Y13 [EN]: Chapter 140

Y13-140 Conference Final

[Only about 10 seconds remain in the first quarter, and the Dallas Mavericks’ lead has been cut to a single point!]

Mike Breen’s surprise was understandable. Dallas, which had been comfortably ahead, now clung to a 26-25 lead due to Brandon Haywood’s lackluster defense and poor boxing out after replacing Tyson Chandler.

[The Dallas Mavericks are making substitutions, seemingly to fortify their defense for Oklahoma City’s final possession of the quarter.]

Fortunately, Marion had exploited the mismatch against Harden on the previous play, overpowering him in the post and scoring a floater for 2 points. Otherwise, Dallas would have surrendered the lead. Coach Carlisle, appearing to recognize the urgency, countered Oklahoma City’s lineup of Westbrook, Harden, Durant, Collison, and Perkins with J.J. Barea, Youngjae, Marion, Nowitzki, and Chandler.

“Alright! Let’s get a stop and finish strong! Everyone focus!”

The players nodded at Chandler’s call, focusing intently on their defensive assignments.

“…”

Oklahoma City entrusted their final attack to James Harden. Perkins set a screen at the top of the key, and Harden used it. Perkins, attempting to impede Youngjae, failed because Chandler cleverly interfered with the screen, allowing Youngjae to quickly recover and stay with Harden as he drove to the basket.

[James Harden is driving! What’s he going to do? He’s accelerating even more!]

[Youngjae Yoon is playing incredible defense! He’s stepping back, denying Harden the direct path to the basket!]

Harden gritted his teeth and momentarily twisted his body clockwise. Youngjae mirrored the movement, shifting his right foot slightly to that side. In that instant, Harden exploded into a reverse spin move.

[James Harden executes an amazing spin move! Can Youngjae Yoon possibly defend against this…?]

Thud!!!

At that very moment, James Harden’s right hand was empty – the ball was gone.

[Did you see that?! Youngjae Yoon with an incredible steal?!]

Mike Breen’s excited shout was echoed by ESPN, which immediately showed a slow-motion replay of the steal.

[Look closely! Yoon’s eyes are locked on the ball throughout James Harden’s reverse spin! That combination of unwavering focus and incredible visual acuity is the key to this defensive play!]

The 1st quarter ended with Youngjae’s steal, the ball rolling out of bounds. Harden glared at Youngjae, a vicious look in his eyes, but Youngjae simply nodded, meeting Harden’s anger head-on.

The seesaw battle continued into the 2nd quarter. Oklahoma City, fueled by the boundless energy of their young players, began to apply full-court pressure on J.J. Barea and Youngjae in turns. While Serge Ibaka or Nick Collison were assigned to defend Nowitzki, the primary goal was to pressure and disrupt Dallas’s playmaking after Kidd’s departure, exploiting Barea and Youngjae’s relative inexperience against double-teams.

[Now! As soon as Youngjae Yoon catches the ball near half-court, Russell Westbrook and James Harden double-team him!]

“Keuk!”

Youngjae tried to react to the intense pressure from the Oklahoma City guards, but any hesitation would result in him being pushed back. Even with all his strength, breaking through the two players seemed impossible.

Tak-!

Beep!!

[Oh no!! Youngjae Yoon commits a backcourt violation!!!]

A backcourt violation occurs when a player, after crossing the half-court line with possession, retreats back into their own half. This results in a turnover, and the opposing team gains possession.

[Either Peja Stojakovic or J.J. Barea should have moved closer to Yoon to provide an outlet and relieve the pressure! Barea and Peja didn’t react quickly enough to the sudden double-team! Even a forced pass might have resulted in a turnover.]

[Oklahoma City’s surprise double-team worked perfectly! But will it be as effective next time?]

“Ah! Damn, that’s annoying. Yoon, I’ll get it right next time.”

Barea offered his apology in that roundabout way, instead of a direct “sorry.”

[Kevin Durant sinks an effortless pull-up mid-range jumper! The score is now 35-37! Dallas is still within a point or two, but the momentum is shifting! Something has to change!]

Youngjae, receiving the ball from Haywood, passed it to Barea as requested before crossing the half-court line.

Thump thump-

Barea sized up Nick Collison and Westbrook, who were closing in on him, and then charged directly at them.

[Nick Collison is right on him!]

Barea bypassed Collison with a quick crossover dribble, glanced at Westbrook closing in behind him, and then spun around, using his right foot as a pivot. Westbrook was caught off guard by Barea’s sudden spin, and Collison couldn’t react in time.

[Woah!! Barea channeling Allen Iverson! An amazing crossover followed by a spin move! Incredible dribbling skills! Nick Collison and Russell Westbrook were helpless against Barea’s dazzling move!]

