Y13 [EN]: Chapter 134

Y13-134 Conference Final

BEEP!

As the praise for Durant continued, the referee’s sudden whistle interrupted, and the referee near the Dallas baseline separated Tyson Chandler and Kendrick Perkins.

[A whistle is blown during off-ball play? It seems Kendrick Perkins and Tyson Chandler were having a war of nerves under the Dallas basket!]

[Chandler shrugs it off, but ah! They’re calling a double technical! Both players are the toughest and most hot-tempered big men on their respective teams. A double technical foul just 3 minutes into the game is a rare sight. Nowitzki is protesting to the referee?]

“It was just something that happened during a box-out. Chandler doesn’t even care, does he?”

Chandler also looked wronged at Nowitzki’s words, but the referee was firm. Perhaps because they knew the importance of Game 1 of the Conference Finals better than anyone, the box-out battle under the basket was intense. In the process, Tyson Chandler and Kendrick Perkins had built up emotions towards each other despite it being early in the game. Chandler dealt with it more calmly, but he couldn’t escape the referee’s eyes.

[Because it’s a double technical foul, Chandler and Perkins each get 1 foul, and Dallas retains possession. With Westbrook’s offensive foul in the previous possession, both teams seem to be getting heated from the start, befitting the playoffs.]

[Chandler is gesturing that he’s wronged, while Perkins is still looking back with anger as he backpedals.]

After the double technical foul incident, Coach Carlisle slowly began to prepare Youngjae. Youngjae, who had taken off his jersey and was warming up, was subbed into the game around the 7-minute mark of the first quarter. As soon as Youngjae entered, he started running towards the opposite side along the baseline to shake off Westbrook, who was marking him, with light movements.

[Jason Kidd passes to Youngjae Yoon, who shook off Westbrook along the baseline!]

Youngjae received the ball near the right wing and raised both hands. With Westbrook shaken off, James Harden came for help defense, and Kevin Durant struggled against Shawn Marion, who was screening to open up Youngjae’s path.

“Hmph!”

[Youngjae Yoon receives the pass and pretends to go up for a shot, then penetrates between Thabo Sefolosha and Kevin Durant! There’s more space between them than expected!]

“?!!”

Harden seemed unprepared for Youngjae’s sudden breakthrough, as he was already in the air. Moreover, Durant was blocked by Shawn Marion’s screen, so Youngjae, unhindered all the way to the low post, soon had Serge Ibaka in front of him.

“Heot-”

That familiar, energy-draining grunt. Seeing Youngjae step forcefully as if he was about to leap, Ibaka tightened his legs to avoid jumping and only raised his arms. Youngjae smirked at Ibaka, stole Ibaka’s timing with a pivot, and then soared.

[Serge Ibaka tries to block him! Ibaka and Youngjae Yoon clash in the air… Oh!]

Youngjae raised the ball with his right hand as if to shoot a floater, then placed his right hand under the ball like scooping ice cream, gently placing the ball on the rim.

[The ball keeps spinning around the rim! Is it a goal? Is it a miss?]

[OH MY GODNESS!!! Y13 IS BACK!! That scoop layup is practically a curse! It’s a disaster, a disaster!]

Youngjae continued his good performance despite coming off the bench. However, Oklahoma City also started to pressure Dallas with an improved performance compared to the regular season. To control Youngjae’s playing time and prevent any possible recurrence of injuries, Jason Terry and J.J. Barea’s playing time was increased. As a result, Youngjae mainly matched up against Harden, and Kidd had to mainly guard Westbrook.

“Hoo…”

Youngjae was aware that he needed to concentrate his maximum energy in a short time rather than managing his stamina in today’s game. The maximum time Youngjae could play in today’s game was about 20 minutes. Moreover, since he was coming off the bench instead of starting, he had more energy, so he needed to suppress the opponent’s momentum and run more actively than them during that time.

[Russell Westbrook! Attempts a penetration against Youngjae Yoon! It’s difficult, but is he going up for a floater?]

