Y13 [EN]: Chapter 189

Y13-189 2011-2012 Pre-Season

Oklahoma City

PG : Westbrook / Reggie Jackson / Eric Maynor /

SG : James Harden / Thabo Sefolosha / Royal Ivey / Daequan Cook

SF : Kevin Durant / Lazar Hayward

PF : Serge Ibaka / Nick Collison

C : Kendrick Perkins / Cole Aldrich / Nazr Mohammed

Dallas Mavericks

PG : Jason Kidd / J.J Barea / Rodrigo Beaubois

SG : Youngjae Yoon / Jason Terry /

SF : Shawn Marion / Chandler Parsons / Corey Brewer

PF : Dirk Nowitzki / Brian Cardinal / Brandon Wright

C : Tyson Chandler / Brendan Haywood / Ian Mahinmi

The 2011-2012 NBA season was shaping up to be short, intense, and busy even before it officially began. Typically, teams use the Summer League and preseason to evaluate rookies and veterans, allowing them to warm up and get into game shape. However, this preseason, each team only played two games: one at home and one away against the same opponent.

Dallas’s home fans watched the first preseason game against Oklahoma City on December 19th with a mix of concern and anticipation, but the result was more encouraging than expected.

[12.19 Preseason Game 1 Review]

Author: MADMAVS

Hello, I’m MADMAVS. As a Dallas fan, I’ve been really enjoying the last year or so, as the team has been making fan life worthwhile.

It might sound contradictory, right? Because we got crushed by Oklahoma City in our first preseason game at home, haha.

In the end, the Mavericks suffered a 12-point defeat to Oklahoma City, 95 to 107. A bitter result, perhaps. But I’m not bitter, and I think Dallas fans reading this will also feel surprisingly okay.

1. With Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant, and James Harden, the so-called Oklahoma BIG3, in top form, the Dallas Mavericks had several players who weren’t quite ready. Dirk Nowitzki and Shawn Marion had only been training for three weeks. It was unrealistic to expect much, and Dallas was essentially playing without key pieces. Considering that, a 12-point difference is a decent result.

2. Yoon Youngjae’s rediscovery is the only way to describe it. Anyone who watched the game knows that Yoon Youngjae put up incredible stats: 25 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists, and 4 steals in 27 minutes. His shooting percentage? 9/13 from the field, 5/7 from three-point range, and 2/2 from the free-throw line! Isn’t that insane? Sefolosha and Harden took turns guarding him, but nothing worked. The MVP of this game was undoubtedly Y13 [Youngjae Yoon’s nickname, derived from his jersey number].

3. Due to the lockout [a work stoppage in the NBA], many players didn’t seem ready for the league. But as I mentioned before, Dallas had Jason Kidd and Jason Terry leading workouts with Beaubois, Mahinmi, Yoon Youngjae, and Haywood (I don’t know why he even bothered). So, their condition isn’t as bad as expected. Marion, Nowitzki, Haywood, Cardinal, and Beaubois need to step up their conditioning.

4. Brandon Wright and Chandler Parsons, who joined this year, are in pretty good shape. Brandon Wright is a big man who can play both the power forward (4) and center (5) positions. His energy level is impressive, and his accuracy around the basket is solid. He even had a block! If he adapts well this season, he could play a different type of power forward role than Cardinal, who is a stretch 4 [a power forward who can shoot three-pointers]. Chandler Parsons… first, his looks are swoon-worthy, and second, his somewhat awkward but decent shooting makes you swoon again! Chandler Parsons, who plays small forward with his superior 6-10 size, stood out most with his shooting accuracy, but he also showed average performance in other areas. If Coach Carlisle adds his fantastic coaching… he could be the next Marion…!

So, I’m looking forward to the 21st game. They’re limiting the playing time of key players to 25-30 minutes and giving last year’s bench players like J.J Barea, Rodrigo Beaubois, Corey Brewer, Brendan Haywood, and Brian Cardinal, as well as newcomers Brandon Wright and Chandler Parsons, a chance to play and improve their game sense.

Preseason is preseason, so let’s watch comfortably and look forward to the regular season! But our first game is at home against the Miami Heat… Do we need to perform a ritual to win against them?