Barea drove towards the rim without hesitation, with Youngjae and Nowitzki providing support on either side.

“Ugh!!”

Barea leaped towards the basket, seemingly without a care, and Harden, who had been guarding Youngjae, was forced to move over and contest Barea’s shot.

Whoosh-

But as soon as he saw Harden commit, Barea aborted his layup and flicked the ball back, perfectly placing it for Youngjae.

[J.J. Barea with a behind-the-back pass! Youngjae Yoon catches the ball and rises for an uncontested jump shot!!]

Swoosh-

[BANG!! KABOOM!!]

[He could have been rattled by the sudden double-team, but he reignites the fire with a clutch shot!]

Youngjae clenched his right fist and gave Barea a quick high-five.

“Don’t overthink it, just attack! I’ll make sure that double-team doesn’t happen again. If it’s too much, let’s pass it around and find another opening!”

Barea patted Youngjae on the back like a seasoned veteran, and Youngjae nodded, considering Barea’s advice.

[Dallas, which was in danger of losing momentum, regains its composure thanks to J.J. Barea’s play!]

Thanks to Barea’s spark, Jason Terry, who subbed in for Barea, also began to showcase his role as Dallas’s key sixth man, bringing a different set of skills to the game.

[The Dallas Mavericks are initiating their offense from the top of the key! With Youngjae Yoon as the focal point!]

[The question is whether Yoon, who committed a turnover earlier due to a double-team, can redeem himself on this play. He was caught off guard before, but how will he handle it this time?!]

Youngjae, with the ball in his hands, dribbled slowly, his eyes fixed on Westbrook, who was guarding him. Chandler moved into position, ready to set a screen, while Terry paced on the right wing, ready to receive a pass or draw his defender away.

[Youngjae Yoon is making his move! Youngjae Yoon receives a perfect screen from Chandler!!]

“Keuk!”

This time, the Dallas bench anticipated the opponent’s aggressive full-court pressure. Chandler came out early to set the screen, as they had discussed. Westbrook, unable to keep up with Youngjae’s quick first step, was caught on the screen. Kendrick Perkins, slower to react, couldn’t effectively block Youngjae’s path.

[Youngjae Yoon penetrates with a smooth drive! Chandler is rolling to the basket perfectly! It’s a textbook pick-and-roll!]

Youngjae saw it all unfold. For a split second, Tabo Sefolosha, who was guarding Terry, Nick Collison, who was on Nowitzki, and even Kevin Durant, who was watching Peja Stojakovic on the left side, were all caught off guard by the 2-2 play with Chandler and were converging on him and Chandler.

‘Good.’

He had three options. Pass to Nowitzki, who was moving from the low post to the high post.

Kick the ball out to Terry or Peja on the perimeter.

Or make a quick, accurate bounce pass to Chandler, who was executing the pick-and-roll.

Whoosh!!

[Youngjae Yoon! Drives into the lane, drawing defenders, and then kicks the ball out!!]

[That kind of kick-out pass is deadly! The pass finds Jason Terry!]

Jason Terry wasn’t known for his driving ability like Barea. As a smaller shooting guard, he didn’t have the exceptional passing skills or court vision of Youngjae or Kidd. However, Terry possessed a unique ability that set him apart. It was the reason he won the Sixth Man Award and was considered one of the best sixth men in the league.

Swoosh-

[JASON TERRY FOR THREE!!!]

[OH MY GOODNESS!!! WONDERFUL SHOT!!!]

With his arms outstretched, Jason Terry celebrated his shot, reminding everyone that he was “JET,” and high-fived Youngjae.

“Ah! Why couldn’t you have made those earlier! As expected, the vintage…”

Thud!

At Chandler’s teasing, Terry playfully punched Chandler in the stomach, who feigned a groan!

“That ‘vintage’ story! Don’t you ever get tired of it? The main character always arrives late, huh?”

At Terry’s words, Youngjae smiled and joked, “Then should we start giving the open shots to Peja from now on?” Terry, startled, jokingly replied that they should pass him the ball occasionally before his hands got too cold.

Coach Carlisle, observing the game, made a change, a departure from previous games. Kidd’s performance hadn’t been bad, but it was J.J. Barea and Jason Terry who had injected momentum into the team. Nowitzki and Youngjae were consistently scoring, as always. And Chandler anchored the team’s defense. Carlisle believed that this combination could break the deadlock in the seesaw battle.

The most significant weakness of this lineup was, of course, defense. Barea and Terry were defensively vulnerable, and while Youngjae wasn’t a liability at the small forward position, he was facing Kevin Durant. This combination relied on generating offensive firepower to compensate for its defensive shortcomings. Instead of trying to suffocate Westbrook, Harden, and Durant, Carlisle was betting on explosive offense. He usually stuck to the game plan, but he felt that adjustments were necessary in a short-term series like this.

