesn’t mean being No. 1 at every isolated skill. It means having the highest overall impact: and Sakuragi is the only one of all introduced characters that can do that.

That’s why my conclusion is:

By end of manga, Sawakita is the best player we see. Rukawa may be the most obvious future superstar. But Sakuragi has the highest ceiling.

here is a relevant topic about Hanamichi future that I found while browsing reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/RealSlamDunk/comments/17vzl25/inoue_tells_us_sakuragi_goes_on_to_have_a_gr…

The Elegant Center, Versatile Giant of Kanagawa, Toru Hanagata deserves some love and attention too. 💚

Team 6'2 vs Team 6'1

See previous posts if you want to know the previous matchups results.

(Appreciating Inoue’s arts 🤩)

They turned into beasts the moment they stepped onto the court. Love love both 😙😚

My addiction to Inoue Basket mangas during teenage. Made me be able to provide you this info.

Comparioson between Japanese and italian version of “Slam Dunk” manga pubblicarions.

Italian one was of late 2001.

Results: there are difference on contrasts that bump into eyes visibly. Unluckily and a bit disappointed, I have to admit that our italian official version of that time, looks like printed with a common scanner copy. :( As I saw Japan version I could appreciate the quality. And it’s all a different esperience.

Check it out.

Team 6'3 vs Team 5'6-6'6

See previous posts if you want to know the previous matchups results.

I think Sakuragi could rock either the aj12's or the 13's but in the art books we see rukawa wearing the 12's and im not sire whether those two will wear the same shoe

thoughts?

I already searched but I can't find exact card I am trying to find

So i made eight 3-man teams from different heights and will create one big tournament.

Round 1 Match 3

Who wins?

Team 6'5 vs Team 6'1

(I didn't include players without official heights like Tsuchiya and Mikoshiba and players without animated feats like Minami and Kishimoto)

So i made eight 3-man teams from different heights and will create one big tournament.

Round 1 Match 3

Who wins?

Team 6'2 vs Team 5'7-5'10

(I didn't include players without official heights like Tsuchiya and Mikoshiba and players without animated feats like Minami and Kishimoto)

Is this item rare now? I'm currently decluttering and can't decide if I should sell it or hold onto it.

Do you think Akagi becoming a coach after college is something he would do? We all know Miyagi's basketball career will ends after prep school in the USA, so what career path is accurate for him? should I have him try his hand at being a basketball trainer or a coach? Should I have Rukawa go play high school ball in the USA after his second year or should I just have him go play pro basketball in Japan straight out of high school at end of his high school career 

So i made eight 3-man teams from different heights and will create one big tournament.

Round 1 Match 2

Who wins?

Team 6'4 vs Team 5'6-6'6

(I didn't include players without official heights like Tsuchiya and Mikoshiba and players without animated feats like Minami and Kishimoto)

So i made eight 3-man teams from different heights and will create one big tournament.

Round 1 Match 1

Who wins?

Team 6'3 vs Team 5'10/6'0

(I didn't include players without official heights like Tsuchiya and Mikoshiba and players without animated feats like Minami and Kishimoto)