Y13 [EN]: Chapter 28

Y13-28. Workout

While Youngjae and Duffy were having their meeting, two men were in an office in Texas, talking. The two men were Mark Cuban, the owner of the Dallas Mavericks, and Donnie Nelson, the GM [General Manager]. They had been working together as owner and president/GM for years, so they skipped the formalities and got straight to the point.

“Donnie, is the workout preparation complete?”

“Of course. I’m looking around to get a late first-round pick. The level of this draft is decent, so I think we can draft a good rookie with this pick. I think we can get enough picks.”

“Late in the first round… Is it impossible to get a higher pick?”

“Yes, it seems like we need a pretty big sacrifice to get a lottery pick in the teens. Most of them want Beaubois. They don’t like Dampier or other expiring contracts, and we’re not offering them for other player trades.”

“Beaubois is too much for a lottery pick in the teens, not the top pick. Then we have no choice. Then let’s assume that pick and do a workout.”

Cuban is a basketball fanatic and is considered the owner who interferes most in team operations among the owners. It should be seen as an owner who interferes a lot in a good sense rather than a bad sense. Of course, he has an eye for players and knows a lot about team management. He is a passionate person who does not hesitate to pay luxury taxes to strengthen the team’s power. He watches almost every home game in person and shares the joy of victory with the players. He has many aspects that are hard to see in owners of other sports teams.

“Please look at the data. First, James Anderson.

6-6 (198cm) 208 lbs (94Kg) SG/SF [Shooting Guard/Small Forward]

Strengths

Good size, efficient offensive game (average 46% field goal in college career), textbook shooting form and high shooting point, shooting ability regardless of distance, excellent receiving talent, good defense in the post, good wingspan compared to the same class. Good defensive power. Equipped with leadership and responsibility

Weaknesses

Ball handling, lack of ability to create offensive opportunities for himself or his teammates, not properly utilizing his athletic ability despite having it, many turnovers and offensive fouls. Needs BQ [Basketball IQ] learning. He is a natural shooter, but not a natural basketball player. Need to build more muscle.

“Next is Dominique Jones.”

6-5 (196cm) 216 lbs (98Kg) SG [Shooting Guard]

Strengths

Powerful play. Overwhelming wingspan and free throw ability (1st in NCAA free throw productivity per minute). Top-class agility, powerful slasher who can attack the rim, low turnover rate compared to assist rate, excellent rebound ability compared to height

Weaknesses

Unstable ball handling, lack of mid-range and 3-point ability, average athletic ability, simple offensive options. Lack of BQ [Basketball IQ] and man-to-man defense.

“Next is Youngjae Yoon.”

6-5 (196cm) 205 lbs (93Kg) PG/SG [Point Guard/Shooting Guard]

Strengths

Stable ball handling, shooting guard who can lead. Consistent field goal percentage without ups and downs, can shoot from any spot on the court. Skilled 2:2 play using picks. High BQ [Basketball IQ] and understanding of tactics, top-level assist-to-turnover ratio, excellent leadership and high mentality. Excellent defender.

Weaknesses

Average athletic ability (power, jumping ability), average size (wingspan, standing reach), low statistical reliability due to low conference performance, lack of experience in big games, lack of samples due to rapid growth compared to high school days.

“These are the three shooting guard rookies we can choose. Anderson and Jones are being mentioned as 20-30 picks, and Yoon is being mentioned as 25-35 picks. The scouting team sees Anderson as the highest, and opinions are divided on Jones and Yoon. I want to put Yoon first, Anderson second, and Jones third.”

“Donnie, is that your judgment? As someone who has seen Jones play in person, I have high expectations for Jones. He is an excellent slasher and I think he can provide us with the athletic ability and breakthrough options that we lack. On the other hand, I think Anderson and Yoon are relatively lacking in breakthrough ability.”

