Y13 [EN]: Chapter 261

Y13-261 (261/296)

00261 2011-2012 Playoff Round 1 =========================================================================

“If that’s what you think, I won’t stop you anymore. No one can tell a player like you how to play. You have to experience it and feel it to change it.”

Nowitzki finished with a slightly disappointed expression. As he said, it was impossible for even the coach, general manager, or a legend to force their style or thoughts on a player who had reached a certain level. Even if the prodigy was a young player. Because he was young, it was right for him to experience and feel things and find a way that suits him.

“Nowitzki, aren’t you overestimating me? Honestly, my performance this season, the reason I’m scoring so much is just because I kept at it. I never intended to be like Kobe Bryant or Allen Iverson, and it would be impossible anyway. My role model is closer to Nash. So I think I’m prioritizing passing and efficiency. I think my direction is a little different from what you want.”

Nowitzki readily admitted it with a smile, realizing he hadn’t considered that aspect of Youngjae’s serious tone.

“If you’ve decided to go that way, you have to do it. Of course, I don’t want you to take unreasonable tough shots either. But if you get a chance, I hope you don’t hesitate to shoot. That can lead Dallas, and you, to a higher place.”

Youngjae couldn’t say anything else to Nowitzki. He couldn’t refuse the sacred moment when he was trusted by the lonely ace who had led Dallas alone for more than ten years and shared the role of ace.

“I’ll do my best to live up to your expectations.”

“Yeah, that’s enough.”

Just then, Chandler and Barea arrived at Nowitzki’s house. When Nowitzki’s girlfriend and Emily, who were chatting on the second floor, came down, the atmosphere became lively in an instant.

As expected, Chandler, with his good social skills, eased the atmosphere by greeting everyone. Barea’s girlfriend, whom he had confidently brought, was none other than Miss Puerto Rico (Barea is Puerto Rican), and Barea was busy bragging about his girlfriend to everyone. Emily was the only celebrity among them, so she received the most questions, but Youngjae answered appropriately from the side, and Emily also answered calmly, so the atmosphere was pretty good.

“Is everyone having a good time?”

And the last person to appear was none other than coach Rick Carlisle. He was wearing the same suit he wore on the court, but unlike usual, he appeared with a slightly smiling expression. The players, without exception, offered coach Carlisle food, soda, and fruit. He always had a serious face on the court, but he was a fun person in private.

The schnitzel and schweinshaxe [German pork knuckle] were very popular. In particular, the schnitzel with a handful of onions fried in oil to add flavor was a hit, and the players ate it ravenously. Even the girlfriends or wives who accompanied the players were surprised when they tasted the schnitzel.

Youngjae, watching Chandler devour the schnitzel, teased, “Is it that good?” Chandler replied, “Yes! It’s a taste I can’t give up!” He even stabbed a piece of schnitzel from Youngjae’s plate with a fork and shoved it into his mouth.

“There’s a lot, so eat slowly. You look like someone is chasing you.”

Chandler, who was choked up, gulped down soda and took a break.

“How can the Defensive Player of the Year fall one step further than last year?”

“Ugh!”

Chandler groaned as if he had been stabbed while cutting the schweinshaxe on the plate with a knife, and Youngjae seemed to find the reaction funny and kept ribbing Chandler.

[2011-2012 Defensive Player of the Year: 1st Serge Ibaka, 2nd Dwight Howard, 3rd LeBron James, 4th Tyson Chandler.]

“Before this season, you said you wouldn’t do things half-heartedly while receiving a lot of money, but in the end, you didn’t win the Defensive Player of the Year again this year. You also missed the All-Star Game. Chandler’s pride, who likes titles, is wounded…”

Chandler glanced around and then poked Youngjae hard in the side with his elbow. Youngjae let out a groan and glared at Chandler.

“It’s a shame. Of course, it’s a shame, but my biggest goals for this season were a long-term contract for a stable career and a healthy year without injuries. Since both of these have been met, I don’t have much regret. I’m satisfied that the team trusts me and that there are tactics for me.”

“Pretending to be cool while cruelly stabbing a second-year player in the side…”

Poke!

“Ugh!”

“Ahem, so, the thing is… It’s true that I want money and popularity, but the court is a place where I’m evaluated fairly for what I do. I have to accept the result that I did just that much.”

Chandler wasn’t satisfied with just poking him in the side, and he started teasing Youngjae with a playful expression.

“Then you’re in second place again. Second place for Rookie of the Year, second place for Most Improved Player (MIP). Are you going to keep being in second place? Like Elgin Baylor?”

[Elgin Baylor: 0 championships – 9 runner-ups, 0 MVPs – 3 times in 2nd place, 0 scoring titles – 6 times in 2nd place. His only MVP is the All-Star Game MVP, which is just an exhibition game. He’s known for consistently being the runner-up.]

