Shimane Susanoo Magic (島根スサノオマジック) is a Japanese professional basketball team in Japan's top-tier basketball competition, the

B.League The B.League is a professional men's basketball league that began in Japan in September 2016. The league is operated by the Japan Professional Basketball League and was formed as a result of a merger between the National Basketball League that ...

. The team is based in

Shimane Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Shimane Prefecture is the second-least populous prefecture of Japan at 665,205 (February 1, 2021) and has a geographic area of 6,708.26 km2. Shimane Prefecture borders Yamag ...

with its home arena in

Matsue City is the capital city of Shimane Prefecture, Japan, located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. The city has an estimated population of 202,008 (February 1, 2021) following the merger with Higashiizumo from Yatsuka District. Matsue is located at ...

, but with a focus on playing games in the entire region. The head coach was

Željko Pavličević Željko Pavličević (born 26 March 1951) is a Croatian professional basketball coach and former player. He currently serves as the head coach for ASEAN Basketball League Eastern Long Lions. Early life Pavličević began playing basketball in 19 ...

who coached Japan at the World Championships in 2006. He was appointed in May 2010.

Introduction

The club became a member of the

bj league The was a professional basketball league in Japan that began in November 2005 as a six-team league. The league was operated as a competitor to the established Japan Basketball League, Japan Super League which was run by the Japan Basketball Ass ...

in 2010, becoming the first professional basketball team in the

Sanin region The is an area in the southwest of Honshū, the main island of Japan. It consists of the northern part of the Chūgoku region, facing the Sea of Japan. Etymology The name San'in in the Japanese language is formed from two kanji characters. ...

to compete in top-tier competition, and second of any professional sports team after

Gainare Tottori are a Japanese football club, based in Tottori, Tottori. They play in the J3 League. Their team colour is green. Their team name ''Gainare'' derives from the Tottori dialect word ''gaina'' meaning "great" and Italian ''sperare'' meaning "to h ...

. The team's name comes from the mythical legend of early Izumo (the story of

Susanoo __FORCETOC__ Susanoo (; historical orthography: , ) is a in Japanese mythology. The younger brother of Amaterasu, goddess of the sun and mythical ancestress of the Japanese imperial line, he is a multifaceted deity with contradictory charac ...

slaying the

Yamata no Orochi , or simply , is a legendary eight-headed and eight-tailed Japanese dragon/ serpent. Mythology Yamata no Orochi legends are originally recorded in two ancient texts about Japanese mythology and history. The 712 AD transcribes this dragon nam ...

), and the English word magic, representing the imagery of the myths of the region as well as the team itself. The team colours are blue, black and silver which also represent the Shimane prefecture. The blue evokes images of

Lake Shinji is a lake A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, lik ...

and the

Sea of Japan The Sea of Japan is the marginal sea between the Japanese archipelago, Sakhalin, the Korean Peninsula, and the mainland of the Russian Far East. The Japanese archipelago separates the sea from the Pacific Ocean. Like the Mediterranean Sea, it h ...

, silver represents the historic

Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine The was an underground silver mine in the city of Ōda, in Shimane Prefecture on the main island of Honshu, Japan. It was the largest silver mine in Japanese history. It was active for almost four hundred years, from its discovery in 1526 to its ...

and black represents the black pine forests found throughout the region. The team logo is a combination of clouds and an Orochi-like dragon holding a basketball, expressing a sense of strength and speed.

History

Basketball has long been a popular sport among young people in the Matsue area with the organisation of Mini Basketball (a basketball competition played by elementary school children) becoming popular in Matsue. Historically, Matsue area has had success in athletic meets, Matsue Technical High School winning at interscholastic athletic meets in 1960 and 1968. Both Japan men's and women's basketball have had strong performing players from Matsue region, the region being known as the "Kingdom of Basketball" After an unsuccessful attempt for application to join the bj league in 2007, in August 2009 it was officially announced that Shimane would have a team in the bj league becoming in the 2010/11 season. In November 2009, the decision was made by the public for the team name to be Shimane Susanoo Magic. University students born in Matsue were invited to decide upon the team's proposed logo and proposed designs for the team mascot were received from all over the country. The winning proposal was "Susatama-kun"

Roster

Notable players

Coaches

(2010–13) *

Vlaikidis Vlasios Vlaikidis Vlasios (born September 7, 1965) is a Greek professional basketball coach. He is the former head coach of the Shimane Susanoo Magic in the Japanese B.League. Head coaching record , - , style="text-align:left;", Iwate Big Bulls T ...

(2013–14) *

Reggie Hanson Reggie Hanson (born October 6, 1968) is an American former professional basketball player who played for the Boston Celtics of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He is a former assistant coach for the University of South Florida Bulls men ...

(2014) *

Tomohiro Moriyama is the Head coach of the Fukushima Firebonds in the Japanese B.League. Head coaching record , - , style="text-align:left;", Shimane Susanoo Magic , style="text-align:left;", 2014-15 , 40, , 21, , 19, , , , style="text-align:center;", 6th ...

Michael Katsuhisa is a former professional basketball player and the head coach of the Shinshu Brave Warriors in the Japanese B.League. Early life Katsuhisa was born in Tokyo to a Japanese father and American mother. He attended Nishimachi International School ...

(2015–17) * Yukinori Suzuki * Paul Henare

Arenas

Matsue City General Gymnasium Matsue City General Gymnasium is an arena in Matsue, Shimane, Japan. It is the home arena of the Shimane Susanoo Magic of the B.League The B.League is a professional men's basketball league that began in Japan in September 2016. The league i ...

Kashima General Gymnasium Kashima General Gymnasium is an arena in Matsue, Shimane is the capital city of Shimane Prefecture, Japan, located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. The city has an estimated population of 202,008 (February 1, 2021) following the merger with ...

Kami Arena Kami Arena is an arena in Izumo, Shimane, Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, wh ...

Yonago Industrial Gymnasium Yonago Industrial Gymnasium is an arena in Yonago, Tottori, Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by ...

Performance

External links

References

{{Bandai Namco Holdings Basketball teams in Japan Basketball teams established in 2009 2009 establishments in Japan