Slam Dunk is a Japanese anime and manga series with a basketball and comedy genre. The manga is written and illustrated by Takehiko Inoue. On October 1, 1990, the manga was first serialized in Shueisha's Weekly Shonen Jump.

Moving on to the anime, the anime adaptation of Slam Dunk first premiered on October 16, 1993, on Animax Asia. The anime is directed by director Nobutaka Nishizawa. The anime series is written by Nobuaki Kishima and Yoshiyuki Suga. The latest Slam Dunk film will be released under the title The First Slam Dunk. Are you curious about the Slam Dunk characters who can inspire you to play basketball? Learn more about them here!

1. Hanamichi Sakuragi

Hanamichi Sakuragi is the main protagonist in the Slam Dunk series. As a Power Forward, he plays for the Shohoku High School Basketball Team. Moreover, Hanamichi is very rude and thinks of himself as the best even though he is actually without any skills. The reason he hates basketball is that the 50th girl who rejected him has fallen in love with a basketball player. Later, he became obsessed with basketball because he fell in love with Haruko Akagi who loves that sport too.

The Japanese version of Hanamichi is voiced by a Japanese actor, voice actor, and singer, Takeshi Kusao. Takeshi works for Aoni Production. Some other anime projects are Dragon Ball Z, Guilty Gear, and Code Geass.

2. Kaede Rukawa

Kaede Rukawa plays as the small forward and ace of the Shohoku High School Basketball Team. He is a very quiet and mature character. Besides basketball, he has a hobby of sleeping. He also wanted to join the NBA and even asked permission from his coach named Mr. Anzai. But Mr. Anzai refused and suggested him to become the best high school player in Japan first. Unfortunately, he has no more friends outside his basketball team.

The Japanese version of the character was provided by a Japanese voice actor named Hikaru Midorikawa.

3. Takenori Akagi

Takenori Akagi is the captain of the Shohoku High School Basketball Team. It was also later revealed that he was Haruko Akagi's older brother. He is often called Gorilla because of his large stature and face that resembles King Kong. In his 3rd year, Hanamichi Sakuragi joins his team. In fact, Hanamichi who is still a beginner in basketball has abilities that develop quickly and provide benefits for his team. The scholarship given to Gorilla was also terminated because he lost to Aiwa.

The Japanese version of Gorilla is voiced by a Japanese voice actor named Kiyoyuki Yanada.

4. Ryota Miyagi

Ryota Miyagi is one of Hanamichi's close friends. Due to some misunderstanding, the two of them have conflicts with each other. Conflict occurs because Ryota thinks Ayako is dating Hanamichi. Both are not lucky in terms of love. Like Hanamichi Sakuragi who was rejected by 50 girls, Ryota was also rejected by 10 girls.

The Japanese version of Ryota Miyagi is played by Japanese actor and voice actor, Yoku Shioya.

5. Hisashi Mitsui

Hisashi Mitsui plays as the Shooting Guard on the Shohoku Basketball Team. Being a good player, he can join any team he wants. But he wants to stay on the Shohoku team because of the winning spirit from the coach, namely Mr. Anzai. During his training session, he got an injury to his knee. Despite having suffered a knee injury, he was able to bring his team to victory through his skills.

The Japanese version of the character is voiced by Japanese actor and voice actor, Ryotaro Okiayu. Ryotaro is affiliated with Aoni Production.

Also Read:

• Hey! Say! JUMP Perform the Second Opening Song for Love All Play
• Ado to Sing 7 Songs for One Piece Film Red, Here Are the Titles!
• Pac-Man Reveals Official Theme Song Music Video for 42nd Anniversary

6. Shinichi Maki

Shinichi Maki is the captain of the Kainan Basketball Team. In addition, he repeatedly became the best player in the region. He was also the MVP at the prefecture level twice. As captain, he is calm and often listens to every member of his team. Similarly, his team members also followed his orders swiftly. Sometimes he gets tough too.

His main skill is to drive and score into the lane while drawing a foul. It was easy for him because of his fairly athletic physical appearance. On his scoring ability, he is rated four times better than Shohoku players. His long reach makes it difficult for the opposing team's Point Guard to stop him.

The Japanese version of this character is voiced by a Japanese voice actor, Hisao Egawa. Hisao works for Aoni Production. Some other anime projects are Naruto Shippuden, Detective Conan, and One Piece.