“Huh, I already won the championship last year. That person has 9 finals appearances and 9 runner-ups. I’m already someone who can’t be in the runner-up line.”

…

Poke!

“Ugh!”

“Anyway, you missed the chance to become the Most Improved Player (MIP)? Aren’t you sad? Now that you’re at this level, you won’t have another chance to win the Most Improved Player?”

Youngjae stroked his side, which had been battered by three elbow attacks, and answered Chandler’s question.

“I’m human too, so how can I not be sad? I was honestly jealous last year too.”

Following Griffin, he was second in Rookie of the Year. And this year, he was second in Most Improved Player (MIP) after Ryan Anderson (Orlando Magic). For some reason, Youngjae, who was steadily following the runner-up… trend, honestly said that he was jealous. He came in second in the Rookie of the Year last season by a fairly large margin, and he came in second in this year’s Most Improved Player by a fairly large margin, so he was less sad. In addition, unlike the Rookie of the Year, the rate of improvement in this year’s Most Improved Player category was less than that of Ersan Ilyasova (Milwaukee). He wouldn’t have had anything to say even if he had come in third.

“Well, to be honest, I didn’t have much ambition in this year’s Most Improved Player category. The players below me had a greater rate of improvement than me. I think it would have been better to be below that than to be in second place.”

“Um, isn’t that a rich man’s complaint? You’re in second place?”

“Ah, well, Chandler is in 4th place, right? 2nd place is better than 4th place… Ugh!!!”

Youngjae’s side didn’t seem to have a break. After finishing all the delicious food, they started eating fruit and drinking soda for dessert. Coach Carlisle seemed to have something to say, and he started organizing his thoughts while closing his eyes. Nowitzki approached his girlfriend and whispered quietly.

“Honey, we’ll go have coffee at a cafe near here. Feel free to talk.”

Nowitzki’s girlfriend, who heard the story from Nowitzki, lightly kissed Nowitzki and then took the women out in a group. Emily also clenched her right fist and told Youngjae to do well.

“…”

When only the players and coaching staff were left, coach Carlisle ate a piece of fruit with a serious expression and opened his mouth.

“The playoffs are just the beginning. Winning the first round doesn’t mean it’s over.”

Chandler Parsons, who was stepping onto the NBA stage for the first time this season, and Brandon Wright, who was also experiencing the playoffs for the first time, were nervous at coach Carlisle’s serious voice. The rest of the players who attended stopped playing around and focused on coach Carlisle’s words.

“Yeah, we’re doing well. I think so too. I also know that we can’t win every game. Even as a coach, I can’t be sure of a definite victory in basketball.”

Coach Carlisle sprinkled lemon juice on the soda, took a sip, and continued.

“1 win and 1 loss in the away game against the LA Clippers. I don’t think a 50% win rate in enemy territory is bad. But we could have confirmed the second round advance on the road. I’m not trying to find fault with anyone. I just want to say that if we had played with overall concentration, it wouldn’t have been such a close game. Everyone seemed to have come to their senses in the 4th game, but even one game like the 3rd game can be fatal in the higher stages.”

Kidd, the oldest player on the team, also nodded and spoke up.

“Our performance wasn’t very good when I looked at it from behind, not on the court. The passes were easy, and the movements were lazy. The passes need to be fast and accurate, and we need to move one step more than the opponent.”

“Kidd is right. We could have won. If we had, this place would be a small party hall, and we could have enjoyed the food and atmosphere in a slightly more friendly atmosphere. It’s a shame that we couldn’t. And even though we won the 4th game, the play started to slow down again because the score difference was so big. In the end, we couldn’t win comfortably.”

When Marion stepped up and said a word, the players who had been playing loosely that day had awkward expressions. It was true that they played easily and leisurely rather than hustling when the score difference was large.

“The victory is definitely on our side. But the playoffs are a stage where anything can happen. If the momentum is broken, a reverse sweep can happen. Even if we go up, it’s a loss to go to the 7th game. If a top team faces an 8th-place team with a good record against them and goes to the 7th game, they may lose due to physical burden in the future. It’s not too late to be careless after the season is over.”

“I understand.”

The players answered coach Carlisle while regaining their relaxed minds, and coach Carlisle nodded as if that was enough.

May 8, 2012. American Airlines Center.

[Hello! Playoff Round 1 Game 5 between the Dallas Mavericks and the LA Clippers! We will broadcast live on TNT. Kevin Harlan will be the caster, and Reggie Miller will be the commentator. Ah, the Clippers have returned to Dallas’ home! It’s too painful for the Clippers to have missed one game at home. If they had won 2 games at home, it would have been a 2:2 match.]

Reggie Miller nodded at Kevin Harlan’s comment and continued in a voice that couldn’t hide his excitement.

[That’s right. I thought they had laid the foundation for a rebound with the win in the 3rd game, but they unfortunately lost in the 4th game and were driven into an elimination situation. That’s how strong the Dallas Mavericks are! The Clippers have 3 games left, away – home – away, and the probability of winning all three games is very low.]

