There are no easy games when Dai Oketani and Honoo Hamaguchi are on opposite benches.
Their familiarity with each other¡¯s coaching acumen and their competitive spirits fuel this ongoing rivalry.
After working in opposite conferences over the past few years ¡ª with Oketani elevating the Eastern Conference¡¯s Iwate Big Bulls to a title contender and Hamaguchi guiding the Kyoto Hannaryz to sustained excellence in the Western Conference ¡ª they renewed their rivalry as two Kansai-based coaches this season, supervising a pair of title-chasing West teams. (And credit Oketani and the team¡¯s advisory coach, Bill Cartwright, for transforming the Osaka Evessa into a legitimate contender in their first season as the leadership tandem with the club.)
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