Y13 [EN]: Chapter 219

Y13-219 2011-2012 Regular Season

Carlisle, feeling that was enough, calmed Chandler down and spoke to the players calmly. Though his expression was calm, each word he spoke pierced the players’ hearts like daggers.

“Isn’t this the scenario we showed other teams last season? Why are we experiencing this now? Where have all the veterans who achieved countless come-from-behind victories last season gone? Were the players here now on other teams during our championship run?”

Last season, the Dallas Mavericks ranked first in fourth-quarter point differential and first in the number of come-from-behind wins in the fourth quarter. They achieved a dramatic championship through tight teamwork, high concentration, solid defense, and high-percentage offense. For fans who expected and wanted to see that, this performance was the worst possible situation, offering only disappointment. The players could only hang their heads at Carlisle’s harsh words. Carlisle didn’t stop and continued to dig into the players even more sharply.

“Have you already forgotten what Brandon Roy did to us last season? Are you going to show that spectacle to the fans again?”

The players nodded, rekindling their fighting spirit. Not wanting to lose like this was a thought shared by every Dallas player. The playoff game against Portland last season, where they failed to protect an 18-point lead in the fourth quarter and suffered a come-from-behind loss, was unforgettable for them.

“Barea, Terry, Parsons, Wright, Mahinmi, get ready. From now on, approach the game with the mindset of starting anew with a clear head. Absolutely no risky steals or blocks on defense. Block the opponent with the most stable defense possible. Now, one possession can determine the outcome.”

“Yes, sir!”

The players who would be playing took off their long-sleeved shirts and warmed up, discussing how to turn the game around and reigniting their fighting spirit.

“Yoon, Nowitzki, Chandler, take a good rest for now. You’ll need to pour all your energy when you’re投入 [investing/putting in your effort].”

As Coach Carlisle finished speaking, Terry said to Youngjae before heading out, ‘You can ride my bike if you want. It’s okay.’ Youngjae forced a smile and nodded. However, Youngjae was just as angry and frustrated as Tyson Chandler, so he couldn’t have a bright expression.

“Don’t worry. The Jet is going to bomb them.”

Terry said that and went onto the court. Indeed, Terry was the best performer today. With a shooting percentage of 11/17, scoring 23 points alone, Terry seemed to have regained his shooting touch, boasting a high shooting percentage lately. Youngjae also had a good shooting percentage of 7/11, including 1/2 from three-point range, recording 15 points and 5 assists, but it wasn’t enough. Tyson Chandler also showed amazing defensive ability with 5 points, 10 rebounds, and 2 blocks, battling toughly in the paint, but the score was still turned around. That was an undeniable fact. The other scoring routes besides Youngjae and Terry were blocked, and the defense had collapsed rapidly.

“Boboua, what’s wrong? You can definitely guard Mark, right?”

In the end, Youngjae couldn’t help but say something harsh.

“Even if the opponent is Gary Neal, I don’t think you’re lacking in speed or stamina, but you keep giving him open looks. You can definitely stop him, right?”

Boboua grimaced as if he knew it well, but Youngjae didn’t stop his harsh words.

“You’re playing over 20 minutes for the first time this season, and you can go out again in the fourth quarter. Even if your three-pointers fluctuate every game, you’re still hitting jumpers at around 35% or higher, right? If you show a good performance on offense, you have to do the same on defense!”

“Sorry. It felt somehow overwhelming to guard him. It’s not like I don’t want to defend.”

Youngjae unknowingly almost said, ‘If you’re not not doing it because you don’t want to, are you not doing it because you’re stupid?’ but he had to hold back. Although he was angry, he knew that Boboua wasn’t really not trying.

He had the will, but he didn’t know exactly when, in which direction, how much, or at what timing to move. As a result, he was easily fooled by fakes and was easily penetrated by a pick-and-roll. Most of the many players in the NBA who can’t defend fall into three categories: those who lack athleticism, those who have no will to defend, or those who don’t know how to defend. Boboua was in the third category, and so was another backup center, Mahinmi.

“You can do well, Boboua. I think you can definitely do well. If we win this game, it will be more rewarding than any other game.”

Boboua nodded without saying anything, and Chandler, who had suppressed his anger next to him, patted Youngjae on the back, as if to say that was enough.

