Y13 [EN]: Chapter 121

Semi-Conference Final

Until the 3rd quarter, both teams maintained a steady pace, with no dramatic shifts in momentum. The 12-point lead gradually diminished to 6, a result of Coach Carlisle’s calculated substitutions and the players’ careful energy management.

Of course, the playoffs didn’t involve any back-to-back games, and the schedule was relatively forgiving, with 6 games spread over 13 days. Furthermore, until the Conference Finals, Eastern Conference teams only played each other, and the same went for the Western Conference, which meant shorter travel distances. However, Dallas and Portland faced the potential for the most extensive travel among all teams in the playoff series. Portland’s location in the far Northwest and Dallas’s position in Texas, closer to the East, contributed to this logistical challenge.

Portland’s eight-man rotation saw their starters averaging 38-40 minutes per game through the first five games. This was due to a combination of having fewer reliable bench players and a reliance on younger, less experienced talent.

In contrast, Coach Carlisle’s Dallas Mavericks were built around seasoned veterans. Pushing them to play over 35 minutes a game risked wearing them down over a long series. Having witnessed Kidd’s exhaustion from playing 39 minutes the previous season, and with the starters being even older this year, Coach Carlisle implemented a rotation designed to suit the team’s current condition.

“Hoo.”

[LaMarcus Aldridge’s 2 free throws.]

[The score difference is back to 8 points. LaMarcus Aldridge, 1 free throw.]

Swish-

[It’s safe to say a shooter like Aldridge isn’t likely to miss free throws often. However, his shooting touch has been off today. With 8 of 19 field goals made and this free throw, he has 18 points and 8 rebounds, a lackluster performance compared to his regular season stats.]

[It’s rare for players to perform better in the playoffs than in the regular season. Only a select few manage that. Dallas’s Nowitzki, for example, is one of those superstars who elevates his game in the playoffs.]

Swish-

[LaMarcus Aldridge makes both free throws.]

Barea, who had been playing well as Kidd’s backup, re-entered the game. He quickly advanced the ball past the half-court line, and the other players followed suit, running hard to show no signs of fatigue.

[Barea passes to Youngjae Yoon on the left wing.]

As soon as Youngjae caught the ball, he nodded, seeing Nowitzki coming to set a screen. The 2-2 play between Youngjae and Nowitzki had been incredibly effective throughout the 3rd quarter, showcasing their perfect on-court chemistry.

[Here it comes again! Nowitzki’s screen! And Youngjae Yoon navigates it skillfully!]

[Wesley Matthews is struggling today! It’s rare to see Matthews, known as “Iron Man,” having so much trouble on defense! He loses Youngjae Yoon again, blocked by Nowitzki! Straight drive-in!]

[Aldridge, guarding Nowitzki, has no choice but to try and block Youngjae Yoon! By drawing two defenders like that, Nowitzki gets a wide-open opportunity!]

As Kevin McHale finished his commentary, Youngjae noticed the double team converging on him and subtly glanced at Nowitzki. Aldridge, familiar with this play, anticipated the pass and reached out to intercept it, but the ball never left Youngjae’s hands.

“?!”

Thud!

It might not be a significant impact for a big man to feel under normal circumstances. But it’s a different story when your eyes are distracted and your posture is compromised. Youngjae accurately targeted the gap between Aldridge and Matthews, who had misjudged the play, and powerfully drove into the paint, leaning his shoulder in.

[Youngjae Yoon! Drives in and throws up a super high-arcing floater!!]

“Ugh!!”

Youngjae, pushed by Aldridge’s defense at the last moment, groaned and fell to the floor. As soon as Aldridge heard the whistle blow, signaling a foul, he raised both hands and looked at the rim.

Swish-

[Wow! A tremendous high-arcing floater followed by an and-one [a play where a player is fouled while scoring, and gets a free throw]! Youngjae Yoon is truly Dallas’s hero today!]

[With that score, Youngjae Yoon already has 26 points! He’s showing the power of Y13 [Likely referring to Youngjae’s jersey number and a nickname]! He’s likely to be the team’s top scorer today. In all five previous games, Nowitzki led the team in scoring.]

Youngjae barely managed to get up, wincing, and received praise from Chandler and Nowitzki, who exclaimed, “Nice!” Even the regular-season Youngjae deserved praise for such an amazing performance, but who wouldn’t commend a rookie performing like this in the playoffs against Portland, leading the team in Game 6 on the road!

Swish-

[His free throws are clean. It’s hard to believe he’s a rookie!]

Moreover, if they pressured Youngjae’s shots, he would subtly step back and find gaps between the defenders, or he would draw Portland’s attention and pass to Nowitzki, who was setting a screen. Even if they belatedly tried to cover Nowitzki, he would already be shooting from mid-range.

