Y13 [EN]: Chapter 119

Y13-119 2010-2011 Playoff Round 1 =========================================================================

After Youngjae’s provocative gesture, Portland refocused and concentrated on playing their own game. Although the opponent tried to bait them by pointing at the rim, Youngjae’s declared ‘scoring bombardment’ was unlikely to happen against Portland’s perimeter defense.

[Andre Miller, driving from the wing to the rim, collides with Nowitzki at the high post!]

Andre Miller had some of the best post-up skills among point guards in history, often giving his matchups trouble. However, facing a big man like Nowitzki, he didn’t dare to post up recklessly.

Thump!

[Ah, Andre Miller with a good pass. LaMarcus Aldridge, who had been battling Chandler for position in the paint, receives it! Aldridge uses a post-up to push Chandler!]

Aldridge, perhaps cautious after missing his previous shot, posted up more carefully and created space by pushing Chandler.

[Aldridge! Turns and shoots a hook shot!]

Clang!

[LaMarcus Aldridge misses his first two shots!]

[Oh! When did he cut to the basket?! Gerald Wallace!]

As the ball bounced off the rim, Gerald Wallace, not Chandler, Nowitzki, or his defender Shawn Marion, was positioned for the rebound. Shawn Marion had lost track of Gerald Wallace, who had been running for the rebound from the three-point line as soon as Aldridge shot. In the end, Gerald Wallace snatched the falling ball and easily tipped it in.

“Hey! Pay attention to your man!”

Chandler spoke out of frustration, not anger, because Marion was capable but kept missing these plays. Marion nodded with a slightly stiff expression in response.

[Ah, Gerald Wallace is playing well today. Put-back dunk and tip-in. Somehow, Wallace is a difficult player to stop!]

[It seems Shawn Marion’s concentration has slipped a bit. He wouldn’t normally miss that situation, but Coach Carlisle continues to trust Marion. He seems to believe that the veteran player will realize it himself.]

[Now! Dallas quickly resumes the game as soon as Wallace’s tip-in goes in! Jason Kidd receives the ball and crosses the half-court line in just 2 seconds, and the rest of the players quickly follow!]

Jason Kidd glanced at Wesley Matthews, who was guarding him, and faked a move to go over Tyson Chandler’s screen to break to the left.

[Oh! Tyson Chandler and Jason Kidd! Great movement!]

[As Kidd pretends to use Chandler’s screen, Chandler subtly blocks Matthews as if they had planned it, then immediately cuts to the rim. Kidd passes the ball to Nowitzki on the opposite wing! Marcus Camby gets tangled in Matthews’ path, and the two players end up tangled without guarding anyone!]

As soon as Nowitzki received the ball, he blatantly looked at Chandler as if to pass, holding the ball with both hands in a passing stance.

Whoosh!!

“?!!”

Andre Miller, who was focused on guarding the right side, had to leave his assignment to guard Tyson Chandler, and Nowitzki knew very well that Andre Miller would move that way.

[Youngjae Yoon!! Nowitzki throws an amazing laser pass to Youngjae Yoon, who is unguarded!]

[Youngjae Yoon, shoots a three-pointer!]

Youngjae shot the three-pointer comfortably, as if he were practicing alone.

Swish-

[BANG!!]

[Haha! Is the early game a battle between Gerald Wallace and Youngjae Yoon, G-Force vs. Y13?! The score is 4:5! Gerald Wallace scores 4 points, and Youngjae Yoon scores 5 points, maintaining a seesaw game in the early stages!]

The game then proceeded as a showdown between Gerald Wallace and Yoon Youngjae. The two players were responsible for most of their team’s points.

[Andre Miller receives Aldridge’s screen and tries to shake off Youngjae Yoon, but it’s not enough! Youngjae Yoon’s defense, smoothly slipping over the screen, puts pressure on Andre Miller! The shot clock is now down to 3 seconds!]

Andre Miller, as if he had no choice, chewed his lower lip and jumped up to shoot a tough shot. But Youngjae also jumped up to block it, extending his hand into the shooting path, and Miller had all sorts of thoughts racing through his head in that instant.

“Hey!!”

At that moment, a loud voice came from behind, and Miller, thinking he had nothing to lose, twisted his body and threw the ball towards the voice.