The San Antonio Spurs’ bench members were literally 폭격ing [bombarding] the Dallas bench like crazy. The bench members, who had only scored 4 points in the first half, 폭격ed [dropped] 40 points in the second half with about 5 minutes left in the fourth quarter, widening the score to 84 to 77. In particular, Gary Neal, Danny Green, and Matt Bonner, whose hands were горячий [hot], showed tremendous performances with 19 points, 12 points, and 8 points, respectively. In addition, Tiago Splitter, who takes more time than DeJuan Blair even though he starts from the bench, was making fun of Mahinmi, who was defenseless.

“Yoon, there are 5 minutes left. It’s plenty of time to catch up. Absolutely don’t be impatient. Alternate between Terry and 2-2 plays, but absolutely no unreasonable shots to solve it yourself. San Antonio is using switch defense because Nowitzki’s shooting isn’t good today, so try to solve it with jumpers rather than unreasonable drives.”

“Okay. I understand. The screen play call sign is still the same, right?”

Coach Carlisle nodded and patted Youngjae on the shoulder.

[Here! It’s a player substitution for the Dallas Mavericks! J.J. Barea, Rodrigo Boboua, Chandler Parsons, Brandon Wright, and Ian Mahinmi are all out!]

[Starting with Youngjae Yoon, Jason Terry, Corey Brewer, Dirk Nowitzki, and Tyson Chandler are coming onto the court. Jason Terry is showing a fantastic performance today, but since he’s getting old, Rodrigo Boboua briefly played as a shooting guard to match up with Barea. However, the combination of Boboua and Barea didn’t have good synergy on offense, and on defense, they opened the door, giving up many open looks.]

A completely different situation from the first half. Youngjae took a deep breath as he watched the San Antonio Spurs, who were keeping the same members. Today, the bench lineup was performing much better than the starting lineup. Moreover, all the players had only played in the early to mid-20s due to Coach Gregg Popovich’s divine rotation, so San Antonio was also superior in terms of stamina.

However, Youngjae was only moderately nervous and not intimidated. There were so many crisis situations last year as well. Dallas was a team that gained strength when cornered, and Jason Terry, who could be called the devil of the fourth quarter, and Dirk Nowitzki, the clutch guy, were present.

‘I can do it.’

Youngjae, receiving the ball, slowly moved past the half-court line to the top. After briefly surveying the situation, Youngjae smiled slightly as he saw Chandler, who was setting a near-perfect screen, lightly brushed past Danny Green, and drove through the right wing to the high post.

[Tyson Chandler! As expected!]

[Youngjae Yoon, who is known to have the best chemistry with Tyson Chandler! The two players’ teamwork is enough to drive the opponent crazy!]

Youngjae didn’t force it when Tiago Splitter, who was guarding Chandler instead of Gary Neal, who was struggling with the screen, quickly blocked his path. He passed the ball to Nowitzki, who had a brief opening on the right side, but Nowitzki seemed to be in poor condition today and fumbled the ball slightly.

[Dangerous?! Tiago Splitter, who was guarding Youngjae Yoon, rushes towards Nowitzki, who is fumbling the ball!]

Fortunately, Nowitzki managed to secure the ball and moved back to the right wing. At that moment, Youngjae attempted a V-cut, penetrating deep into the low post and then coming out to the top, and Terry, who was standing at the high post near the top, rushed to the vacant right side.

Thud!!!

“Ugh!!”

The moment Terry and Youngjae’s paths crossed, Terry subtly turned around Youngjae, and Youngjae stood there, setting a screen. He didn’t set screens often because his upper body wasn’t very sturdy, but Gary Neal, who was chasing Terry, was a player that Youngjae could sufficiently screen and withstand.

[A surprise screen! It was really close?!]

[If you set a screen while moving, an illegal screen foul can occur, so it’s common to safely secure a spot first, stop, and then set a screen. But if you look closely, Youngjae Yoon also seems to have exchanged signals with Terry at that fleeting moment, standing and setting a screen just before Terry turns around! Anyone would get caught by this kind of screen!]

With the momentary movement, Terry was in a situation where there was no one on the right side, and Nowitzki skillfully passed the ball to Terry. Matt Bonner, who was guarding the rim alone, had no choice but to rush out, but Terry, like an eel, pretended to take a spot-up shot and quickly drove to the basket.

