Here's How The First Slam Dunk Movie Puts a Spin on the OG Characters

(SPOT.ph) After more than a decade, the well-loved basketball anime finally got its very first movie: The First Slam Dunk. Wondering what all the buzz is about or whether it’s worth reliving the nostalgia? Get to know the Shohoku team and how the new movie takes their characters through another story, and who they are apart from their sports-related stints.

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The First Slam Dunk Cast vs Manga Inside and Outside the Court

Ryota Miyagi

Ryota Miyagi is the team’s point guard. One of the main reasons that he joined the basketball squad was his passion for the sport. Aside from that, he is also interested in Ayako, the team manager, who he sees as his true love. Miyagi picked Shohoku mainly because of coach Anzai despite the insistence of Ryonan's coach for him to join their basketball team instead (Ryonan is one of their rival teams during the Inter-High).

The movie does a great job of elaborating more about his background, one that’s barely tackled in the OG series.

Even though Miyagi is the shortest player, as highlighted in the anime series and the movie, he has the fastest reaction time. He possesses an amazing skill for dribbling, and when combined with his quickness, he can break down the opposition's defense and can make no-look passes to his teammates.

He is extremely proficient in using his talent, and his steals are amazing. Miyagi is an excellent point guard with a keen eye for the game. He also has the ability to locate his teammates without actively looking for them using sight. He serves as the team's strategist as well.

Watch the movie to learn more about why he chose a specific jersey number.

Takenori Akagi

The Shohoku basketball team's captain and center is Takenori Akagi. He is also the older brother of Haruko Akagi, Hanamichi Sakuragi’s love interest. He enforces strict rules for his players, especially Sakuragi.

He’s also a no-nonsense type of guy. In fact, he is quite serious about showing respect for the elderly, as some of the other members noted. He is diligent and manages his time well for both academics and basketball.

He and Kiminobu Kogure are the only players with grades high enough to tutor their colleagues who are more focused on the game than anything else.

Hanamichi Sakuragi

The primary protagonist of the OG Slam Dunk series is Hanamichi Sakuragi. He is Shohoku’s power forward. Sakuragi exhibits many negative traits throughout the manga, like being immature, noisy, cocky, and arrogant. When we first meet him, he thinks of himself as a "genius," although he hasn't acquired any talents—at least during the early parts of his basketball stint.

Since his rebounding skills had only recently begun to emerge, he also took satisfaction in referring to himself as the "Rebound King," a claim that people around him initially saw as a joke but eventually accepted as legit because of how he developed with each game he played with the team. Sakuragi exhibits great perseverance and desire, allowing him to compensate for his shortcomings on and off the court.

Kaede Rukawa

Shohoku High's star player and small forward is Kaede Rukawa. Rukawa is withdrawn, silent, collected, egotistical, callous, and extremely chill to the point of laziness. If you think about it, basketball is the only thing he’s not lazy about.

He typically spends his off-court time in class or dozing off on the Shohoku building's roof. He even cycles when asleep. Somehow, it became an unwritten rule not to wake Rukawa up from a nap because he tends to beat up whoever dares do it.

Speaking of beating up, he's been in plenty of brawls off the court. He prefers to use wrist locks before starting a fistfight since he often counterpunches.

Rukawa struggles to accept defeat when it comes to basketball. His ultimate ambition is to surpass all other high school athletes in Japan.

Kiminobu Kogure

Yup, the well-loved boy labo with the meme-worthy one-week airtime for that crucial three-point shot is also in the movie! He’s the vice-captain of Shohoku and Akagi’s close friend since middle school. Like Akagi, he has been in the basketball team for three years.

He consistently strives to maximize Hanamichi's abilities with the help of Miyagi and Ayako. He is kind, compassionate, and generally amiable. When necessary, he demonstrates great fortitude and ruthless honesty.

Hisashi Mitsui

Hisashi Mitsui is the team’s shooting guard. Although he has been out for some time due to a knee injury during his first year in Shohoku, he still possesses the talent to lead the team to victory.

He had the option to enroll in higher-ranked schools like Ryonan, but he chose Shohoku because of Coach Mitsuyoshi Anzai. After all, coach Anzai motivated him in the final moments of the Junior High competition, and that core moment has of course stuck with him.