Y13 [EN]: Chapter 245

Y13-245 2011-2012 Regular Season

“I’m looking forward to it! I’ll even edit it perfectly and show it to you!”

Youngjae had overheard Emily talking to someone on the phone early that morning, realizing the conversation revolved around editing a video. Feigning sleep, he knew Emily was unaware he’d heard, hence her confident tone. He couldn’t help but smile at her cuteness.

“That sounds amazing. Let me know when it’s all done and uploaded to YouTube. I’ll boost the views right away.”

They wrapped up filming, and Emily had to rush off to catch a morning flight back to her schedule.

“…”

Watching the plane ascend, Youngjae nodded, recalling the light kiss Emily had given him, along with her encouragement to stay strong until the playoffs. He got into his car and unconsciously touched his lips with his index finger.

March 30th, Atlanta Philips Arena.

Having arrived on a morning flight for the away game against the Atlanta Hawks, Youngjae completed a brief morning meeting and team training. After lunch, he headed to his room, planning a short nap before the 8 PM game. Many players often nap on game days due to physical demands.

“…”

Before drifting off, Youngjae pulled out his smartphone, plugged in his earphones, and started a video.

[5 Million Views! What is Blue Toothbrush?]

While not a sensational hit like new releases from major agencies, famous singers, or popular idols, a female singer’s self-uploaded song was gaining traction despite her relative obscurity.

On March 23rd, a self-composed song called ‘Blue Toothbrush’ appeared on YouTube. It was by Emily Kinney, known for her acting in ‘The Walking Dead’ Season 2. The song garnered positive reviews for its sweet, mellow voice, a relaxing melody that induced a feeling of sleepiness, and the whispered sweetness of love. However, these qualities alone wouldn’t account for the impressive view count.

The song’s final three lines featured an unfamiliar male voice. Touching on the emotions of a woman contemplating a breakup but hesitant to end things, the voice was lauded as youthful yet powerful and sweet. The voice belonged to NBA All-Star guard Youngjae Yoon.

(Omitted)

In reality, Emily Kinney and Yoon Youngjae are officially dating and maintaining a healthy relationship without scandals or breakup rumors. For this music video, Emily Kinney filmed her scenes in California and traveled to Dallas to accommodate Yoon Youngjae’s NBA season.

After surpassing 5 million views in a week, Emily Kinney posted a short message on her Vwitter [a fictional social media platform, similar to Twitter], ‘I Love You. See You Soon,’ which quickly became a trending topic.

“I can’t believe how cheesy this is.”

Youngjae cringed at his own voice every time he heard it. Resolving to listen just one more time, he restarted the video. Emily, filming the video with Youngjae, was smiling in his arms, radiating happiness. Perhaps it was his imagination, but Emily seemed deeply focused on him. Unable to deny this, Youngjae turned off his smartphone and quickly fell asleep as soon as the video ended.

Winning the game was the best way to repay Emily.

[Hello! This is FOX SPORTS bringing you the game between the Atlanta Hawks and the Dallas Mavericks, live from Philips Arena. I’m Bob Rathbun, and with me is Derek Harper. Welcome!]

Bob Rathbun is a commentator primarily covering Atlanta Hawks games. While his voice is somewhat high-pitched, it’s powerful and well-delivered. He’s a popular commentator known for his enthusiastic reactions to exciting plays.

[Haha! Nice to be here. As someone who has worked with Paul for a long time, this feels like my first time with Bob. I hope we can work well together this time and increase FOX SPORTS’ share.]

Derek Harper mainly commentates on Dallas Mavericks games, making this pairing somewhat unusual. However, the two professionals created a unique dynamic and quickly captured the viewers’ attention.

[The home team, Atlanta Hawks, has a decent record of 3 wins and 2 losses in their last 5 games, but they are on a 2-game losing streak after losing to Miami and Chicago consecutively just before this home game against Dallas.]

[He served as an assistant coach for Atlanta from the 2004-2005 season to the 2009-2010 season, and this is already his second year as the head coach of Atlanta. In his first season, he had a decent record of 44 wins and 38 losses, with a winning percentage of about 53%. This season, he is showing a gradually improving record of 31 wins and 22 losses, with a winning percentage of 58%.]

