Y13 [EN]: Chapter 292

When Shane Battier’s corner three-pointer splashed through the net on their first possession, Dallas didn’t just stand by. They had been guarding, but as if hit by a surprise blow that pierced their defenses, Dallas began to counter the Miami Heat with fluid passing and a barrage of jump shots.

[Youngjae Yoon receives a pass from Kidd and delivers an entry pass to Nowitzki, who is backing down Bosh.]

As Youngjae delivered the entry pass to Nowitzki, the other players on Dallas moved away from Nowitzki. This was to prevent Miami from sending help defenders against Nowitzki, and if they did help, Nowitzki would pass to the open man for a shot.

[Chris Bosh is guarding him! He’s not being pushed back by strength, and it looks like he’s making Nowitzki work for position!]

However, even if Nowitzki couldn’t overpower Bosh with strength, his shooting touch was crucial for his turnaround fadeaway shot, released from his towering 7-foot frame. And if Dallas didn’t have other reliable scorers besides Nowitzki, he would have forced the shot himself, but that wasn’t the case now. When Nowitzki’s post-up didn’t go as planned, he passed the ball back out.

Whoosh-

[Dirk Nowitzki passes it back out again. Chris Bosh defended well, preventing Nowitzki from getting the shot he wanted.]

Nowitzki passed the ball to Youngjae and ran back to the wing, setting a light screen. It was a familiar play that didn’t require any signals. Youngjae delivers the entry pass, and if Nowitzki’s post-up doesn’t work, he passes it back out for a 2-2 play.

Thud!

[Youngjae Yoon! He naturally uses Dirk Nowitzki’s screen!]

“Tch!”

Youngjae and Nowitzki’s 2-2 play was a fundamental part of the Dallas offense. Wade was slightly caught on the screen, creating some space between him and Youngjae, but he quickly chased after Youngjae.

Thump-

Youngjae quickly drove into the open space between the high post and low post. While Wade trailed behind him and Joel Anthony guarded the rim, Marion, like the Hulk, shook off LeBron from the left side and cut towards the basket. Youngjae, with his excellent court vision, threaded a fantastic bounce pass to Marion.

“Woooaaah!!!”

KWA-BANG!!

M Marion safely secured the ball, leaped up, and slammed it down with a powerful one-handed dunk.

[WOW!!! Y13 TO MATRIX!!!]

[Both teams exchanged impressive plays in the first possession. LeBron James clearly recognized the cut-in play, but Marion’s timing was perfect!]

[Shawn Marion’s movement was good. Yoon could have attempted a rim attack (dunk, layup, floater, etc.), but passing to Marion led to a much easier opportunity.]

With 9 minutes left in the first quarter, the score was 21 to 20. The one-point lead went back and forth. The bench players of both teams, waiting for substitutions, applauded and cheered for the players on the court, boosting their morale.

Tap-

[Tip! Mario Chalmers threw a pass from the right side to Dwyane Wade on the wing that was too easily read! The timing and speed were bad for Wade, who was being closely guarded. Fortunately, Youngjae didn’t steal it, even though the pass was strong.]

Beeeep-

[Out-of-bounds. At the same time, players from both teams are being substituted. For Miami, Dwyane Wade and Joel Anthony are out, and James Jones and Shane Battier are in. For the Dallas Mavericks, J.J. Barea, who played a key role, Dirk Nowitzki, who showed 100% shooting accuracy with 3/3, and Tyson Chandler, who grabbed 2 points and 3 rebounds, are out, and Jason Kidd, Chandler Parsons, and Brandon Wright are in.]

[With this lineup, LeBron will play power forward and Bosh will play center for the Miami Heat, and Marion will play power forward and Parsons will play small forward for the Dallas Mavericks.]

After Game 1 of the Finals, Coach Carlisle managed Youngjae’s stamina and created opportunities for him to be more active offensively by minimizing his matchup with Dwyane Wade. To reduce Youngjae’s defensive burden against Wade, he put Brewer in at the same time as Wade as much as possible and assigned Brewer to defend Wade.

Whoosh-

The game resumed with Shane Battier’s pass. LeBron James, receiving the ball, slowly directed the play, instructing his teammates.

[LeBron James finishes his instructions at the top of the key. He’s finally moving!]