While blocking Westbrook, who was amazing in terms of athleticism, Youngjae thought that there was a reason why he was nicknamed Ninja Turtle. With the tension slightly relieved by the silly thought, Youngjae flexibly followed Westbrook’s penetration to the low post with a backstep, controlling Westbrook’s breakthrough route with flexibility rather than brute force.

“Kteut!”

Westbrook was going crazy. He couldn’t believe that they were so thoroughly shut down against Dallas, against whom they had struggled in the regular season, despite all the research and practice they had done, especially for the matchup against Youngjae.

Youngjae utilized his teammates appropriately and moved in line with the team’s defense. Because Oklahoma City’s three-pointers were weak, Coach Carlisle used zone defense more often than in previous playoffs, and the defensive coordination between Youngjae and Chandler in stopping opposing slashers was excellent. If his fundamentals were weak, it would be understandable, but one of Youngjae’s greatest strengths was his consistent play based on solid fundamentals. Westbrook eventually hesitated between a floater and a pass, and ended up throwing an awkward pass.

[However, the pass intended for Nick Collison after the jump hits Tyson Chandler’s shoulder and bounces out! Jason Terry grabs the bouncing ball! He runs out with Peja Stojakovic.]

“Run, run!!”

Even though Jason Terry’s speed had decreased with age, he was still not at a level where he couldn’t even initiate a fast break. Westbrook, who had the highest energy level, was tied up by Youngjae, and James Harden, Kevin Durant, and finally Kendrick Perkins, who had dug in to fight for rebounds under the basket, were all tied up near the low post, so Terry and Peja sprinted towards the rim at maximum speed.

[Only Serge Ibaka is in front of Terry! Will he drive straight? Will he slow down the tempo?]

Terry received the pass from Peja again, dribbled once, took two steps, and leaped from a spot slightly away from Ibaka.

[He’s going up!]

[Ah, but it’s a miss. He attempted a floater after a breakthrough in the previous possession and committed an offensive foul, so he’s showing a bad performance in two consecutive possessions. Is it because his speed has become too dull? He’s not properly penetrating the young defense of Oklahoma.]

Clearly, the fast break attempt was good. Terry’s speed was also decent. But decisively, Terry lacked the strength to maintain speed and power until the end. Moreover, the opponent was Serge Ibaka, who was ranked 1st in total blocks this season. In order to sink a layup while facing such a big man head-on, shooting touch alone was not enough.

[This is dangerous?! 11 out of the 20 points Dallas has scored so far are Nowitzki’s. Dallas is not properly attacking the defense of Oklahoma City, which is armed with activity and youth. 2-on-2 play or open chance creation through pass plays is not working properly!]

Jeff Van Gundy nodded in agreement with Mark Jackson’s words and continued the story.

[They’re almost relying solely on Nowitzki’s 1-on-1 offense. Clearly, Nowitzki is the 1 option for Dallas’s offense, but he is also a veteran who is approaching his mid-30s. Jason Terry and Peja Stojakovic’s shooting touch to help him seems desperate. Of course, Youngjae Yoon is slowly giving them breathing room and joining in with 6 points and 1 assist, but Rick Carlisle said in an interview that he would manage Youngjae Yoon’s playing time. It looks difficult if Nowitzki doesn’t explode today.]

The current situation was the opposite of the series against the Lakers. Compared to the previous rounds, where there were many one-sided games, Oklahoma City was a young team that did not fall behind in terms of stamina despite having a physical disadvantage. Moreover, because Jason Terry and Peja Stojakovic’s shooting touch was not good, they were gradually falling behind while continuing to lose the lead.

[Youngjae Yoon receives the ball that Nowitzki blocked. He quickly transitions up the court, but the Oklahoma players have already transitioned up the court. He hands the ball to Nowitzki.]

It was the overreach of Oklahoma City’s big men. Serge Ibaka’s shot, who was recklessly trying to score a basket in a situation where as many as 4 people were waving their hands under the basket, was caught by Nowitzki’s hand, and the ball deflected by Nowitzki’s hand flowed towards Youngjae.

“Tsk.”

Youngjae couldn’t help but click his tongue. Clearly, it was a fast break situation, but Oklahoma City’s energy level and speed were incomparable to Dallas. If Coach Carlisle always emphasized before this series that the team’s biggest weakness was transition defense, the opponent had strengths in transition defense.