7. Soichiro Jin

Soichiro Jin plays as a shooting guard for the Kainan Basketball Team. In addition, he can score 3 points easily which even he is also respected by his opponents. When he first joined the team, he wanted to play center. But he is not very fast, which makes him play as shooting guard.

Moreover when Riki Takato told him that he couldn't play center, he started training hard. And he started practicing shooting about 500 times a day to become a good player. Despite being the best player, he has a polite demeanor. Due to his long reach, he can defend very well too.

The Japanese version of this character is voiced by a Japanese actor, voice actor, singer, and narrator, Nobutoshi Hayashi. Nobutoshi is also known as Nobutoshi Canna.

8. Kicchou Fukuda

Kicchou Fukuda is a second year student and basketball player at Ryonan High School. His invincible strength created many rivals in Kanagawa Prefecture for him. Because of his curly hair, Hanamichi Sakuragi often calls him Fukuse. Even his teammates are confident of getting points and drawing a foul. When playing he always does pump fakes to trick his opponents.

The Japanese version of Kicchou Fukuda is played by Japanese voice actor and narrator Hideo Ishikawa. Hideo is affiliated with Aoni Production. Some of his other anime projects include Bleach, One Piece, and Naruto.

9. Akira Sendoh

Akira Sendoh is the ace for Ryonan High School. At Kanagawa, he was one of the top players. In addition, he cares deeply for people of a free and calm character. Whether he's on the court or off the basketball court, he's always smiling. Sendoh was in Tokyo as a junior and came to Kanagawa because of his coach, Taoka. Later, he became the team captain when Jun Uozumi retired from his team. With increasing knowledge and experience, Sendoh changed his playing style in his second year. Moreover, he is a playmaker in his team.

The Japanese version of this character is voiced by Japanese voice actor and narrator Hochu Otsuka. Hochu is affiliated with the talent management company Crazy Box. In this anime world, he is known as the voice actor for famous anime such as Captain Tsubasa, Cowboy Bebop, and Bleach.

10. Haruko Akagi

The excitement of the Slam Dunk story occurs when a girl named Haruko Akagi is involved with Hanamichi Sakuragi. Haruko asks if Hanamichi likes basketball or not. What's more, Hanamichi fell in love with her. After that, Haruko took him to the basketball court and asked him if he could do a slam dunk or not.

To impress Haruko, Hanamichi jumps in to do a Slam Dunk but his head hits the board. By seeing Hanamichi's physical form and abilities, Haruko tells his older brother who is the captain of the basketball team about Hanamichi. The incident led Hanamichi to participate in the basketball team, where he was treated unfairly.

Haruko Akagi is voiced by a Japanese voice actress named Akiko Hiramatsu.

Well, that's the list of 10 Slam Dunk anime characters who enlivened the story of the legendary basketball tournament. Do you think there are any more of your favorite Slam Dunk anime or manga characters that haven't been discussed here? You can share them in the comments

Don’t forget to share the news with your friends! Stay‌ ‌tuned‌ ‌on ‌Dunia‌ ‌Games‌ ‌for‌ ‌more‌ ‌articles‌ ‌about‌ ‌anime‌ ‌and‌ ‌games.‌ ‌Don't‌ ‌forget‌ ‌to‌ ‌follow‌ us‌ ‌on‌‌ ‌‌Facebook‌‌ ‌‌and‌‌ ‌‌Instagram‌.‌ ‌ You‌ ‌can‌ ‌also‌ ‌purchase‌ ‌game‌ ‌vouchers‌ ‌for‌ ‌‌Mobile‌ ‌Legends,‌ ‌Free‌ ‌Fire,‌ ‌Call‌ ‌of‌ ‌Duty‌ ‌Mobile‌,‌ and‌ ‌‌more‌ ‌with‌ ‌interesting‌ ‌deals‌‌ ‌‌only‌ ‌on‌ ‌Dunia‌ ‌Games‌.‌ Check the latest promo from Dunia Games, you can get the info from the Dunia Games App that you can download from duniagames.co.id or dg.life/DGAPK. Download the app now and enjoy the promo!

Also Read >>> Love Live! Nijigasaki High School Idol Club is Asking Fans for Song Title Idea