[Again, Shawn Marion! Shawn Marion loses Gerald Wallace!]

[Gerald Wallace, receives the ball from Andre Miller and soars! Shawn Marion chases after him but is completely late!]

Swish!

Wow!!!

Rose Garden [Portland Trail Blazers’ home arena] was in an uproar. Thanks to Gerald Wallace’s insane performance, the score widened to 7-5, and then to 9-5 with another score from Gerald Wallace.

[Wesley Matthews, three-pointer from the side!]

Clang-

[It misses! Youngjae Yoon’s defense was very good. Good off-the-ball movement, and he chased Wesley Matthews, who is famous for his three-pointers, to the end, forcing him to take a difficult shot!]

[The rebound goes to Tyson Chandler. Chandler passes the ball to Kidd.]

Kidd, crossing the half-court line again, was deep in thought about how to close the point gap. In the previous possessions, Nowitzki’s signature one-legged fadeaway ended in a miss, and Shawn Marion’s floater was blocked by Gerald Wallace.

‘Then.’

Kidd was a player who knew that when you feed someone, you have to feed them decisively. Seeing Youngjae slowly entering the low post from the side, Kidd bounced the ball to Youngjae.

[Wesley Matthews is breached in an instant! And Youngjae Yoon, who properly targeted that gap, penetrates to the low post! A battle between Gerald Wallace and Youngjae Yoon!]

Youngjae received the ball with his back to Wallace because the pass was a bounce pass. Youngjae knew very well that he could never push Wallace with strength, so he immediately changed from a post-up position to a face-up, leaning forward as if to drive in, taking a couple of steps forward. Wallace naturally stepped back to block Youngjae’s advance, and Youngjae did not miss that gap.

[Oh! Step-back! An incredibly fast step-back! How many players can do that kind of step-back in that narrow space! And then he shoots a jumper!]

Wallace rushed forward with a flustered expression and reached out his hand, but Youngjae, who has a quick shooting release, could not be blocked by Wallace’s shot contest.

Swish-

[BANG!! Y13!!]

[This is really interesting. Gerald Wallace has 9 points with 4/4 shooting, and Youngjae Yoon also has 7 points with 3/3 shooting. The two players are responsible for all of today’s points!]

[Both teams seem determined. Dallas and Portland! The early momentum will depend on whose hand cools down first! Both players have a very good shooting touch. The condition of these players, as well as their teammates, will be an important factor in today’s game.]

The game between the two teams, which had been a seesaw battle until the middle of the first quarter, had widened to 17-9 due to Portland’s consecutive offensive successes and Dallas’s consecutive offensive failures. In Portland’s case, other players’ shooting touch also started to come alive, but Nowitzki’s silence in mid-range shooting (0/3), Jason Kidd’s pass-oriented play, and Shawn Marion’s decline in game concentration combined to prevent the gap from narrowing, no matter how hard Youngjae and Chandler struggled.

“What are you doing now?”

In the end, Coach Carlisle had no choice but to make harsh remarks during the timeout. The players did not say anything, with dismal expressions on their faces, and did not argue with Carlisle’s words.

“Not only did you give up 14 points to Gerald Wallace, but you also committed an and-one foul on LaMarcus Aldridge, resulting in a 3-point play. Shawn Marion, is something wrong today? I can’t tell if you’re playing the game or thinking about something else.”

Marion could only lower his head with an apologetic face, unable to say anything.

“If your shooting touch isn’t good, shouldn’t you be stopping the opponent’s offense on defense and taking possession! Chandler, your defensive awareness is also the worst today. Shawn Marion and you didn’t have your signals right, and you gave up the basket to Gerald Wallace defenselessly twice. Instead of having someone go and block him, Wallace should be double-teamed by two people so that he can never penetrate under the rim.”

“Understood.”

Chandler could not avoid the harsh words.

“And Yoon.”

“Yes.”

“You’re doing well. All of your shots have been successful, and you’ve scored all 9 points we’ve accumulated so far. And from blocking Wesley Matthews to switching and off-the-ball movement… I think it’s the best of your recent games. Keep this feeling.”