[However, they are particularly weak against strong teams like Miami, Chicago, and the Lakers, earning them the nickname ‘Strong Team Discriminator.’ In fact, last year, coach Larry Drew lost twice to the Dallas Mavericks.]

Coach Larry Drew watched the players warming up with a determined expression, signaling he wouldn’t be easily defeated this time.

[Next are the Dallas Mavericks players. Dallas has a strong one-two punch after a long time, right? This is the first season since Nash and Finley left that Nowitzki is playing with such a great partner.]

Derek Harper tried to maintain impartiality in his commentary but couldn’t suppress a smile, likely due to his primary role commentating on Dallas games.

[Of course. Dirk Nowitzki is showing amazing performance. He has been selected as an All-Star for 11 consecutive seasons, and you can’t talk about Dallas without Dirk Nowitzki. This season, he is playing 29.5 minutes, averaging 19.2 points, 7.1 rebounds, with a field goal percentage of 45.1%, 3-point percentage of 37.7%, and free throw percentage of 89.2%. However, his rebounds, points, and field goal percentage are the worst since his third year.]

[The lockout [a work stoppage in professional sports] at the beginning of the season also had a big impact, as players missed the time to get in shape. In fact, it’s safe to say that many players have seen their records drop overall compared to last year. However, players who played in overseas leagues or consistently trained individually for the season are having a smooth season. Youngjae Yoon is one of those cases.]

[This season, he is playing 33 minutes, averaging 21.2 points (8th), 4.8 rebounds, 7.5 assists (9th), and 2.5 steals (2nd), showing significantly improved records in all aspects. His field goal percentage of 52.3%, 3-point percentage of 41.8%, and free throw percentage of 91.9% are similar to or better than last season. Youngjae Yoon’s contribution is significant to Dallas’s 38 wins and 14 losses, placing them second in the West.]

Bob Rathbun skillfully began his hosting duties according to the prepared script.

[Let’s watch a highlight video of Joe Johnson’s buzzer-beaters, the symbol of the Atlanta Hawks known as BIG SHOW.]

Silent Killer Joe Johnson. His buzzer-beater ability has saved the Atlanta Hawks from defeat countless times. After being traded from Phoenix, he has been the ace of Atlanta, leading the team to the playoffs every year. He is a swingman [a versatile player who can play multiple positions] with good dribbling and shooting skills, as well as outstanding scoring ability. However, it is a shame that he is not as popular as expected, despite being selected as an All-Star 6 times.

After the video ended and all the advertisements for BHILIPS and THE HOME DEPOT were over, the players began to enter the court according to the signal.

[Finally, both teams are entering. The Dallas Mavericks’ starting lineup will be Jason Kidd, Youngjae Yoon, Shawn Marion, Dirk Nowitzki, and finally, center Tyson Chandler. The Atlanta Hawks will start with Jeff Teague, Kirk Hinrich, Joe Johnson, Josh Smith, and Jason Collins.]

[Atlanta’s bench includes Stackhouse and Dampier. They ate together with Terry and Nowitzki for several years. Dampier, in particular, must be disappointed that Dallas won the championship as soon as he left.]

[Dampier didn’t live up to his salary but helped Dallas win the championship by being used as a trade card for Chandler. He shouldn’t be disappointed if Dallas missed the championship because he didn’t perform well.]

Youngjae stepped onto the court, recalling Coach Carlisle’s instructions.

‘Atlanta’s inside game is weak due to Al Horford’s injury. And while Hinrich is a player who can defend the 2-guard position, he is slow and has weaknesses in perimeter defense. As a result, Joe Johnson and Josh Smith are under a lot of pressure.’

Since Smith would be guarding Nowitzki anyway, and Chandler has no offensive ability, it was inevitable that he would be assigned many roles in this game as well. Marion is a player who can post up [play close to the basket], so Joe Johnson would have to guard him, and in the end, his matchup would be Kirk Hinrich.

‘Atlanta has good pick-and-roll defense [a defensive strategy against a screen]. They are a team with low height and good mobility. Today, we will maximize our size advantage and utilize post-up options as much as possible. The best option is to create mismatches through pick-and-rolls and then post up.’

