Y13 [EN]: Chapter 38

Y13-38 (38/296)

Summer League

Ty Lawson, with his increasingly reckless plays, was gradually losing trust and resorting to nothing but forced moves. Whether it was a dribble penetration seemingly to solve everything himself, or a pump fake followed by a jumper… the Denver players were just making meaningless trips up and down the court. Eventually, Denver’s coach kept Ty Lawson on the bench.

“Coach Casey, here are Yoon’s stats.”

“Thanks. Ah, a steal.”

As soon as Youngjae made a steal, he launched a fast break. Exhausted by Youngjae’s diverse and lightning-fast offensive plays, the Denver Nuggets players wearily retreated to their back-court, as if they didn’t want to play the game.

“Yoon played for 15 minutes out of 27. He made 2/3 two-point shots, 1/1 three-point shots, totaling 7 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 steals. It seems a bit below expectations.”

Casey scoffed at the rookie coach who, knowing nothing, was just looking at the basic stats.

“Yoon’s performance today is below expectations?”

Casey was unfailingly polite to players who hadn’t officially trained on the Mavericks’ court, but in a way, he spoke with a distance. However, he spoke comfortably to those he recognized as coaches or Mavericks players.

“Or… could he be showing his limits?”

“Ha… you still have a long way to go. We’re clearly watching the same game. What about the other players’ stats?”

The rookie coach, slightly offended by Casey’s rebuke, sullenly recited the other players’ stats.

“Don’t you notice anything strange?”

The rookie coach, clueless, scanned the stat sheet again with a blank look.

“Coach Casey, you’re being too hard on a rookie still in training. Haha.”

At that moment, Terry Stotts, who had been quietly watching the game from behind, patted the rookie coach and spoke up in place of Casey.

“When Yoon is playing, don’t the other players’ stats improve dramatically compared to before?”

“Well… isn’t it just that the other players are doing well?”

“Look closely at the stat sheet. The difference in the players’ stats and our team’s score when Yoon is on the court versus when he’s not…”

The rookie coach examined the stat sheet closely for a while, and then, with a dumbfounded expression, he could only tremble with the hand holding the stat sheet.

“I-It can’t be. This is… 4 secondary assists [an assist that leads directly to another assist] and a court margin of +19 [the point differential while a player is on the court].”

“Right? Now we’re talking. Just shooting when it’s really necessary and when he knows he can score, providing high-percentage shots, is enough for a shooting guard. He fully utilizes his teammates, and when the offense isn’t working, he creates his own space to finish the attack. Since Bobb’a’s playmaking isn’t going well, he’s taking over the playmaking himself. He also doesn’t force passes to open players, but rather gives it to nearby players, ensuring it gets to the open player safely.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen a player make such intelligent plays in the Summer League during their rookie season. Usually, they play to stand out themselves. When Jeremy Lin came in for Yoon, it went relatively well, but when Yoon is on the court… the players’ movements change. They realize they’ll have opportunities too.”

Casey continued with a smile.

“Moreover, because they move efficiently, the points allowed also decrease, and most importantly, his ability boosts the morale of the other players. When morale is high, they gain confidence, and when they succeed in offense and defense, they feel comfortable and happy. That’s how Yoon plays right now. An invaluable 13th blessing to his allies. A terrible and dreadful Friday the 13th to his opponents. He’s a cursed player.”

Stotts Coach, hearing Casey’s words, spoke of another aspect.

“Of course, this may be possible because he was already drafted in the first round. Undrafted players inevitably have to focus on themselves. We inevitably focus on and give more opportunities to our own team members and high-potential first-round rookies rather than undrafted players. He understands that well. Rather than forcing himself to play selfishly, he knows what he needs to do for the team.”

Casey chuckled and casually said to Stotts.

“I’ve never seen a rookie like him either. It’s the first time in my coaching career that a rookie has such an attitude and such abilities. This morning, Yoon came to me and said he wanted to receive systematic endurance training. If you’re drafted in the first round at that age, you’re likely to become a little arrogant… you’d only want to do what you’re good at, but Yoon isn’t like that. Unlike a rookie, he still seems to be whipping himself, as if he’s still lacking.”

Before Casey could finish speaking, Youngjae once again chased after Ty Lawson’s step-back jumper, raised his hand to contest the shot, and successfully defended. He received the ball from a teammate who grabbed the rebound and controlled the tempo of the players.

“Look at the score.”

Before they knew it, it was the end of the third quarter. The score was 71 to 54. Rather than thinking, ‘Could it be overturned with 12 minutes left?’ it was such an overwhelming performance that they were thinking, ‘How many more points will the Mavericks score?’

“Yoon single-handedly stopped Ty Lawson, who is no exaggeration to say is the ace of the Denver Summer League team. He’s really smart. Like an old fox raising thousands of snakes in his belly.”

