Ranker Game
“I want to be the best. In basketball.” Sō Kamino once stood at the top of Japan’s high school basketball world. Determined to go pro, he headed to the U.S. to chase his NBA dreams at a prestigious university. For a while, it all went well—until two years later, he’s found on the grimy courts of New York, reduced to playing shady streetball for gambling money. Why did he drop out? What led to his downfall? The once-bright star is now a shadow of his former self. One day, after a back-alley match, he’s approached by the mafia with an unusual offer: “Make us money with your basketball.” He receives an invitation to a mysterious underground tournament: Ranker Game: BASKETBALL SHOW —a high-stakes 3v3 competition where everything is on the line. Kamino’s first mission? Throw the match. Lose on purpose. But just as he begins sabotaging the game, a mysterious man bursts onto the court and whispers in his ear: “You’ve been set up. Lose, and you’ll be killed. Win, and they’ll kill you anyway. But if you make a deal with me… I might save you.” Now trapped in a deadly game, Kamino must decide—play by their rules, or rewrite them. His fate, and his comeback, begins here.