Tap!

[The game has started with a jump ball. As expected, Tyson Chandler wins the jump ball.]

Chandler tipped the ball, and it naturally went into Kidd’s hands. Kidd slowly dribbled and crossed the half-court line, carefully observing the players’ movements. He stared at Jeff Teague on the right wing, dribbled for a moment, and slowly began to initiate the attack.

[Oh! Kirk Hinrich fails to anticipate Youngjae Yoon’s movement!]

The moment Kidd dribbled the ball, Youngjae sprinted from the right side to the top of the key, and the veteran Nowitzki blocked Hinrich’s path with a screen.

[Is Youngjae Yoon going to drive? He received the ball at the top!]

[Jeff Teague quickly runs towards Youngjae Yoon! That’s intelligent defense!]

The instant Hinrich lost track of Youngjae, Teague abandoned Kidd and rushed towards Youngjae, sticking to him tightly. If he could delay him even momentarily, Hinrich could recover to Kidd, and if he persistently stayed with Youngjae, he could reorganize the collapsing defensive structure.

“…”

Youngjae recognized Teague’s clever play and determined that a quick drive was impossible. However, he decided to feign a drive to draw at least two defenders, disrupting Atlanta’s defense. With his back to the basket, Youngjae leaned against Teague.

Whoosh!

[Youngjae Yoon! Spins with his left foot as the pivot! Reverse spin again!!!!]

[Instantly changing direction from counterclockwise to clockwise and shaking off Jeff Teague! That’s what you call an artistic spin move!]

Teague felt a wave of humiliation, as if he’d been robbed in broad daylight, and chased after Youngjae with gritted teeth. Seeing Youngjae penetrate to the high post, Joe Johnson had no choice but to converge on him as well.

Swish-

[Kick out!!!! Joe Johnson is tied to Youngjae Yoon and can’t follow his assigned player!!!]

[When did he get out to the perimeter?! Shawn Marion, THREE POINT!!!]

Teague’s defensive lapse immediately created an open perimeter opportunity.

Swish!

[GOT IT!!! SHAWN MARION GOT IT!!!]

[Nice shot, Shawn Marion! You have to make those open shots!]

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

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

★Thank you for the sponsorship coupon, fecvvn!!

＠There are only a few teams left that haven’t been described in a game. I’m trying to depict games with as many different teams as possible. That’s why the match against Atlanta, the epitome of sadness and a symbol of non-existence, is included. Whether it’s basketball or baseball… their popularity doesn’t match their performance.

＠Shaq’s adopted son, McGee, has finally entered the game. It will be interesting to see if he will become the hero of Shaqtin’ a Fool [a segment on Inside the NBA showcasing comical plays] again this season, or if he will become a starting-level center for the McGee-Sir Jordan rivalry.

Naye, Black Moon Flower Night, ㅎ0ㅎ, -DarkANGEL-/// That’s right. I was uploading with peace of mind because it was quiet for a while… I wonder if I should copy and paste the afterwords and re-comments like before.

Yabes/// I think there is enough possibility. The players are young, so there will be fewer stamina problems. They have also achieved 15 consecutive wins… However, my personal opinion is that most high-winning percentage teams struggle in the second half, and if the gap with second place is large, they will allocate more stamina to the starters, which is the main issue.

Ultra10/// Haha, you must have been very busy. Dallas is different from Golden State and has no choice but to become similar to San Antonio. They trade core players or acquire free agents, and supplement role players with drafts or free agency. Even then, in reality, the players they get with the lower picks in the first round are hopeless compared to San Antonio… In the novel, they hit the jackpot with Youngjae and Parsons. Carlisle also prefers veterans. Still, a plan to continue to be a championship contender is definitely possible. The salary cap will be cleared every 3-4 years. Of course, without a master like Carlisle, they are not an overwhelming force. And thank you for the coupon!!

Goddess Yuri Praise, Disappearing Soul, Financia/// Thank you for the comments!!

Lee Dongseok Dong/// Haha, it’s a bit old. I can vaguely sympathize up to 94.

goimosp/// I think there is a high possibility of achieving 67 wins.

Illumine/// It’s a sweet seasoning ㅋㅋㅋ