[Another substitution with about 2 minutes left in the 2nd quarter! Coach Carlisle is rotating players frequently today?!]

[This indicates that he’s not satisfied with the team’s performance and wants to shake things up! Oklahoma City’s Scott Brooks, on the other hand, has been relying heavily on Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant to maintain the balance of this close game. There’s been little change in their lineup. Coach Carlisle, however, continues to substitute players, maintaining fresh legs. He’s known for his versatile lineups and tactics. Dallas has been one of the teams with the most diverse lineups this season.]

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

★ Thank you to everyone who provided advance subscriptions, recommendations, comments, and coupons!!

＠ I’m sorry for the delay. The novel I was writing was lost when my computer crashed, which was a bit demoralizing.

＠ I think I’ll need to take a break tomorrow due to circumstances. Have a nice weekend.

＠ The NBA is trying to expand into the African market and is even holding a game between an African team and a global team. Popovich, Budenholzer, and Monty Williams are coaching the African team, and the players include Aminu, Batum, Biombo, Diaw, Deng, Ibaka, and Ezili. There’s no point guard, so Antetokounmpo will play point guard, and the playmaking… Batum or Diaw will have to handle it.

The world team is on hiatus, so it includes Paul, the Gasol brothers, Beal, Farid, Jeff Green, Evan Turner, and Vucevic. It’s called the world team, but it’s mostly America + Spain, except for Vucevic. And it’s not a very strong team. If the African team had a proper point guard, they might win.

Eunseol Seolya-nim/// It’s so hot that it’s annoying to walk around. Yesterday was a little better.

magara-nim/// Basketball is the most physically demanding and challenging sport among baseball, basketball, soccer, and volleyball. That doesn’t mean the other sports aren’t difficult.

goimosp-nim/// If you increase his [Youngjae’s] possessions too much right now, his efficiency will drop sharply ㅋㅋ. He also doesn’t have enough 1-on-1 scoring options, and his pull-up jumper isn’t consistent enough… In many ways, that’s the case. Of course, even if his efficiency drops, his overall scoring or average will increase.

ㅎ0ㅎ-nim/// Now spring and autumn feel like they last less than a month ;;

Clives-nim/// Hmm, I’ve only seen Pippen’s games in highlights, so based on the numbers and records alone, I think Pippen is definitely in the top 50. He was also the best second option on a team that won all 6 finals. People who underrate Pippen say that he had an easy time attacking because of Jordan, but his efficiency was only so-so. However, in most fan rankings in the United States and Korea, Pippen is in the top 50. No one can win against Shaq in trash talk, and I think Pippen was a bit harsh because Shaq was being picky.

Vanishing Soul-nim/// That’s right. Please let summer end quickly…

Chin-nim, Financial-nim, Omarion-nim, Jamma-nim m CountOfDark /// Thank you for your comments!! Have a nice weekend!!

Yabes-nim/// It’s very difficult for one person to score over 30 points in modern basketball ㄷㄷ. In that case, there are no other 20+ point scorers on the team, or two players like Durant and Westbrook have to account for half of the team’s points… If there are already enough scorers on the team and the coach’s tactics are more system-oriented than isolation plays, 30 points is almost impossible. Personally, I think that a player who scores 30 points relies on individual tactics without team tactics, or when there is no reliable scorer on the team. Sometimes both are true. I think this was the case when Durant carried the team after Westbrook’s injury last year. As you said, if you have good passing skills and there are many shooters on the team, scoring 30 points can actually hurt the team. And LeBron is a 3 or 4 [small forward or power forward], so he should be considered a forward. I don’t think there has been a scoring champion guard who shot over 50% since Jordan. Even Jordan’s three scoring titles during his second three-peat didn’t involve 50% shooting. Of course, his career average is close to 50%. Youngjae is physically weaker, so he’ll be closer to a Curry or Durant style than a Jordan or LeBron style.

Lafir and Jint-nim/// Hmm, we’ve almost finalized the team composition for next year and the year after, considering the situation at the time and the salary cap.

Aㅏ Idle-nim/// We’re listening to and combining local and Korean commentary directly. I’m glad it sounds realistic ^^.

rtg98-nim/// It was probably an article where Jordan was ranked 20th. I remember it as a list that only included billionaires (assets of more than 1 trillion won) among the owners. In other words, the owners of 10 clubs don’t have assets of 1 trillion won. It’s a joke that Jordan is a shoe salesman, but it’s also true that most of Jordan’s income comes from there ㅋㅋ. I heard that the Jordan brand’s sales exceeded 2 trillion won last year.