[Youngjae Yoon’s fantastic no-look bounce pass! LaMarcus Aldridge rushes to Nowitzki!]

Dirk Nowitzki’s seasoned offensive skills, switching between post-up and face-up with his right foot as the pivot, shaking off Aldridge’s defense, and using pump fakes as if he were about to shoot, left Aldridge helpless. As the quarter progressed, Nowitzki’s shooting accuracy became almost unfair.

[LaMarcus Aldridge is shaken off again!!!]

Swish!

[BANG!!!]

[Who can stop that shot! A super high-arcing shot with unwavering upper body balance! Tremendous shooting range and accuracy, capable of scoring from anywhere on the court, including 3-pointers! And the one-leg fadeaway [a jump shot where the shooter leaps backward, creating space between themselves and the defender] that nullifies the opponent’s contest and block! He’s an unbelievable player!]

[Dirk Nowitzki makes difficult plays look easy. He’s averaging over 10 points in the 4th quarter during this series. He’s a player who can be considered among the best in the league in the clutch [critical moments of a game].]

Portland didn’t give up and faced Dallas with their starters until the end, but it was Youngjae’s fingertips that sealed their fate with about a minute left.

[Youngjae Yoon, 1-on-1 against Nicolas Batum!]

[Nicolas Batum has to stop Youngjae Yoon here! If the difference is within 2 possessions within 1 minute, they can catch up, but if it increases to 3 possessions, it’s over!!]

Youngjae slowly dribbled the ball in front of Batum. With no need to rush, using all 24 seconds on the shot clock was the right move.

’55 seconds left. 8 seconds on the shot clock.’

Youngjae stalled for 5 more seconds before moving. As soon as he did, Batum made a fatal mistake.

“Hiss!!”

He reached out his hand. Despite needing to defend firmly and block the shot, Batum attempted a steal, and when he failed, Youngjae seized the opportunity. He deceived Batum with a crossover [a dribbling move where the player rapidly switches the ball from one hand to the other], and Batum, flustered by the failed steal, was tricked again by Youngjae’s crossover.

[Crossover! And a step-back [a move where the player takes a step back to create space for a shot]!! Jumper without hesitation!!]

Youngjae smiled slightly, feeling the final finger roll [a shot where the ball is released with a rolling motion off the fingertips] perfectly graze the ball.

Swish-

[BAAANG!!! OH, OH MY GOODNESS!!!]

[Youngjae Yoon! He’s cutting off Portland’s breath! With that, Youngjae Yoon is bombing 32 points and sinking Portland!!!]

[The score widens to 100 to 92. The Portland bench is filled with a somber atmosphere. The players are hanging their heads or shaking them. Now, Portland has no choice but to use foul tactics [intentionally fouling the opposing team to stop the clock].]

[The problem is that Dallas has too many excellent free-throw shooters. Foul tactics will only reduce the offensive time and hardly affect the score. Yoon and Nowitzki are over 90%, and Kidd and Terry are over 87%. At least they have a timeout left, so they can only try to catch up with 3-pointers.]

Portland managed to score with Wesley Matthews’ 3-pointer on the next possession, but in the subsequent foul tactics against Nowitzki and Youngjae, all 6 free throws went in, and their own attacks only resulted in inside scores, failing to close the gap.

[8 seconds left. Gerald Wallace gets the ball, drives in, and shoots a 3-pointer with Marion in front of him. Will it go in?]

[Oh, no. It was too much. Jason Kidd wins the rebound in the contest with Wesley Matthews. 3 seconds left. Both teams’ players stop in their places. Kidd throws the ball to the referee.]

-Beeeeeep

[The game ends. The Dallas Mavericks win 106 to 98. Both teams’ players hug and shake hands with their teammates and the opposing team, finishing the game. Behind the Dallas bench, owner Mark Cuban shouts and steps onto the court. He’s a great person.]

[It was a great finish, congratulating and comforting each other. With a series record of 4 to 2, the Dallas Mavericks defeat the Portland Trail Blazers and advance to the Semi-Conference Finals (Playoff Round 2).]

[The opponent for the 2nd round was decided right before the Dallas game, right? It’s the LA Lakers, who also defeated the New Orleans Hornets 4-2. Since Dallas is the higher seed than the Lakers, Game 1 will be held at Dallas’ home, American Airlines Center. The head-to-head record between the two teams is 2 wins and 1 loss for the LA Lakers. Dallas lost twice after winning once, so they will need to prepare a lot.]

[In the end, Dallas won thanks to Youngjae Yoon’s performance. Today, Youngjae Yoon was no less than Kobe Bryant. He was a perfect ace with breakthroughs, jumpers, and passes. He recorded a high field goal percentage despite the jeers of the Rose Garden [Portland’s home arena].]