Re: Miami’s Big 3 has been playing charity games during the offseason, so they’re in shape and their performance is up… Honestly, it’s better not to expect much from the opening game.

Re: As expected, God Mad! Praise him!

Re: Bulked-up Yoon Youngjae is really scary. Harden used to push him around, but now Youngjae can hold his ground and penetrate the paint, making him unstoppable.

Re: The preseason is for experimentation. If Novi [Dirk Nowitzki’s nickname] and Marion can get in shape and we can win at least 50% of the first 5-10 games, we can definitely unleash the extreme force of last year’s championship season!

Re: What I like most is that they didn’t overhaul the roster and brought in and drafted solid players! I really like the front office these days~

Whoosh-

While the Korean basketball forum was buzzing about the Dallas Mavericks, Youngjae cleanly sank a three-pointer ahead of the upcoming second preseason game against Oklahoma.

“Good shooting?”

Chandler Parsons, who was standing in front of him with his hand out for contact, gave a thumbs up and spoke with a satisfied tone. Youngjae, who also felt his shot was good, gave a pleased smile.

“Thanks, Parsons. I’ll play defense for you now.”

It wasn’t just mindlessly reaching out during a shooting contest. Training like it was a real game, even during pre-game warm-ups, had a positive impact on the game, so Youngjae lowered his stance and glared sharply at Parsons.

Squeak-

Even though he could hear the sound of basketball shoes dragging on the court due to the pivot, Youngjae tracked Parsons’ movements until the end with his incredible dynamic visual acuity.

Thump!

Youngjae, who was blocking Parsons, who was using his somewhat awkward but fairly quick dribbling and basic strength to push in (hard to believe it came from someone who is 6-10), considered stealing the ball, but stuck as close to Parsons as possible for the purpose of the shooting contest, to help him get a feel for his shot.

Swish!

Parsons drove in and then executed a step-back, but Youngjae wasn’t enough of a defensive liability to fall for Parsons’ clumsy step-back. As soon as he stepped back, Youngjae followed with a forward step, and Parsons was forced to shoot a fadeaway.

Clang!

“Wow. You’re relentless.”

Parsons shook his head and glared at Youngjae, but Youngjae just smiled.

“I need to practice my pull-up and tough shots more too. Parsons will get better if he practices too. Your spot-up shooting was good last game, right? That means you have good shooting fundamentals.”

Parsons thanked Youngjae for the encouragement and picked up the ball, asking him to do it again.

“Hey! No cutting in line. It’s my turn this time.”

But as Parsons grabbed the ball, Brewer, who had been quietly watching from behind, jumped in, and Parsons awkwardly smiled and stepped back. Parsons, who had tried to sneak in another 1-on-1, cleanly sank a spot-up jumper for 2 points, putting his embarrassment aside.

“Am I going to succeed this time?”

“Do your best, Brewer. Let me get a steal for once.”

“Cocky, aren’t you?”

The players, who had finished warming up before the game, prepared for the game, recalling Rick Carlisle’s tactical instructions for the last time.

“The preseason is heavily experimental. And we’re not in perfect condition yet. Other teams are similar, but we’re a bit more so. However, our opponent, Oklahoma City, is in pretty good shape. Their energy level is high, making them a terrible match for us right now.”

Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant, and James Harden. The young players leading Oklahoma City’s offense had managed to get in shape in a short amount of time, taking advantage of their youth. In comparison, the Dallas Mavericks had many older players, so it took them longer to get in shape.

“We achieved a miraculous victory last year. But it would be a mistake to think this season will be the same. As a prime example, we suffered a 12-point defeat at home two days ago. The opponent was a team we beat 4-1 last year. But this season’s result was the opposite. I want you to realize once again during this short preseason that the road ahead of us is not going to be easy.”

The players fully understood Rick Carlisle’s deep meaning and replied briefly, “Yes!”

“Let’s show the power of the championship team. Even if we’re not ready, we’re still strong. Let’s show that to Oklahoma City.”

“Yes, sir!”

With the players’ final answer, the starting members of both teams began to come onto the court.

[Welcome! 2011-2012 NBA PRE SEASON exclusively broadcasted on FOX SPORTS! Oklahoma City Thunder vs. Dallas Mavericks, with Mark Followill as the caster and Derek Harper as the commentator!]