[Nowitzki, post-up against Collison at the top!]

Based on his good offensive performance today, Nowitzki lightly pushed against Collison while backing him down. Collison was going crazy because he kept getting pushed inside even though he felt that Nowitzki’s strength was not that strong.

[Nowitzki, pushes Collison to the high post, is it a shooting?!]

Unique stance. Collison frantically rushed towards Nowitzki at Nowitzki’s turnaround fadeaway. The crane-leg fadeaway emanating from that tremendous 7-foot height was practically a cheat code, and it looked even more fearsome than Kevin Durant, the team’s best scorer. At this time, Nowitzki was a perfect resale weapon that was capable of face-up and post-up, perimeter, and inside play.

[Wow! Nowitzki! He jumped up as if he was going to shoot, but the ball is fired to Barea instead of the rim! Pass to Barea, who is in an open state on the left side!]

Barea miraculously caught the ball coming in with both hands and slightly lifted both hands and bent his knees. James Harden, who was closest, had no choice but to rush in and jump with all his might as if he was going to shoot, but Barea lightly brushed past Harden with a pump fake and drove towards the low post.

[Barea! Ignores James Harden, who jumped to block him, and breaks through to the basket. But because of Perkins, shooting is not easy, so he slips out like an eel! Really amazing dribbling skills!]

[Really amazing. Barea, slips out of Oklahoma City’s basket like it’s his own backyard! There are no defenders on Peja and Yoon, Nowitzki on the perimeter! Barea passes to Yoon in the front!]

Barea passed the ball to Youngjae, who was standing in the wing position while slipping out to the 45-degree elbow area, and Youngjae leaped up without hesitation as soon as he caught the ball.

[He’s going up straight away! Eric Maynor reaches out his hand, but it’s too late. Wide open 3-Pointer!!!]

[32 to 28! Dallas Mavericks, who are starting to chase again! Youngjae Yoon is deployed from the bench because of the risk of injury, but his shooting touch seems to be still good today!]

============================ 작품 후기 ============================

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

파이넨시아님/// Thank you for the first comment~~

goimosp님/// That may be a bit disappointing, but Youngjae and Nowitzki are 13 years apart. The presence of an ace who will provide an umbrella effect while Youngjae is growing will be of considerable help. Youngjae will continue to grow in the future. You can think of the Westbrook-Durant combination.

사라질영혼님/// Haha… We are also sad that we don’t have much time ㅠ.ㅠ

오마리온님, 쿤다라님, 캐바밤님, 라피르and진트님, misscherry님, CountOfDark님/// Thank you for your comments!! Have a nice holiday tomorrow too^^

키라루피님/// In the first game, he will match up with Westbrook, but he will likely match up with Harden more. If he returns to the starting lineup, he will likely match up with Westbrook a lot.

ㅎ0ㅎ님/// ㅋㅋ Will we get married early?

야베스님/// I saw a comment on Mania and I think that’s the answer. I think we need to reconcile memory and stats. I agree with the comment that memory and stats should be discussed separately in the first place. I trust memory more than stats, but I think stats should be prioritized in discussions or debates. People have different perspectives on watching basketball, and they think differently even if they watch the same players, plays, and games. Then it’s hard to have a discussion. I think stats are what you can talk about at that time. Also, unless they are older fans, they would not have seen the prime of Iverson or rising star guards, so in order to compare them with Harden, those who have not watched basketball for a few years cannot even talk unless they look at the stats. I am also a person who can only judge Iverson’s prime with YouTube highlights and stats because I have only been watching the NBA for 5 years. Personally, I prefer memory, but when I talk with someone, I talk with stats.

And I don’t really like Harden’s 2nd stats. Because of his tendency to draw fouls too excessively. If you look at Harden’s play, you can see too many plays to draw fouls rather than score goals. Besides, I don’t like players who don’t defend, not because they can’t, but because they won’t. He said he has improved this year, but personally, I think he has greatly benefited from Ariza’s addition.

magara님/// Haha…;;;