James, moving slightly to the left from the top of the key, drove straight at Marion. Marion, who had struggled to defend LeBron throughout the series but was showing near-perfect performance in this series, maintained incredible focus, mirrored LeBron’s penetration with a side step, and successfully slowed down and suppressed the momentum of the drive with his upper body strength.

[Ah! LeBron James! He keeps trying to break through, but he’s blocked!]

Adding to that, Parsons, who was guarding Battier on the left side, also closed in on LeBron, turning it into a double team. Even for the great LeBron, it was naturally overwhelming. Eventually, LeBron quickly looked up and scanned the opposite side.

‘Bosh, Chalmers, Jones!’

Without time to consider who to pass to, LeBron threw the ball with all his might to Chalmers, who was standing in the most direct line with him. Because the Dallas players were currently positioned inside the high post, forming a barrier around the rim, there was a momentary open look no matter where he passed.

‘…’

Chalmers knew he didn’t have time to hesitate either. Watching Youngjae close the distance in an instant, Chalmers made a move as if he would shoot a three-pointer, but Youngjae didn’t jump and only extended his right hand high, obstructing Chalmers’ vision and shot.

Thud!

[Ah! The fake doesn’t work! Mario Chalmers ends up attempting a drive!]

As if he knew the drive was coming, Youngjae didn’t panic at all, took a step back, regained his balance, and met Chalmers’ drive with his upper body. Chalmers wanted to make Youngjae pay, who always seemed to read him, both last year and this year.

“Ugh!!!”

Burning with such personal animosity, Chalmers leaped towards the rim with Youngjae in front of him. At that moment, Youngjae kept his hands together in front of him, held his ground, and absorbed Chalmers’ leap with his whole body. He had to avoid colliding arms to avoid being called for a foul for hitting the attacker’s hand or arm.

Thud!

To make matters worse for Youngjae, Chalmers even placed his left hand on Youngjae’s shoulder. Youngjae couldn’t withstand it and fell backward smoothly, and Chalmers, gritting his teeth at Youngjae’s fall, concentrated on his fingertips and successfully made the layup.

Swish-

Beeeep!!!

“Ouch!”

Chalmers, who had fallen on top of Youngjae, quickly raised his head at the ominous whistle sound.

“No count! Offensive foul!!!”

[Mario Chalmers offensive foul!!!]

[It was greed! If the fake didn’t work, he should have passed the ball, but it was a reckless drive.]

Chalmers got up with a frustrated expression and trudged back to the backcourt. Brandon Wright and Chandler Parsons, who were nearby, each grabbed one of Youngjae’s hands and helped him up.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m okay. It wasn’t a dangerous fall.”

Perhaps because he fell backward so smoothly, Youngjae didn’t feel much impact. He didn’t intend to draw an offensive foul, but Chalmers recklessly put his shoulder on him, resulting in the foul being called. If that hadn’t happened, it would have been a difficult layup, and the probability of it missing would have been high.

“Slowly!”

Jason Kidd, as expected, skillfully controlled the tempo. Even though his speed had decreased a lot, his basketball IQ hadn’t diminished, so just having him lead the offense was quite stabilizing.

Kidd dribbled the ball for a moment, then turned his back to the defender as if posting up, and subtly passed the ball to Youngjae, who was approaching with a hand-off. In a hand-off pass, the player with the ball becomes the screener, so the player receiving the ball can shake off his defender.

[Youngjae Yoon receives Kidd’s hand-off pass and drives in!]

As soon as Youngjae received the ball at the top of the key, Parsons began to sprint at an incredible speed, as if a track athlete had heard the starting gun. He started by driving from the top towards the left wing, and from the left wing back towards the rim.

[Oh! Youngjae Yoon’s use of screens is amazing as always! Mario Chalmers is a little late because he gets caught on Kidd’s screen.]

Chalmers, who slightly lost Youngjae due to Kidd’s screen, followed Youngjae as closely as possible, but Youngjae was already near the low post. Eventually, Shane Battier, who was guarding Parsons on the left side, came inside to cover and double-team.

Whoosh!!

[Youngjae Yoon’s amazing kick-out! To Chandler Parsons, who was raising his hand on the perimeter!]

[It’s a perfect open chance! Youngjae Yoon’s clean passing as always.]

The lightly thrown ball landed perfectly in Parsons’ hand, and Parsons, seeing the wide-open rim with no one around, shot comfortably as if he were practicing.