[For Dallas, it would be best to finish today’s game to conserve energy. If they win today, it’s a 5-day break, so it seems like a good break without any problems with the sense of the game. And it’s the best scenario to confirm the second round advance at home to celebrate and continue the momentum!]

The two were showing off their perfect chemistry and conveying the heat inside the American Airlines Center to the viewers as much as possible. Reggie Miller was careful, but he began to talk about his personal predictions for this game.

[If the Clippers want to avoid losing easily, they need to put up a fight with Dallas from the outside. The relatively weak defense is one of the Clippers’ biggest weaknesses. The Clippers desperately need the offensive power to offset that weakness. Players like Caron Butler, Vince Carter, Randy Foye, and Nick Young need to step up.]

Reggie Miller continued his opinion with a cautious expression.

[It’s a big problem that the Clippers’ 3-pointers are only 31% during the 4 games. It’s because Dallas’ perimeter defense is so good, but they have to break through this to win. Dallas… honestly, I don’t have much to say. Just do what you did in the regular season, or like the 1st, 2nd, and 4th games. It’s a team with good offensive and defensive balance, as well as good balance between the outside and the paint, so they can win if they just do what they’ve been doing. I think the biggest enemy is internal carelessness.]

As Reggie Miller’s story ended, the players from both teams began to come onto the court, and Kevin Harlan began to introduce the lineups of both teams in a lively voice.

[The lineups of both teams are the same throughout the series, so there’s no need to introduce them separately! There are no other changes today. Dallas starts with Jason Kidd, followed by Youngjae Yoon, Shawn Marion, Dirk Nowitzki, and Tyson Chandler, while the Clippers are Chris Paul, Vince Carter, Caron Butler, Blake Griffin, and DeAndre Jordan.]

[Coach Carlisle enjoys using unconventional tactics, but there’s no need to make changes in a series that’s going so well. On the other hand, the Clippers could have made changes, but coach Vinny Del Negro chose stability. It’s good to trust the players, but I don’t think the results will be different if you choose stability.]

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

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

＠Haha, you guys have said a lot about British food. I’ve heard from various places that British food isn’t that good, but it’s really infamous. First of all, I don’t know what it will be like because it’s a homestay format. Simple cooking… The person I’m going with has a long history of self-sufficiency, so I’ll trust their cooking skills ㅋㅋ. I can barely do even the most basic things.

＠Elgin Baylor… Among Korean NBA fans, he’s also called Kongjin Baylor. It’s hard to believe that he could be so unlucky with 1st place. Of course, it’s because Bill Russell, who won 11 championships in 13 years of his professional career, was in the same era. Because of Bill Russell, the player with the most championship rings in history, Elgin Baylor could only remain the crown prince of the LA Lakers.

＠Ryan Anderson won the Most Improved Player award by a fairly large margin. It was also the season that proved that it wasn’t just Howard’s help. And in terms of records, Ersan Ilyasova also has a slightly larger increase than Youngjae. In addition, MIP tends to value B->A level upgrades more than A->S level upgrades. Even recently, with the exception of Paul George, I don’t think there has ever been a player who has won MIP and entered the top ranks of the MVP race. Even in the past, there has never been a player who has won MIP and won MVP throughout his career.

＠Chandler is the season in which he received the only Defensive Player of the Year in his career, but he doesn’t win it in the story. This is because Dallas was a strong defensive team in the 10-11 season. There was not much improvement in team defense, and Chandler’s personal record was not greatly improved. To be honest, Ibaka’s defense is not very good compared to his block stats, but he was actually 2nd in the voting, so he was just given the Defensive Player of the Year. In reality, it was 1st Chandler, 2nd Ibaka, 3rd Howard, and 4th LeBron. I’m sorry to Chandler, but I couldn’t help but consider these various cases.

By the way/// Is water also a problem? Well, I heard that many countries in Europe have to buy water…

ㅎ0ㅎ, Omariyon/// It seems to be a tomb of food ㅋㅋ. The famous restaurants in England are actually French or Italian restaurants…

Ultra10/// That’s right. If they are both possible players, they may be able to play depending on the condition of the day, the opposing team, and the opposing player. If so, I think it will be more powerful than a player who can only do one thing.

Grand Line, Sardine/// I can only do really simple cooking… The person I’m going with has a long history of self-sufficiency, so I’ll trust that person. And it’s a homestay format, so I think it’s better than a dormitory.

Visible Ray/// Ah, please don’t do that… (collapsed)

Disappearing Soul, Financia/// Thank you for your comments!! Have a nice weekend^^

-DarkANGEL-/// Thank you for your support^^ Thank you for always leaving comments~

Old/// Thank you for the coupon. I will work hard until the end^^

Mongury/// Thank you for making my work your first comment!! I will definitely come back and finish it!!