Y13 [EN]: Chapter 143

Y13-143 Final (Final)

The grand finale of the NBA’s epic season stretches from October to June, a whopping eight months.

Out of the 30 teams in the Eastern and Western Conferences, only two can reach the ultimate stage.

The strongest in the Eastern Conference. And the strongest in the Western Conference.

“Alright, let’s shoot!”

At the American Airlines Center, the home court of the Dallas Mavericks, who had secured home-court advantage for the first game of the Finals, a film crew commissioned by the NBA headquarters was hard at work.

The Dallas Mavericks had a total of seven players participating in this shoot, led by Dirk Nowitzki, along with Jason Kidd, Jason Terry, J.J. Barea, Shawn Marion, Tyson Chandler, and lastly, Youngjae. It was virtually their starting lineup plus two key sixth men.

“Great! One, two, three!”

With the rapid-fire clicks of camera shutters, photos were taken in quick succession, and the Dallas players were able to wrap up the first photoshoot, split into groups of three and four.

The first group of three consisted of Dirk Nowitzki in the center, with Jason Kidd and Tyson Chandler standing on either side. The group of four featured Shawn Marion and Jason Terry in the middle, with Youngjae and Barea flanking them.

Starting with the standard arms-crossed pose, they took several photos, including shots from behind showing their backs and jersey numbers, before finally taking a group photo.

“Ah, Youngjae Yoon? How about you take the photo right next to Dirk Nowitzki this time?”

Youngjae was reluctant as the director kept suggesting he take photos in such a prominent position. No matter how he looked at it, Youngjae didn’t think he had contributed enough to warrant being in the center. He hadn’t even been with the Dallas team for a full season, and he felt that the center position should carry a certain symbolic weight.

In Youngjae’s eyes, his first season could be considered fantastic, but he didn’t think it was quite his place yet. This team was still Kidd, Terry, and Nowitzki’s team. He didn’t have as much experience as Chandler yet.

“It’s a good opportunity. Just take the shot here~”

Terry, who was standing to Nowitzki’s right, subtly made room for him, leaving Youngjae even more flustered.

“This is a Finals promotional shoot, Terry. You should be in the middle…”

“No, I shouldn’t! You idiot!”

Terry retorted in his characteristic fiery tone, lightly tapping Youngjae on the back of the head with his right hand. He always felt that while such a gesture could be seen as unpleasant in Korea, these actions from the Dallas veterans felt more like encouragement to snap out of it rather than something offensive.

“You’ve played well enough this season to stand there. And no one drafted by this team has ever played this well in their first season. It’s strange you didn’t win Rookie of the Year. Have some confidence!”

Since Mark Cuban’s acquisition, the Dallas team had primarily focused on strengthening their roster through trades rather than rebuilding through the draft. Until 2011, they were consistently in the top 3 in salary rankings and paid luxury taxes [a tax imposed on teams whose payroll exceeds a certain limit] every year. In return, Dallas had advanced to the playoffs for 11 consecutive years. Therefore, they often had a tough time in the draft, where they were bound to receive low picks. Out of the 20 picks (1 in each of the 1st and 2nd rounds) over 10 years, only 3 were players they picked without a trade.

As a result, since Dirk Nowitzki, who was picked 9th in 1998, there were only two players who grew into All-Star caliber players through the draft: Josh Howard (29th pick in 2003, All-Star in ’07) and Devin Harris (5th pick in 2004 from the Washington Wizards, All-Star in ’09). Bobeau almost broke that dark period, but his form declined after an injury, and he had another injury relapse, ending this season. In the end, Youngjae had no choice but to take over.

“Terry’s right. And you need to have experiences like this to build confidence, so just take the picture without complaining. Or do you not like the left side? Should I switch to the left?”

With Kidd, the team’s oldest player, joining in, Youngjae had no choice but to hurriedly fill Terry’s spot. Terry naturally stood next to Youngjae and gave a slight smile, while Youngjae was tense and stiff during the photoshoot.

“Everyone, relax your expressions, and let’s take the picture!”

The director, as usual, shouted one, two, three—but the shutter sound didn’t follow, leaving the players looking puzzled.

“Ah! Sorry. There was a slight error in the settings. Could you please pose again?”

The players nodded in understanding and took their positions, chatting amongst themselves until they heard the signal to take the picture again. The director, without realizing it, found himself drawn to this atmosphere—serious yet natural, and not too heavy.

Click-

The photo was taken.

“Huh?!”

The players were momentarily taken aback, and the director stared intently at the photo on the camera before giving a satisfied smile and clapping.

“Got it! Ah, that was really quick. Thank you for your hard work!”

At the director’s beaming smile, the players flocked to the laptop to look at the photo.

A deep-voiced narrator heightens the atmosphere with a majestic musical score.

– For honor. –

At the same time, Jason Kidd appears. Despite being the oldest player on the Dallas team, he still played over 30 minutes per game, clearly demonstrating that his skills had not declined. Kidd was seriously kissing the Finals championship trophy head-on with his eyes closed.

