Joji Takeuchi

{{short description|Japanese basketball player}}

{{Infobox basketball biography

| name = Joji Takeuchi

| image = Joji Takeuchi (cropped).jpg

| caption =

| position = Power forward / Center

| height_ft = 6

| height_in = 9

| weight_lb = 220

| team = Osaka Evessa

| league = B.League

| number = 15

| nationality = Japanese

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1985|1|29|mf=y}}

| birth_place = Suita, Osaka, Japan

| high_school = Rakunan

| college = Tokai University

| draft_year =

| career_start = 2007

| career_end =

| years1 = 2007–2016

| team1 = Hitachi SunRockers

| years2 = 2016–2021

| team2 = Alvark Tokyo

| years3 = 2021–present

| team3 = Osaka Evessa

| highlights = * FIBA Asia Champions Cup champion (2019)

• 2× B.League champion (2018, 2019)
• NBL All-Star (2013)

| medaltemplates = {{MedalSport | Men's basketball }}

{{MedalCountry | {{JPN}} }}

{{MedalCompetition | East Asian Games }}

{{MedalBronze | 2009 Hong Kong | Team competition }}

{{MedalCompetition | Asian Games }}

{{MedalBronze | 2014 South Korea | Team competition }}

{{MedalCompetition|FIBA Asia Champions Cup}}

{{MedalSilver | 2018 Thailand|Team}}

{{MedalGold | 2019 Thailand|Team}}

}}

Joji Takeuchi (竹内 譲次、born January 29, 1985, in Suita, Osaka, Japan) is a Japanese professional basketball player. He plays for the Osaka Evessa of the B.League.

Takeuchi also is a member of the Japan national basketball team, playing for the team in the 2006 FIBA World Championship and both the FIBA Asia Championship 2007 and FIBA Asia Championship 2009.[http://china2009.fiba.com/pages/eng/fe/09/fascm/player/p/pid/57681/sid/7038/tid/309/profile.html Player Profile] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100115001236/http://china2009.fiba.com/pages/eng/fe/09/fascm/player/p/pid/57681/sid/7038/tid/309/profile.html |date=2010-01-15 }} at FIBA.com Takeuchi's twin brother Kosuke is also a member of the Japanese national basketball team.[http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/sk20090115a1.html Japan Times]: 'Twin Towers' look to rise even higher.

As a 21-year-old, Takeuchi averaged 6.2 points and 5.2 rebounds per game for the host Japanese at the 2006 FIBA World Championship.[https://web.archive.org/web/20131125031729/http://archive.fiba.com/pages/eng/fa/player/p/pid/57681/sid/3507/tid/309/_/2006_FIBA_World_Championship/index.html FIBA Archive] Takeuchi has earned a bigger role with the Japanese team over the past four years; his best tournament performance to date was at the FIBA Asia Championship 2009, in which he averaged 9.8 points and 7.2 rebounds per game.{{Cite web |url=http://china2009.fiba.com/pages/eng/fe/09/fascm/player/p/pid/57681/sid/7038/tid/309/profile.html |title=FIBA Player Profile |access-date=2009-12-29 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100115001236/http://china2009.fiba.com/pages/eng/fe/09/fascm/player/p/pid/57681/sid/7038/tid/309/profile.html |archive-date=2010-01-15 |url-status=dead }} Despite his performance, Japan stumbled to a disappointing tenth-place finish, its worst ever performance in 24 FIBA Asia Championship appearances.

Takeuchi played professionally with the Hitachi SunRockers of the JBL Super League. In the 2009–10 season, Takeuchi entered the month-long winter break averaging 16.1 points and 9.4 rebounds per game for the third-place Seahorses.[http://www.asia-basket.com/player.asp?Cntry=JPN&PlayerID=56590 Joji Takeuchi] at asia-basket.com He was also named to the JBL All-Star Game as the leading power forward vote-getter for the East.[http://www.asia-basket.com/Japan/basketball-League-JBL-Pro_2009-2010.asp asia-basket.com] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100117143627/http://www.asia-basket.com/Japan/basketball-League-JBL-Pro_2009-2010.asp |date=2010-01-17 }}: "JBL All-Star game rosters set" (December 6, 2009)