Dallas (4 wins, 2 losses) 106:98 Portland (2 wins, 4 losses)

Dallas

Youngjae Yoon: 34 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists

Dirk Nowitzki: 21 points, 10 rebounds

Jason Terry: 15 points, 8 assists

Portland

Gerald Wallace: 32 points, 12 rebounds

LaMarcus Aldridge: 24 points, 10 rebounds

Wesley Matthews: 19 points, 3 rebounds

[From Dallas’s point of view, it was a series where they struggled quite a bit with Gerald Wallace’s performance. After Caron Butler’s injury mid-season, there was an opportunity to acquire Gerald Wallace through a trade, but Dallas trusted their team chemistry and acquired Peja Stojakovic and Corey Brewer. Wallace’s transferred team was Portland, their first-round opponent, so if Dallas had lost, the front office might have faced criticism for not acquiring Wallace.]

[Although Wallace played well, acquiring him would have meant giving up draft picks. Stojakovic and Brewer, acquired as free agents without costing draft picks, also played solidly, making it a successful outcome for Dallas.]

[Moreover, instead of acquiring Wallace and diversifying the scoring, Dallas saw rookie Youngjae Yoon explode as the team’s second option. If Wallace had been there, Yoon might not have developed to this extent. In the end, Dallas increased their assets instead of consuming them.]

[That’s right. Owner Cuban usually prefers big trades, but this time, trusting the team’s rookie paid off. I’m looking forward to seeing how this player performs against the strong championship contender LA Lakers in the second round.]

[From Portland’s perspective, they ambitiously acquired Wallace for the playoffs, but the result was first-round elimination, which is disappointing. However, with the growth of young players, they are a team to watch next year. We’ll end the broadcast here.]

============================ Author’s Notes ============================

★Thank you to those who gave advance subscriptions, recommendations, comments, and coupons!!

@Now the first round of the playoffs is over. From the next episode, it will be a story related to the second round. The next series is the series with the LA Lakers, which became Zen Master Phil Jackson’s retirement series.

@Gerald Wallace was targeted by Dallas from Charlotte but withdrew and eventually went to Portland. Ironically, they met in the first round ㅋㅋ If Dallas had lost at this time, the fans’ criticism would have exploded;;

@Portland is often avoided by opposing teams in the playoffs. Especially Southwest teams. Most of the Southwest is in Texas, so the distance to Portland is considerable. Moreover, Portland away games are also known to be difficult.

Sungcheon-nim/// I understand Doc’s actions. But I’m a little disappointed that he used more exaggerated or strong tones for media play. Even Redick is doing that today. The Clippers keep blaming the agent, but what are they supposed to do when DeAndre Jordan has cut off contact with his agent;;;

Omarion-nim, ㅎ0ㅎ-nim, 찬란한유산-nim, misscherry-nim, Kundara-nim/// Thank you for your comments!! Everyone, be careful on the rainy roads during the rainy season ^^

GodOfJustice-nim/// Thank you. I also like soccer quite a bit ㅎㅎ. I have also posted frequently used terms in the work settings. If there is anything you don’t understand even after looking at the settings, please leave a comment or message. Of course, it will be easier to understand if you watch the video while searching directly.

Yawooro-nim/// I think so. However, I thought that Boozer was more vicious, but DeAndre Jordan’s impact was more powerful, so I wondered what would happen, but there doesn’t seem to be any change yet.

Makellele-nim/// The decision show seems to be a good level. DeAndre Jordan apologized on Twitter and said that his mother called Cuban. Is he really a child;;;

Zigichacha-nim/// These days, Sterling is also doing a strike;; He’s still young, but if he’s like that because he’s young, I wonder if he can grow into a superstar.

Hanurang-nim, Cup in Cup-nim/// I was quite moved by Paul and Griffin’s struggles while watching the playoffs last year, but it was all forgotten. I thought that Sterling was suffering because he met the wrong owner during the owner Sterling era, but I don’t like this owner Steve Ballmer either.

-DarkANGEL-nim/// Since this much time has passed and there is no action, it seems that there will be no change as you said. Unless it is repeated next year or multiple teams commit such incidents, it seems that it will end with an image drop.

Yabes-nim/// I hope so ㅋ ㅋ

Luscinia-nim/// You made a payment after a long time! Flagrant foul is also written in the settings. Please refer to the settings for frequently used terms.

※Flagrant Foul: In a word, it is a ‘severe foul’. A dangerous foul in which the opponent is injured or at risk of injury is called a flagrant foul, and it is usually the highest level of foul among fouls. If a flagrant foul is committed, the opposing team is given 2 free throws and the right to attack again. Flagrant 1 or 2 is determined depending on how severe the foul is. Flagrant 2 is an immediate ejection, and Flagrant 1 requires another flagrant foul to be ejected.