– To reach the top. –

The next player is Chris Bosh. The Eastern Conference’s best power forward, who ranked 4th in PER [Player Efficiency Rating, a measure of per-minute production] last season. Until last year, he was a superstar for the Toronto Raptors, but this season he transferred to the Miami Heat, forming the Big Three and sacrificing much to transform into the third option. His power and skill were second to none. Bosh was looking up at the championship trophy from below.

– To make history their own. –

And the player who heated up this season the most, LeBron James. Since starting his career with the Cleveland Cavaliers, he had grown into the league’s best player and monopolized the love of fans, but in the process of transferring to the Miami Heat, he was branded as a ‘traitor’ by Cleveland. The reason was none other than ‘The Decision’ show.

‘I’m going to take my talents to South Beach.’

The Decision show was painful for Cleveland fans. Fans and Cleveland team executives had united to persuade LeBron to stay, and they had actually taken on numerous luxury taxes to recruit numerous players centered around LeBron. But LeBron James formed the Big Three and decided to transfer through a public broadcast. Of course, his thirst for not winning a championship after playing in Cleveland for 7 years was understandable, but the criticism that there was no need to transfer while even doing a broadcast like this could not be avoided.

The NBA legends Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley even spoke out about this situation, which showed how much impact The Decision show had.

‘In our day, we came together right before retirement when nothing else worked, but these days, they’re trying to take the championship trophy easily.’

That was Charles Barkley’s interview. In any case, LeBron James was still one of the few players comparable to Michael Jordan, and he was holding the trophy in his arms in line with the narrator’s voice.

– A moment when the word mercy is not tolerated –

Dirk Nowitzki. The blue heart of Dallas without a doubt. Dallas’s German soldier. He was smiling as he looked at the trophy, as if he had been working hard for that trophy all along. It was his second Finals challenge.

– The stage of the Finals… determines the winner. –

“Oh! It’s coming on, it’s coming on!”

And the last scene. That scene, miraculously, showed ‘Flash’ Dwyane Wade and one player glaring sharply at each other with the trophy between them. The shoot was done separately in Miami and Dallas, but it was such a natural cut as if it had been taken in one place.

It was Y13’s Yoon Youngjae, Youngjae, not avoiding Dwyane Wade’s sharp gaze and glaring back, with a determined expression as if he wouldn’t let the trophy be taken away.

– Finals GAME 1 –

“Ooh, ooh!”

The people who had gathered at Youngjae’s house to watch TV all stared intently at Youngjae, amazed, then looked at the TV once more and exclaimed, “Oh!”

“It’s not like my face is covered in gold… Have you never seen a player in a shoot before?!”

Youngjae, perhaps embarrassed, spoke as if scolding Steve and Meli, who kept exclaiming, but Meli and Steve didn’t care at all and kept repeating words like “Awesome!” or “Oh!”

“The last scene of the Finals shoot. And it’s Dwyane Wade! Wow!! Yoon! This brother is really happy to have a younger brother like you!”

“Yeah, yeah! This sister is really happy too! The pride of the Yeon family!”

Youngjae made an “Ew-” sound and waved his hands at them, saying.

“Excuse me? I’m a Yoon? I’m clearly from the Papyeong Yoon clan [a major Korean clan] ?”

“Hey~ Yoon or Yeon, it’s just one stroke difference~ They’re both surnames that start with ㅇ. Right?”

Youngjae couldn’t help but laugh at Meli and Steve’s smooth-talking banter and simply shrugged his shoulders in response.

“Anyway, you must be really busy, but you still invited us… Here’s a gift in return!”

Lauren Cohen handed over various daily necessities and cookbooks, feeling grateful and concerned that Youngjae had invited them despite being busy ahead of the Finals. In fact, there was a week-long break between the end of the Conference Finals and the first game of the Finals, so he could spare some time outside of training, but Youngjae was grateful for Lauren’s thoughtfulness. At the same time, Youngjae stared blankly at Meli and Steve.

“Huh? What?”

“…Are you really my older brother and sister if you came to my house empty-handed?”

At Youngjae’s words, the two made an “Ugh!” sound but soon subtly changed the subject and slipped away.

“That’s right! Now that I think about it, Youngjae, have you gotten any calls? From brand companies or anything.”

At Meli’s words, Youngjae thought for a moment, then immediately shook his head from side to side.

“Not yet.”

“Really? Heh, is that so? I see! If you get a call from anywhere else, you have to let this sister know, okay?”

Meli was gradually establishing herself as the team leader of the Nike branch. In fact, she grumbled that she was so busy learning and mastering the team leader’s duties for the first three months that her hair was falling out, but once she started to settle in, the sales of Meli’s team increased, and Meli’s abilities were highlighted, so she was now occasionally called to headquarters meetings as a team leader or was frequently selected as an exemplary employee.

Perhaps the reason Meli liked it was also a testament to the fact that Nike was keeping an eye on Youngjae.

“……”

“Huh? But why is Emily so quiet?”

Steve looked puzzled at Emily, who was unusually quiet, and Lauren immediately noticed, giving a sly smile.