“Cuban, I have also received and watched the games of the three. This is the conclusion I came to as a result. Our team does not have the capacity to raise rookies like uncut gems right now. In my judgment, Yoon has the highest level of completion, followed by Anderson and Jones. I know that rookies with a high level of completion below the lottery pick often fail to perform as expected in the NBA. However, given our team’s circumstances, I think it’s better to gamble on a finished rookie than an uncut gem.”

“But we saw the results of Beaubois last year. Beaubois was an uncut gem and a finished player. There are still many things to be refined, but he was also named the best steal pick (a player who performed better than expected) last year. Fans and I have high expectations for him this year.”

“I want to be stable and cautious rather than gambling. If Cuban disagrees with me, I think it would be better to discuss it again after the workout.”

After the meeting between Youngjae and Bill Duffy regarding the workout, Youngjae was further motivated and accelerated his personal training. He gradually digested the workout schedule, which had different dates, times, and locations.

Youngjae and Duffy always talked to the team’s front office and coaching staff at every workout to understand their intentions and to find out how much the team thought of Youngjae.

“May is already over. Now only the last team, the Dallas Mavericks, remains.”

Youngjae and Duffy recalled the Memphis Grizzlies workout they had just finished and talked about it on the plane.

“The Memphis Grizzlies currently own two picks, 25th and 28th. Considering the current Memphis roster, Mike Conley and O.J. Mayo have solidified their positions as starting guards, but backup resources are ridiculously lacking, so they are looking for a backup guard. It seems they want to strengthen the bench to get into the playoffs next season.”

“What are the positive aspects?”

“The positive thing is that Memphis’ starters are very overworked. Last year, the average playing time of the five starters was between 36 and 40 minutes. That means the backup is weak. Marcus Williams and Jamaal Tinsley were there, but their contracts have expired. If Yoon does reasonably well, I think he can secure more than 20 minutes of playing time per game.”

Youngjae nodded at Duffy’s words. Even though the experiences from his previous life were accumulated in the form of memories, he did not have a thorough understanding of the situation of every team, so Duffy’s existence was a great strength for Youngjae.

“Oklahoma City also seemed to be interested in Yoon. The reaction was positive even during the workout. But Oklahoma City is not a good choice for Yoon or Oklahoma City.”

“I guess it can’t be helped because the guard lineup is strong.”

In the case of Oklahoma, Thabo Sefolosha, who was enjoying his prime, and Russell Westbrook, whose skills were improving rapidly, were the starting guards, and James Harden, who was a bench ace as a sixth man, was firmly holding his position. Even Eric Maynor, who was still young, was holding out as the fourth guard. At best, Youngjae would be assigned only about 5 minutes or sent down to the D-League [NBA Development League] to develop players.

Breaking through this hellish guard lineup and being included in the candidates was a huge challenge for Youngjae. Of course, he was not in a position to choose a team while considering all of these things, but he could not help but be reluctant if there were few opportunities to play.

“In the case of Portland, the guard lineup is too thick in quantity rather than quality.”

Andre Miller, Rudy Fernandez, Patty Mills, and Brandon Roy, who would have made a big mark in the NBA if it weren’t for injuries. There were four guards, and Steve Blake and Jarrett Bayless were playing until last year. It was still undecided whether they would extend their contracts or leave. Compared to the two teams above, Portland had the smallest gap in skill among the guards, but the largest and thickest number of guards.

“Of course, Andre Miller is an aging player in his mid-30s, Brandon Roy has a lot of minor injuries, and Patty Mills’ skills have not blossomed as much as expected, so it is worth aiming for, but the coach is likely to prefer the guards who have been working together for several years. If Yoon does not show better skills than the four players, it may be difficult to even make the roster.”

“That’s right. I was feeling that way too.”

Duffy handed over the last document, ‘Dallas Mavericks’, and carefully told his thoughts.