Derek Harper responded to Followill’s energetic voice with a serious voice. But even Derek Harper’s serious voice couldn’t hide the faint smile.

[I was worried that I would be unemployed until the 2011-2012 NBA regular season started, but I’m glad that the league has opened so dramatically. Followill, it’s nice to see you?]

[Haha! Yes, I’m also happy that the league is open! Well, the jump ball will start soon!]

Whoosh-

Tyson Chandler and Kendrick Perkins jumped up to win the ball that the referee threw, and Tyson Chandler easily won the jump ball, starting the Dallas Mavericks’ attack.

[Tyson Chandler wins the jump ball! The starting lineup for the home team, Oklahoma City, is Russell Westbrook, Thabo Sefolosha, Kevin Durant, Serge Ibaka, and finally Kendrick Perkins! The starting lineup for the visiting team, Dallas Mavericks, is as follows: Jason Kidd, Youngjae Yoon, Shawn Marion, Dirk Nowitzki, and Tyson Chandler!]

[Both teams have brought out their expected best lineups for this season. Oklahoma City has built a roster that is almost unchanged from last year, so their organization is quite sophisticated! In addition, Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant, who showed the best performance last season, are still healthy. But for this team to achieve better results than last year, Serge Ibaka and James Harden need to develop further.]

Derek Harper paused his explanation and drank water. Derek Harper was going to explain the Dallas Mavericks as well after quenching his thirst, but he had no choice but to postpone the explanation because of a Dallas Mavericks player suddenly soaring from the top.

Swish-

[BANG!!!!]

[Oh! That’s amazing! Y13’s spot-up shooting goes in cleanly from the first three-pointer!]

[If you look closely, Jason Kidd possesses the ball on the left wing and faces off against Russell Westbrook, then pretends to drive in with Dirk Nowitzki’s screen, and Westbrook follows, but after two forward steps, he passes to Youngjae Yoon, who quickly runs to the top! It’s a spot-up, but he shot a three-pointer with his body leaning due to the force of running, but that wasn’t a hindrance to Youngjae Yoon!]

James Harden, who was watching the game from the bench, had a bitter taste in his mouth because Youngjae had become faster and smarter than last season. Thabo Sefolosha was a player with strengths in defense, but Harden began to feel that this game would not be easy because of the off-the-ball movement of slowly moving between the outside and the high post, then cutting in, and using that cut-in as a feint and quickly running out to the top to receive Kidd’s pass.

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

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

★Thank you for the sponsorship coupon, jennysbk!! I will continue to work hard in the future.

＠Dallas struggling in the beginning. The old guys who spread out and rested in the summer are frantically trying to get in shape.

Eunseol Yanim/// Thank you for the first comment~

@Munyom Musang@/// Yes. That’s why Cuban is joking like that.

Shooting Startnim/// Ah, Oakley, haha. I also divide players into those who try to do something on their own and those who adapt to the system. Of course, this is only possible if the coach creates a system, puts players in the right places, and manages them. I think less than half of the current NBA teams play system basketball. I think the rest rely on players. Teams with a big gap between the bench and the starters are definitely player-dependent teams. San Antonio, Atlanta, and Golden State are representative of the system, and Cleveland, Houston, Clippers, and Oklahoma are representative of player dependence.

Baedeok’s Firenim/// Lol, bromance, haha. Parsons is a very sociable player. Parsons has taken dozens of friendship photos, haha.

Ultra10nim/// Starts rolling

Goimospnim/// Just started~

H0Hnim/// Cuban is someone who would do even bigger the second time, haha. If they only win the championship…

Sarajil Younghonnim, Financiahnim, Omarionnim/// Thank you for the comments!! Have a good day tomorrow~

Hwaninnim/// Ah, questions like this are always welcome. Players who win the championship together and leave receive their rings before the game when they come to Dallas (since they moved teams, coming to Dallas is an away game). In reality, Barea, who left the team, was given a separate ceremony before the game when he visited in February. For players who don’t have a Dallas game after the ring is made, it is delivered separately.

Wooyoo Dongjanim/// Cuban is someone who said he would pour his fortune into basketball, lol.