Carlisle focused on instilling a sense of urgency in the players rather than tactical aspects, and ordered them to quickly find their shooting touch during the offense, but to let Youngjae finish the attack if they couldn’t see a way. Finally, he replaced Shawn Marion with Corey Brewer to strengthen the defense against Gerald Wallace and further enhance the fast-break play.

[Jason Kidd shakes off Wesley Matthews in front of him by going over Youngjae Yoon’s screen!]

[Matthews is caught on the screen and chases after him late! Ah! Even Gerald Wallace in the paint is closely marking Kidd! That looks a bit dangerous!]

That’s exactly what it was. Kidd had no intention of breaking into the paint in the first place. Therefore, he knew that if two defenders were attached to him, it meant that space would be created. Kidd smiled slightly and passed the ball to Youngjae, who was cutting in with him, and as soon as he saw Brewer, who Wallace had to mark, rushing towards the rim, he immediately passed the ball to Brewer.

[Kidd to Yoon! And Yoon to Brewer’s amazing pass!]

[Corey Brewer, who penetrated into the unguarded paint! Easily lays it up!]

Brewer coolly turned around after laying up the ball and lightly high-fived Youngjae. Now the score is 11-17. Even though it was early in the game, a difference of more than two possessions was a significant gap. Youngjae was still hopeful that the situation was gradually improving compared to a few minutes ago when they were pushed to 17-9.

Even though the first quarter was coming to an end, the two teams were playing so fiercely that it was difficult to properly take out more than half of the starters. However, Dallas did replace Corey Brewer, but the remaining four players had to play all 12 minutes, which inevitably put a strain on their stamina. But that was the same for Portland.

Gerald Wallace, who had been on a roll in the beginning, had been silent after 14 points, and Dallas had a chance to catch up as he failed three possessions in a row. The biggest contributor to Gerald Wallace’s silence was, of course, Corey Brewer, with his agile and nimble athletic ability. It was a successful substitution by Coach Carlisle.

[Dirk Nowitzki, 1:1 against Marcus Camby!]

Dirk Nowitzki and Marcus Camby faced each other in a one-on-one situation, looking at the rim from the top of the key. Nowitzki slightly distracted Camby’s gaze by moving his right foot back and forth while keeping his left foot fixed as a pivot.

[Nowitzki! As soon as he sees Camby stepping back slightly, he shoots without hesitation!]

Swish-

[HE PUTS IT IN!!!]

[Finally, Nowitzki has found his touch. 1 minute left in the first quarter! Dirk Nowitzki’s two consecutive mid-range shots narrow the score to 19-23!]

============================ Author’s Afterword ============================

★Thank you to those who pre-ordered, recommended, commented, and gave coupons!!

@A once-in-decades-in-the-NBA kind of 막장극 [a Korean slang term referring to an absurd or chaotic situation] happened. DeAndre Jordan ignored the verbal agreement during the moratorium period and came back to the Clippers. Really stupid and vicious. He hasn’t even contacted or apologized to Dallas, Cuban [Mark Cuban, the owner of the Dallas Mavericks], or Parsons [Chandler Parsons, a player for the Dallas Mavericks at the time]. Moreover, this act breaks the unwritten rules of the NBA, and if interpreted a bit excessively, it will be impossible to trust verbal agreements between teams and players during the moratorium period from next year. It is also possible to screw over rival teams in the same way. Most of the famous reporters in the United States are criticizing DeAndre Jordan considerably. The domestic community, except for some Clippers fans, has almost completely turned into anti-DeAndre Jordan. Even many of the Clippers fans are criticizing Jordan.

@Griffin [Blake Griffin, a player for the Los Angeles Clippers at the time], Redick [JJ Redick, a player for the Los Angeles Clippers at the time], and Pierce [Paul Pierce, a player for the Los Angeles Clippers at the time] mocked the Dallas front office, players, and fans on Twitter. The goodwill I had for these players has turned into a minus beyond zero. Congratulations to Ferguson for his victory. ‘Twitter is a waste of life.’

@The Clippers, especially GM [General Manager] and coach Doc Rivers, broke the unwritten rules and ignored commercial ethics. Personally, I considered Greg Popovich, Rick Carlisle, and Doc Rivers as the best among active coaches, but I no longer have that respect. They gave up their professional spirit and broke the league’s unwritten rules first, so the Clippers have nothing to say even if they are treated the same way next time. The Clippers are happy to drop Dallas, one of the playoff competitors in the Western Conference, into the abyss of despair. This incident may even change the league’s moratorium and FA [Free Agency]-related rules. I’m curious about what Adam Silver [the NBA commissioner] will do.