“Of course, I can guarantee that Yoon’s excellent ability is currently at a satisfactory level in all clubs. In fact, the news about Yoon in the club is eliciting a very positive response. But… As Yoon knows, it has never happened in NBA history that an Asian guard has succeeded. Besides, they won’t be satisfied with Yoon alone, and even if they are satisfied, it is difficult to know exactly how satisfied they are. And as Yoon feels, the opinion that Yoon may be a fluke is still being discussed, although it is quiet.”

An Asian guard who could be a gamble with no chance of success. Youngjae could only develop one step further if he broke that limit. Youngjae knew this well, so he didn’t say anything.

“First of all, Oklahoma City has picks 21, 26, and 51. Since they have a strong guard lineup and the forward lineup is weak, they will probably aim for Yoon with 51 if he is not selected by another team rather than picking Yoon in the first round, or aim for him in the second round through a pick-up. It seems unlikely that they will select Yoon, who is being mentioned between 25 and 35, in the first round.

In the case of the Memphis Grizzlies, they are planning to sell the 25th pick to the Dallas Mavericks for cash, so they will select Yoon with the remaining 28th pick. It seems that Memphis is also aiming for Gravis Vasquez along with Yoon, but if they saw how Yoon cooked Vasquez in the Maryland game, then Yoon will probably be selected with the 28th pick.”

Yoon was feeling much better that he was unexpectedly in competition with Gravis Vasquez. When he looked back on his past memories, Gravis Vasquez was selected by Memphis in this draft. He would have had difficulty remembering if Duffy hadn’t told him, but he vaguely remembered him because he was a player he had faced several times in the NBA.

“It is questionable whether Portland will nominate the guard lineup again because the guard lineup is originally solid. They have two picks, 22nd and 34th. If they do not sign an extension contract with the two guards whose contracts have expired, they will invest one pick in the guard lineup.”

“So, what is certain is that Memphis is 28th, Oklahoma is undecided. Portland will definitely use one of 22nd and 34th.”

“That’s right. Of course, it is uncertain whether those picks will be nominated for Yoon. As you know, the draft day is when several people are tested in the workout, and the results are sometimes contrary to the Mock Draft [a prediction of which players will be selected and in what order during the NBA draft].”

“Of course. I know that too. Even if they show a positive reaction, we will only know if it is lip service or real on draft day. This is the last one. I have to finish the Dallas Mavericks workout with all my might.”

Youngjae smiled and vowed to squeeze out his last strength.

============================ Author’s Note ============================

Rodrigo Beaubois, who appears in the conversation between Mark Cuban and Donnie Nelson, is the first player in NBA history to achieve 50% field goal percentage, 40% 3-point percentage, and 80% free throw percentage in his rookie season with the 25th pick in 2009. Although he was not able to win the Rookie of the Year award due to receiving too little time allocation according to coach Rick Carlisle’s time allocation, the expectations at the time were so high that he was marked as a pillar to succeed Nowitzki.

Draft Day refers to the official draft day. As of 2010, it is June 26.

Cutie Dong/// He is a quirky owner among the quirky ones. Full of passion and spirit!!

Service/// The place to go is slowly becoming clear.

Bangtoe/// New Orleans does not have a pick in 20-40 at this time. Only 11 picks. They will pick down on draft day…

Baekye///I guess you like Okl.

dydqlsl, Let’s eat meat///Okl is flawless at this time with Westbrook, Sefolosha, and Harden. Is it really hellish Southwest??!!

Purota/// At this time, Harden is not in MVP mode this season, but he was still a top-class bench ace who could easily score 20 points. Besides, there is also Sefolosha, a high-level 3&D [three-point shooter and defender] shooting guard… If the main character goes here, Sefolosha may have to move to small forward.

As you said, Dallas is a nursing home and a team with very little energy level.

Milk Child/// Okl will be very competitive, but Memphis has a very thin roster at this time. You can be guaranteed bench time if you do a little bit well.

Thank you for your advance reading, recommendation, and comments!!