“Steve. Steve. Isn’t it because of Meli?”

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

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

★Thank you for the sponsorship coupon, Yombainchel!!

@In the actual game between Dallas and Miami, Miami had a better winning percentage, so the first game was held in Miami, but in the novel, Dallas has a better winning percentage, so the first game is held in Dallas. And this season, the Finals are also 2-3-2 [the format of home and away games]. There were changes later, so this season’s Finals were 2-2-1-1-1.

@Today, two people’s comments have become almost as long as the afterword ㄷㄷ. The re-comments regarding Carlisle and Youngjae’s position have become longer than expected.

@Dallas had consistently been within the top 3 in salary rankings until 2010 after Mark Cuban’s acquisition. The teams that play like this are the New York Knicks and the LA Lakers, the best big market teams in the United States that compete for 1st and 2nd place in sales. These two teams had the highest sales last year even though they messed up their performance so badly. On the other hand, Dallas, which operates in the mid-to-upper market of 10th to 15th in sales, has been operating at a deficit while bearing huge luxury taxes and salaries.

02 years $72,155,176 (3)

03 years $79,286,720 (3)

04 years $91,553,496 (2)

05 years $97,881,086 (2)

06 years $88,531,846 (2)

07 years $101,021,688 (1)

08 years $94,830,398 (2)

09 years $88,435,117 (2)

10 years $84,643,496 (3)

This is Dallas’s total salary. The numbers in parentheses are the rankings.

Soogyun-nim/// Thank you for your first comment. It’s the Finals, so I’ll use the coupon diligently ^^

Eunseolya-nim, BlueRuiN-nim, CountOfDark-nim, Financia-nim, BrilliantLegacy-nim, Yombainchel-nim, Omariyon-nim /// Thank you for your comments. Have a good day tomorrow~

-DarkANGEL-nim/// Both sites are a mess when it comes to management;;; I think it’s best to just think of it as a wash and look for the novels you want to read;;; At least Joara seems to have compensation or management at the level of a small to medium-sized company, but Munpia is;;; just a neighborhood corner store level;;

Bikyeobwa-nim, ㅎ0ㅎ-nim/// A showdown with the Big 3!!

zigichacha-nim/// Thank you for your hard work ㅎㅎ. Nowitzki’s performance in the 10-11 season is ㅎㄷㄷ. Olajuwon is different from other retired players in that he opens a Hakeem School every year. His technique was still alive in this game.

goimosp-nim/// Yes. It’s finally the Finals. You have to learn a lot while facing Wade and LeBron in defense and offense ㅎㅎ

Ultra10-nim/// Well, I think Carlisle at this time was still at the level below a master. If you know the information, it’s an explanation that might be superfluous… In Detroit, he turned a 32-win team from the previous year into a 50-win team, laying the foundation for the second generation of Bad Boys, and in Indiana, he recorded 60 wins as soon as he took office. Both teams made it to the Conference Finals. He also won the Coach of the Year award in Detroit.

But until this point, I don’t think he was at the level of a master. Around this time, Phil Jackson, Gregg Popovich, and Larry Brown were considered masters. Carlisle only started to be called a master after the dramatic victory in the 2010-2011 Finals. If you look at Carlisle’s playoff tactics at this time, they are incredibly versatile and well-organized. Especially in the Finals, Carlisle’s capabilities were properly revealed, maximizing the abilities of the players, including Novi. His ability to perfectly respond to the opposing team’s tactics was truly amazing. He created numerous come-from-behind dramas with a team that was considered an underdog. In the NBA community, there are several columns about Rick Carlisle’s tactics at the time. As of the end of the 14-15 season, Popovich is at the top, followed by Carlisle and Rivers. If San Antonio is Popovich’s team, then there is talk that Carlisle is the first option for Dallas.

Sosimjjijil inferior man-nim/// From LeBron’s point of view, wouldn’t this be the season he least wants to think about during the Finals ㄷㄷ

Omen-nim/// As you said, the trend these days is a combination of an offensive point guard + a 3&D [three-point shooting and defense] shooting guard. Parker + Green, Curry + Thompson, Teague + Korver, Irving + Shumpert. Lillard + Matthews, etc. Youngjae is a resource that can be both an offensive point guard and a 3&D sugar. As mentioned in the middle of the novel, his spot-up 3-pointer exceeds 40%. As you said, it is difficult for a superstar to come out of the shooting guard position in the current NBA style. Last year’s shooting guard top 4 were Harden, Wade, Thompson, and Butler.

First of all, there was Kidd in the team in the first season, and Kidd will be there next year as well. So, until next year, he will have no choice but to play shooting guard in the starting lineup. When playing with Terry, Youngjae will play point guard, and Terry will play shooting guard. In his first season, the most needed thing in the team was the role of shooting guard, so he played most of the time as a shooting guard. However, when Kidd was out of the court, Youngjae led the shooting guard position. And comparing him to Nash, there is a difference in vision and sense ㄷㄷ…

First of all, Carlisle likes to have two dual guards on the court, so Youngjae, who is a sugar size, will go back and forth between point guard and shooting guard.