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20 October 2026  11 min read

Kirsty Brown: Embracing the unknown & meeting the GB challenge head on

The conversation ended, but for a moment, she could not quite process what she had just heard.

“I got off the phone and just kind of sat there for a minute, to which my friends asked if I was OK,” the Great Britain forward said. “And I was just a bit dumbstruck honestly, because it was so unexpected but I was so happy to receive the offer and now I’m here.”

The 27-year-old has since begun a new chapter with Tokyo Haneda Vickies, taking her career to a country that had never really featured in her plans as a professional basketball player.

“Japan was never on my radar as a place where I might be able to come and play one day. The country was closed to imports for the first three years of my career, and last year was the first time they’ve opened up again on the women’s side, so to be able to come here in just the second year of imports being back here is really exciting.”

 

 

 

 

 

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It is an opportunity that reflects just how much Brown’s career has changed from the path she once imagined for herself. When she was at college, she had a clear plan for what came next. Now, she is learning to embrace a career in which the next destination is rarely guaranteed.

“Thinking back to my time in college, I was a five-year planner – I knew I wanted to do my undergrad then get a masters and go from there, but now I’m living my life a year at a time and often for months of that year not knowing what’s coming in the next year.

“So I’m proud of how I’ve developed and become accustomed to that and learnt to enjoy it and everything. It’s not a lifestyle for everybody, many struggle with it, but I’m glad that I don’t and that I can find the positives and how to feel comfortable pretty quickly.”

 

 

 

 

 

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That adaptability has already been tested in Japan. Moving to a country where she does not speak the language, joining a new team and adjusting to a different way of life means learning quickly, both on and off the court.

“Coming to a country, not knowing the language, what to expect, nobody speaking English, you’re thrown into the fire a little bit,” she added. “And you have to adjust fairly immediately because you’re straight into practice and having to live your life and do all the things a professional athlete needs to do.

“I had the chance to do some research, the other import on this team was also here last year so I spoke to her and had a lot of great, positive insight about everything to do with being here, and I also played against her a few times in college, so it’s super funny how our journeys have now brought us to be on the same team on the other side of the world.

“There were a few other girls I knew who had played in Japan for different teams, and they all had nothing but good things to say, so it made for a pretty easy decision to be honest.

“We’re expected to compete for a championship, that’s one of the reasons I came here. It’s a very fast game over here, which I love because it fits my strengths on the court and we have a deep roster of 16 girls who are all incredibly talented.

“The level of competition keeps it super fun, and we play back-to-back games every weekend, so that’s going to be a big adjustment, especially when we play such a fast game. I have two teammates who are Olympians, so that level of experience and smarts on the court and getting to learn from them every day is very exciting.”

 

 

 

 

 

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Away from basketball, Brown is embracing the chance to experience a new culture. She has already visited shrines and temples, gone sightseeing and started keeping a list of Japanese words on her phone.

The language barrier has made everyday interactions a learning experience, but she has been encouraged by the effort her team-mates make to communicate.

“The girls are all so funny because we don’t have many English speakers on the team, just one fluent who is like our translator on the court, with everybody else speaking minimal English, but they try so hard, it’s so sweet, and when we have team dinners they try and teach us Japanese and vice versa.

“I have a note in my phone of words I’m learning or want to learn the words for, so I’m definitely trying to get into the culture of it as much as possible.

“My younger self would’ve thought there’d be no way this could happen for me. Professional basketball wasn’t in my mind at all, and I didn’t even consider it until my fifth year of college.

“It’s crazy to think that, for 21 years of my life I wasn’t going to do this as a career, but then one thing happens and I completely changed perspective.”

That moment came after an injury ended her college career in her senior year and left her needing knee surgery. Rather than accepting that basketball was over, Brown realised she was not ready to walk away from the sport.

“I had an injury that ended my college career in my senior year that led to me needing knee surgery and that was when I realized I wasn’t ready to be done with basketball, and certainly not on that note, so here I am.”

Her journey since then has included success on the court, but Brown is candid about the challenges that have accompanied it.

 

 

 

 

 

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Last season, she won four trophies with Kibirkstis in Lithuania, a record that might suggest everything was going well. In reality, she describes it as the most difficult year of her career mentally although appearing for Scotland as part of their 3x3 Commonwealth Games team at Glasgow 2026 was a high point.

“On paper last season looked very successful to people, I suppose,” she said. “I won four trophies, but mentally it was my most challenging year. I didn’t feel confident at all, I was struggling a lot and I started seeing a sports psychologist which has been greatly beneficial.

“One of the things we talked about in my first meeting was setting goals and I said I wanted to build my confidence and be able to make more of an impact, and the Commonwealth Games was my first goal for that, which I think I achieved and I feel good about how I played there, so I feel good about the work I’ve done there. I’m excited to see it carry over into this season, too.”

 

 

 

 

 

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Working with trainer Kenny Hatch over the summer, Brown has focused on improving her shooting mechanics and decision-making at both ends of the floor.

“My offensive mindset throughout my career has always been to get offensive rebounds, set great screens, make hustle plays, do the little things, but I want to shift to be more of a scoring threat and help my team out in that way as well.

“3x3 helped me a lot in that sense because you have to be aggressive in that game and be effective in all areas of your game.

“I think that has been a big focus for me this summer, just to make more of an impact offensively, scoring-wise, but still maintaining good decision making, good judgement, not feeling like I have to force things, and be more selfish, but selfish in a positive way.”

It is another example of Brown approaching her career with intent. She may no longer have a five-year plan mapped out, but she knows where she wants to improve and is prepared to put in the work to get there.

Basketball has also given her an unexpected career, one she had never seriously considered as a young player. Before committing to the professional game, Brown had explored other opportunities within sport, including operations and front-office roles, as well as athletic training.

“I definitely knew I wanted to be in sports, I was doing a lot of research and interviews with people who worked in operations, front office management and things like that. I knew I didn’t want to coach, that’s not something I see myself doing in the future either, but it was between the front office and maybe being an athletic trainer.”

Her own injury ultimately helped her rule out the latter, but the desire to make a difference in sport remains.

“Sports have been a huge part of my life, I’ve played so many sports in so many countries at this point so I know how helpful and important it is for people and I just want to help people have a positive experience. I love talking, too(!), and helping people, so I definitely think that [an operations or front office role] could be something in my future.”

Back to the GB fold

For now, though, the next chapter is unfolding in Japan, where Brown has a championship to pursue, a new culture to explore and another opportunity to develop her game. She will soon turn her attention to Great Britain, who begin the next phase of their EuroBasket 2027 Qualifiers against France in Nantes before hosting Ukraine and Luxembourg.

It is a challenging opening assignment, but one Brown believes GB should embrace.

“I think Savannah said it best. On paper, that’s going to be the most challenging game… playing France in France, so why not do it first and take them head on to start the window.

“We’ll be ready to go, we’ll have the right mindset and do all the best preparation we can heading into the game. We have to bring that energy, the connectedness to every game and leave it all out there if we’re going to qualify for EuroBasket.

“We’re very excited for the challenge and we know what we can do if we come into the game and put our best foot forward.”

It is the kind of mindset that has taken Brown from a college career she thought might be the end of her playing days to a professional opportunity she never saw coming.

She cannot know exactly where basketball will take her next, but she has learned to be comfortable with that uncertainty — and to make the most of wherever she lands.

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