Swish-

[BANG!!!!]

[He’s a reliable 3-point shooter. Chandler Parsons!! This is one of the reasons why he is heavily used even though he is a rookie. His 3-point shooting is really good compared to his free throws.]

[He’s really one of those players with a big gap between his 3-point and free throw percentages. His free throw percentage is below 60%, but his 3-point percentage is over 35%. Usually, 3-point and free throw percentages are proportional, but there are exceptions sometimes. Parsons is one of those exceptions.]

Parsons’ main strengths were fast breaks using his quick speed, smart cut-ins, and reliable open 3-pointers. And his activity level was high, ranking among the top in the league in distance covered per game.

The score was 24 to 20. It was the first time Dallas had taken a 4-point lead since the start of the game. Youngjae lightly clenched his right fist.

“Hoo.”

This time, Chalmers attempted to dribble. Chalmers slowly dribbled the ball over, dribbling far away from the top of the key, and Youngjae didn’t bother to pressure him, lowering his stance near the 3-point line and concentrating so that he could react at any moment.

Whoosh-

At that moment, Chalmers threw a safe pass to LeBron James, who was drifting out to the free-throw line.

[Mario Chalmers to LeBron James.]

Instead of Marion, who momentarily lost track of LeBron James’ movement, Parsons, who was guarding Battier on the left wing, quickly noticed and moved to contest LeBron James as soon as he received the ball.

“?!”

However, LeBron James didn’t seem to be bothered by Parsons standing in front of him, and he jumped up as soon as he caught the ball. Parsons jumped up and extended his hand, determined to make LeBron regret that play.

[LeBron James, spot-up jumper!]

[But Chandler Parsons’ height, coming from 6-9, will be a challenge! Chandler Parsons shows quick reaction speed and smart defense, but he is physically weaker, so a drive would have been a better option for LeBron…]

The jumper, shot with a slight fadeaway, brushed past the tip of Parsons’ middle finger. Parsons tried as hard as he could to alter the trajectory of the ball, but it passed by too closely.

Thump-

[Is it a little short?!]

Swish!

[BANG!!!]

[LeBron James hits a big shot. The momentum shifts back to Miami. LeBron James’ eyes seem even more intense today.]

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

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

半님, magara님/// Yes. The typo has been corrected. Thank you for pointing out the typo.

Han512님, 미얄마님, CountOfDark남, 사라질영혼님, 오마리온님//// Thank you for your comments as always. Have a great weekend tomorrow~~

goimosp님/// San Antonio’s play wasn’t very good either. Personally, I think San Antonio got the benefit of home-court calls. Of course, Cleveland also imploded in the third quarter as Irving messed up badly, LeBron ran out of stamina, and J.R. got into early foul trouble. San Antonio vs. Golden State… It will be difficult unless Aldridge and Duncan’s condition improves. If Aldridge and Duncan’s mid-range shots don’t go in, Parker and Ginobili’s reckless drives will be less effective. On the other hand, Golden State needs to do its best to manage injuries.

야베스님/// Ah, both power forwards were putting on a terrible show. Neither of them is living up to their maximum value. Still, Aldridge’s overall season record is better than Love’s, and he shows potential for a rebound, but I don’t know about Love;;; I don’t think he’ll be as good as Bosh during his Miami days.

은빛거북님/// The Finals MVP usually comes from the winning team. If Miami wins, it’s definitely LeBron, and for Dallas, it’s a battle between Youngjae vs. Nowitzki.

강자일님/// Cleveland is still hopeless at this time. LeBron’s contract is also still in effect. He can definitely leave again in 2014.

흑월화야님/// It’s really frustrating to lose because of one point, especially because of yourself;; There are many players who have a mental breakdown because of that…

anguqwhdk님/// Yes. The next season will see Allen’s transfer, but the completion of the small lineup and hedge & recovery tactics will be a big factor. Please enjoy reading how the next season unfolds.

ㅎ0ㅎ님/// That’s the perfect song ㅎㅎ

v천상천황v님/// Oh, you binge-read it quickly. You stayed up all night, wow… Thank you for enjoying it. Comments like these really give us strength.

파이넨시아님/// Thank you for reading it despite your busy schedule.

eastarea님/// I’m a fan of Kongshin, but what about Youngjae??!!