Saki Ijima, who led BNK to win, heads to Hana Bank as the No. 1 Asian quarter!
Jun 06, 2025
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Saki Iijima was selected by Bucheon Hana Bank, which had the first-round pick in the '2025-2026 WKBL Asian Quarter Player Draft' held on the third floor of the Olympic Memorial Youth Center in Tokyo, Japan on the 6th. Initially, Hana Bank was expected to reinforce its guard through this draft, but it chose a stable game management by selecting forward Lee Ijima, who played the same role as Altoran in BNK's offense and defense last season as a typical 'Blue Walker' player. Iijima made headlines because she was the oldest (33) out of a total of 18 players who applied for the draft.
Ten players were confirmed to play on the WKBL stage, including Iijima. Nine people were selected in the Asian quarter draft for the first time last year, an increase of one. In addition, a total of three experienced players who played in the WKBL last year were Iijima, Snagawa Natsuki (BNK), and Hirano Mitsuki (Shinhan Bank).
Following Iijima's choice by Hana Bank, Incheon Shinhan Bank, which has the second-best nomination, chose Mima Louie, the 185-centimeter-tall center. Mima Louie, who has experience representing the Japanese youth, was named high in the practice game held earlier in the day, showing active participation in the fastball. Shinhan Bank, which selected center Rika Tanimura as the No. 1 overall pick last year, chose the center for the second consecutive year, reinforcing the height of the team.
The third-ranked Cheongju KB Stars' choice was point guard Sakai Sara. Sakai, who also played for Aishin Wings in the Japanese W-League last season, proved to be an excellent guard resource by reading from a wide perspective or showing his long-range shooting ability in a practice game. In the case of KB, Park Ji-soo has emerged as the strongest candidate for the championship, joining for the first time in a year, and Sakai is expected to work synergistically with KB's main guard Huh Ye-eun.
The fourth-ranked Asan Woori Bank chose shooting guard Seki Nanami. Seki, who also played for the 3X3 Japanese national team at the 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games, scored as many as 18 points in the practice game, including three 3-pointers, raising expectations for his performance as the main scorer along with veteran Kim Dan-bi.
Yongin Samsung Life Insurance, ranked fifth, will be able to ease the burden on veteran center Bae Hye-yoon by selecting center Miyuki Kawamura. Kawamura, who also played as an adult representative after the Japanese youth representative, was originally expected to receive the first choice, but due to his poor condition, he was somewhat sluggish in the practice game and seems to have fallen to fifth place. Kawamura said, `I'm turning 30 this year, and I'm grateful to have the opportunity to play in Korea again. I will set an example not only with basketball but also with humanity" made an impressive statement.
6th place BNK Sum chose power forward Rina Nakazawa, a mixed-race player. Nakazawa, who also played as a Japanese youth female representative and a 3X3 adult representative, is expected to play a role in the center position, which is pointed out as the only weakness of defending champion BNK.
Following a five-minute break, the second round was played in reverse order with the first round. BNK, the No. 1 player in the second round, selected guards Snaga and Natsuki, who played for Woori Bank last year, expecting synergy with the team's main guard Ahn Hye-ji.
No. 2 Samsung Life Insurance named guard Nanami Hamanashi and No. 3 Woori Bank named shooting guard Ayano Onizuka. Shinhan Bank, ranked fifth, reinforced its guard resources by selecting Hirano Mitsuki, who played for Samsung Life Insurance last year after a long period of consideration. Meanwhile, KB and Hana Bank gave up their second-round picks.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