“That’s right. He’s provoking Ty Lawson’s pride and constantly forcing him into 1-on-1s and dribble penetrations. Of course, Yoon wouldn’t have been able to stop and provoke Lawson without his incredible reaction speed and excellent defensive skills. In that respect, Yoon is an excellent defender and the starting point of a clever offense.”

Only then did Coach Casey realize the true meaning of Youngjae coming to him in the morning to ask for training.

“Heh, cocky.”

Youngjae put an end to Coach Casey’s concerns in a single game. To Casey, who had advised that versatility could be a poison and that it might be better to hone his strengths, Youngjae seemed to be staging a silent protest with his performance, saying, ‘I want to improve even more. This is what I am now, so please develop me further.’

He was forcing them not to hesitate, insisting that he couldn’t fail because of his versatility, so please train him. As if Youngjae’s protest hadn’t stopped yet, he drove inside the lane right in front of Casey, then distanced himself from Lawson, who was following him, and moved to the outside. As expected, Bobb’a stood in a position where he could see Youngjae, and Bobb’a passed the ball to Youngjae without hesitation. Youngjae jumped as soon as he received it.

An unwavering shooting posture. A consistent and accurate shooting release. And a high release point.

Swish-

Youngjae made a three-pointer and quickly retreated to the backcourt.

“Good. Let’s raise him properly.”

“The method of using all the abilities that Yoon can use… I can’t explain it.”

Derek Armstrong. His words, spoken by a man with dark skin who still maintained the solid physique of his playing days, continued.

“Therefore, I can’t guarantee that this training is the exact answer. But I can’t think of any training that’s as efficient as this.”

“Ugh!”

Youngjae was getting pushed and shoved, letting out a groan, but Derek Armstrong was completely unfazed.

“Yoon, I think that extreme face-up [playing with your back to the basket] has created Youngjae’s weakness. Because he’s already achieving great efficiency with just face-ups. But if LeBron James, Kevin Durant, or John Wall, who was picked as the number one draft pick this year, were to block Yoon’s path, could he really beat them with just a face-up?”

“Eek!!”

Annoyed by Derek Armstrong’s clear words, Youngjae was furious. It was obvious. Even in his past life, when the bench and starting members were out of sync, he had to face those monstrous players. They were monsters, to the point where he would come out having done nothing, feeling utterly miserable. The fact that Youngjae could now face Ty Lawson, Rodrigo Bobb’a, etc., was easier because their skills hadn’t fully matured.

Youngjae was anxious. He had relied on his past experiences to get here and had grown, but he had to continue to grow. Youngjae judged that he was barely above his level in his past life. At that level, it would be difficult to even be a key bench member, let alone a starter.

“Hoo!”

That’s why Youngjae asked Coach Casey to continue receiving this grueling training from Derek Armstrong.

“The Summer League is less than halfway over. You seem to have gotten a bit of a feel for it over the past few days, but at that rate, Yoon may not have a place on the Mavericks soon.”

Blocking Youngjae’s back was none other than the team’s power forward, DeShawn Stevenson. Every day, DeShawn Stevenson or Rodrigo Bobb’a were Youngjae’s training partners, undergoing special training. In the case of Rodrigo Bobb’a, he was now able to penetrate using post-ups to some extent, but when the opponent changed to DeShawn Stevenson, Youngjae was completely stuck, like a clogged faucet.

‘Speed, flexibility, and power. What Coach Casey said can’t be just those three things.’

Youngjae is already skilled at using his body’s energy according to the situation. But can that ‘use according to the situation’ work when facing opponents of a similar level, or can it also work when he has to break through or block opponents who are far above his skill level?

He could say with certainty that it wouldn’t work. Youngjae knew that, so he was engrossed in and immersed in what he needed to find in this training. Derek Armstrong instructed Youngjae to break through the opponent with a post-up. Youngjae was completely fooled by Derek Armstrong’s words that even a single post-up would be fine, as long as he pushed the opponent with his back and butt just once, and then he could switch to a face-up.

Pushing the opponent with a post-up. But they don’t budge. The standard is to push the opponent away through a post-up, create a momentary time and a slight distance, and then switch to a face-up or use various dribbling and step skills to break through the opponent, but it doesn’t work from step 1.

‘Strength, speed, flexibility, thinking about everything… wait a minute.’

The first proposition itself is a mistake. If he bulks up right now, he will inevitably lose that much speed and flexibility. But the Mavericks’ coaches didn’t advise him on how to change his body, so it means that Youngjae’s current body is close to the most ideal body that the Mavericks want. And this training is clearly related to endurance, but most importantly, it’s about whether he can harmoniously bring out and use all his abilities when all of his body’s abilities are needed.

“Good.”

Youngjae pushed DeShawn Stevenson with great momentum. But as expected, DeShawn Stevenson seemed to just barely move back. Youngjae pushed a few times and then smiled at Derek Armstrong.