@If this incident is compared to everyday life, A said he would marry B, so B took out a loan to buy a house, prepared a dowry, and sent out wedding invitations to friends and relatives, and the marriage registration form was scheduled to be written the day after the wedding. But on the day of the wedding, A said he would marry C, canceled the marriage through C, and wrote a marriage registration form with C. And A is not directly apologizing to B or even receiving B’s calls. But the problem is that there is no legal basis to sanction it.

@Dallas owner Mark Cuban told Wesley Matthews, another FA acquisition after losing DeJordan, that he could go to another team if he wanted to, saying he couldn’t tie him here, but Matthews said he was excited to play for the Maps [a nickname for the Mavericks]. I think this is a normal professional player. Originally, Matthews signed on the premise that DeJordan would be recruited, but even though DeJordan betrayed him, he will keep his faith.

※Perimeter: It has the meaning of the periphery, surroundings, and outer edges of a certain area. In basketball, the area from the free throw line to the 3-point line is generally considered the perimeter. Simply put, it is the outside. It is the position where guards and small forwards mainly play.

Latona/// Is this your first comment? ㅋㅋ Thank you!!

zigichacha/// After Duncan [Tim Duncan, a former player for the San Antonio Spurs], especially after the Big 3 of Parker [Tony Parker, a former player for the San Antonio Spurs] and Manu [Manu Ginobili, a former player for the San Antonio Spurs], there was no need to worry about San Antonio ㅋㅋ. I was worried last year, but the second half was amazing. I’m worried about Manu Duncan’s aging this season, but West [David West, a former player for the San Antonio Spurs] and Aldridge [LaMarcus Aldridge] have come, so it will be enough if Parker doesn’t do worse than last year. Parker has to be completely revived to aim for the championship. Instead, they recruited Ray McCallum with just a 2nd round pick, making the guard lineup even stronger.

Omariyon, Caebabam, ㅎ0ㅎ, Financier, Kundara, Cup in a Cup, misscherry, CountOfDark, 1234567890123/// Thank you for always commenting!!

Gwanghwan Dragon/// Haha… The main tactic of Carlisle, the coach of this team, is motion offense, so there are originally few 몰빵득점 [a Korean term referring to concentrating scoring opportunities on one player] by one person. Even Nowitzki doesn’t score more than 30 points in many games. And since the main character’s tendency is a style with few ups and downs, that’s how it happened. Now the scoring will gradually increase. Because he is gradually increasing his weight in the team. Thank you for the coupon!!

Lafir and Jint/// He’s really committing a 역대급 돌아이짓 [a Korean slang term referring to an unprecedentedly crazy act];; It’s shaking the foundation of the league. Moreover, Dallas has to tank [intentionally lose games to secure a higher draft pick] at the end of Nowitzki’s career.

Yabes/// A mixed race is also a good material for a novel protagonist. We have also considered mixed blood. It seems that there are mixed-race protagonists in some sports novels in Joara [a Korean web novel platform].

Mint Box/// I don’t remember exactly from which year, but the NBA playoffs are held in the order of 2 games for the upper seed home, 2 games for the lower seed home, 1 game for the upper seed home, 1 game for the lower seed home, and 1 game for the upper seed home. In the past, the east-west moving distance was long, so the 2-3-2 method was used to minimize the moving distance, but these days, most teams move by private plane, etc., so the burden of moving has been reduced, so it has been changed to 2-2-1-1-1.

In the case of the 2-3-2 method, if it ends in the 4th game, the upper team and the lower team will have the same 2 home games, but if it ends in the 5th game, the lower team may actually have one more home game and finish the series if only the number of home games is counted.

However, the final was 2-3-2, but it was changed to 2-2-1-1-1 from the 2013-2014 season.

LightSaber/// There may be dozens of Hack-a-Jordan [a defensive strategy of intentionally fouling a poor free-throw shooter] ㄷㄷ [a Korean internet slang expression indicating surprise or amazement]

Goddess Yuri Praise/// Hehe, a more certain ace instinct than the previous game!!