[Jason Terry breaking through along the baseline!! Matt Bonner is easily 뚫렸습니다 [penetrated]! No one in the paint!!]

Thud!

“Agh!!!”

Just before Terry’s layup went up, Matt Bonner, who had been뚫렸습니다 [penetrated], hurriedly reached out from behind Terry, who was jumping up to defend until the end, and unfortunately, the outstretched hand touched Terry’s shoulder. Terry screamed and put up the layup until the end, and the referee blew the whistle loudly, declaring a foul.

Swish!

And Terry’s layup went straight in.

Wowwwwwww!!!!!!

[An amazing roar!! Jason Terry’s amazing and one!!!! Anyone would have to roar when they see a play like that!!]

With Terry’s 멋진 [wonderful] and one, the score was 84 to 79. Terry, who was known for his accurate free throws, easily made the additional free throw, and the score was now 84 to 80. The gloomy Dallas fans and the Dallas bench, starting with Youngjae, and including Chandler and Nowitzki, eventually participated in Terry’s 멋진 [amazing] play, and the atmosphere was heated up.

[YES!!!]

[Youngjae Yoon’s critical three-pointer explodes! Only 27 seconds left! The score is 91 to 90! San Antonio is leading by one point!]

[If this attack is successful, Dallas will be forced to take a three-pointer, making it easier for San Antonio to defend, but if the attack fails, Dallas will win no matter whether they score 2 or 3 points, putting San Antonio at a disadvantage. Even if they use up all the attack time, there is enough time left for a one-shot pattern play.]

Again, the atmosphere shifted to Dallas. Coach Popovich’s decision to change the starting lineup for today’s game for about 3 minutes out of 5 may have been a necessary substitution for the stamina of the bench members, but the 4-point lead they barely had was eventually narrowed to a 1-point difference, a one-possession difference.

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

★Thank you to those who gave 선작 [pre-registration], recommendations, comments, and coupons!!

＠Sorry for being late. I got home very late because I was talking with professors and students. Fortunately, I didn’t drink much alcohol, so it didn’t interfere with my writing.

＠There are parts that players with low BQ [basketball IQ] can’t improve even if they try. It’s like training players with narrow vision as point guards for a hundred days, it won’t work.

ㅎ0ㅎ님///ㅎㅎ I’m always grateful for your frequent comments^^.

사라질영혼님/// ㅋㅋ To be honest, from a Korean perspective, Korean women are the prettiest. Although there are many who have had work done, foreign beauties don’t quite match the beauty styles that ordinary Korean men have. Of course, there are exceptions ㅋㅋ. Moreover, American sports cheerleaders are a bit different from Korea, so they don’t just pick based on looks like in Korea.

이동석동님, 파이넨시아님, 오마리온님, -DarkANGEL-님/// Thank you for your comments as always^^.

goimosp님, 울트라10님/// Of course, strong teams have that kind of potential, but the teams that get overturned;;; I have nothing to say. That’s why Doc Rivers and the LA Clippers were criticized so much in the last series. How can you get overturned? Not getting overturned is what makes a strong team, but San Antonio, Dallas, and the Lakers are the top 1, 2, and 3 in winning percentage in the 21st century, but they are also victims of historical comebacks. Of course, the ratio of comebacks and come-from-behind wins is overwhelmingly good for all three teams.

파란가오리님/// ㅎㅎ Dallas cheerleaders still have good visuals among American professional sports cheerleader teams. Well, Korea looks at appearance a lot and picks people who fit the Korean beauty standards, so that’s why. Domestic basketball is still a mess after Kang Dong-hee;; The president is crazy, the players are crazy, and the coaches seem crazy too.

rtg98님/// It seems like he was more seriously ill than I thought. He was working until recently, and it hasn’t been long since he appointed Sam Mitchell as the acting coach, so I thought he would return soon, but suddenly a death article came out just a few days after being ruled out for the season. I don’t know what happened. Lymphoma is a type of blood cancer, so dying suddenly from it means it must have been stage 4, but if it was stage 4, there should have been articles about him being seriously ill a long time ago. Anyway, may he rest in peace.