As if to say, watch closely.

Thump!

Dribbling the ball and pushing DeShawn Stevenson with all his might. Youngjae, who had gained some leg strength from the post-up training, pushed with all his might, and DeShawn Stevenson was surprised and had no choice but to step back about half a step.

“?!!”

But what surprised Armstrong was that very moment. Youngjae, who bounced forward about half a step, albeit slightly, using the pushing force as a reaction. Youngjae, who changed his thinking by turning the post-up into a technique to create distance rather than just a pushing technique.

“Ha, hahaha…”

Armstrong, who couldn’t have imagined that he would counterattack so ingeniously, swept his hair up from his forehead and could only laugh.

It was an ingenious idea, but since he was also training to continuously use strength with post-ups, as well as increasing his overall strength to make power forward DeShawn Stevenson, who was two positions above him, step back half a step, Stevenson was no longer Youngjae’s opponent.

That day, Armstrong’s report to Coach Casey was just one word.

‘Perfect’

============================ Author’s Afterword ============================

★Thank you to those who gave pre-orders, recommendations, comments, and coupons!!

※Secondary Assist: Also known as a second assist or assist-to-assist. It refers to the pass before the assist pass. For example, if A passes to B, and B passes to C, then B records an assist. A records a secondary assist here. I know that Korea doesn’t keep track of it. Many experts and fans in the NBA are using it.

Most of the top-ranked teams, and teams with good organic play (San Antonio, Atlanta, Golden State, etc. this season) all have high secondary assist numbers.

※Court Margin: The score difference between the two teams when the player is on the court. It is one of the stats that can show the player’s impact on the game, and it is always included in the official NBA box score. For example, if Youngjae has a court margin of +19 as in the text, it means that Dallas has a 19-point lead while Youngjae is playing. Secondary stats using court margin are widely used in the NBA.

＠ The NBA playoffs have begun. There are fewer games than the regular season, but it seems that much tighter and more exciting games will be played.

Laytime///It’s a 1-cost. Thank you!!

…(-1)…/// Dallas coach Rick Carlisle is a rookie hater and veteran lover… but there is a reason why this team’s coach tactics are so difficult and diverse. This coach will be explained later in the text.

lee2238///Thank you for the coupon!! I will try to work hard when the exam is over ㅜ.ㅜ

巨時期/// I’m also very sorry about that part. Of course, in Korea, salary evaluations would be calculated based on simple stats as you said. The NBA has developed a lot of secondary stats other than the visible primary stats. In recent years, Defensive Player of the Year Marc Gasol, Joakim Noah, and Draymond Green, who is likely to win this season, have won awards despite having much lower primary stats than their competitors, but they have been recognized for their secondary stats and off-stat presence. In addition, there is an agent, so there is no need to be suppressed by the club’s unilateral salary offer. The players’ union is also strong. Draymond Green, who is talking about a maximum (over 13 million) next year, and Kyle Korver, who is said to be the center of Atlanta’s tactics this season, are cases where their off-stat presence is being recognized.

깡씨앨리스/// That’s right. Even if basketball can be played by aces, the level must be supported to some extent.

커요커요/// Yep. It’s that DeShawn Stevenson haha. There are quite a few historically welcome names on the Dallas Summer League team. Bang Sung-yoon also played for the Dallas Summer League team in 2004.

라피르and진트/// Yes. Ty Lawson is a really good player. But he is a player with clear weaknesses, so he is evaluated as being barely in the top 10 point guards. Recently, there are no players who have done well in the NBA compared to the recent Summer League MVPs haha.

그림자소년/// Yes. Mentality is quite important in most sports.

p78910/// DeShawn was originally just a starter in reality. ㅠ.ㅠ He’s a starter, but he averages 16 minutes haha. I’m dividing the playing time appropriately with Kidd, Terry, DeShawn, and Barea.

쿤다라///Thank you!!

니앞에꽃미남/// Do you mean that the amount is disappointing? The pressure of the exam ㅠ.ㅠ

dydqlsl/// Beasley matches Wade well, but Wade’s knee is so unfortunate. He can’t play for long.

pen36/// Yes. Tyson Chandler is on this team.

바람남/// I’ll think about the national team part as you said haha.

마리넥스/// Considering the setting of the main character, it seems that it will be possible after at least one year realistically.

절단이고마님, 삶의빛님/// Thank you for watching.

무자비한해적/// I only watched one game because it was exam period.ㅠ.ㅠ Bogut is really a defensive king if he’s healthy.

huhcafe/// Please save us from the exam.ㅠ.ㅠ

아방사수/// Thank you for the compliment. The amount is also a disappointing part for usㅠ.ㅠ

반포아찌/// I’ll try to work hard when the exam is over.ㅠ.ㅠ