Sakuragi Hanamichi, a red-haired juvenile delinquent who entered Kanagawa Prefectural Shohoku High School, was rejected by fifty women during his junior high school years. He hated basketball because the last rejected girl she dumped had a crush on "Oda-kun from the basketball team".

However, Hanamichi is discovered by Akagi Haruko, who calls out to him in the corridor, and who sees how tall, muscular, and athletic he is, and she encourages him to join the basketball club. Hanamichi falls in love with Haruko at first sight and joins the club because of her, despite the fact that he is a complete beginner at basketball. Through steady practice and games, he gradually awakens to the fun of basketball, and his talent quickly blossoms.