Y13 [EN]: Chapter 41

Y13-41 Summer League

During the 1-minute timeout, Coach Dwane Casey and Terry Stotts highlighted the offensive and defensive weaknesses, reiterating the tactics to the players about to go in.

Beep— The timeout ended. Youngjae noticed a player rising with a hesitant expression.

“Hey.”

“Huh?”

“Have confidence. What didn’t work before might just click. Don’t you think?”

The player looked at Youngjae strangely, almost as if to say, ‘What do you know?’ From Jeremy Lin’s perspective, Youngjae seemed like an insurmountable obstacle.

Youngjae was the ace of San Diego State University. While San Diego State’s conference, the Mountain West, was a mid-major conference, Harvard, where Jeremy Lin played, was a minor one—practically the lowest. The Ivy League hadn’t produced a full-time NBA player since the ’70s. Despite that, Lin had showcased his skills and even earned an invitation to the Dallas Mavericks.

Yet, he couldn’t outperform Youngjae. He only felt the skill gap more acutely. The other guard spot was already secured by Rodrigo Beaubois, who had a sensational performance the previous year. Ultimately, he couldn’t win either of the two starting guard positions.

Consequently, he spoke less, and Lin’s play was more timid than Youngjae remembered from his past life, even though he was capable of more.

‘Maybe the reason he’s so quiet and looks exhausted is because he’s practicing secretly at night.’

Just in case, Youngjae checked to see if he could use the court when everyone else was asleep. He heard a ball bouncing in the middle of the night, and the source was none other than Jeremy Lin.

Youngjae admired Lin’s dedication, but it seemed self-destructive. Fatigue accumulated, leading to impatient play. To stand out, he overextended himself, resulting in poor decisions and turnovers. Then, he reaffirmed his limitations and became frustrated, pushing himself to the limit without rest.

‘That’s how you get injured.’

And if your body breaks down, it’s over. No one recognizes the hidden efforts; it’s just that he tried too hard and failed. There’s no sadder ending than that.

Youngjae understood this well, having pushed himself like Lin until his mind and body gave out. What was Youngjae like in that situation? When the team’s veterans worried and told him to take care of himself, he dismissed them, saying they were starters and didn’t understand.

Youngjae knew Jeremy Lin wouldn’t suddenly become Chris Paul [a famous NBA point guard] just because he offered a few words. So, the best Youngjae could do was say something that would bring Jeremy Lin back to the player who had performed well against John Wall in his past life and signed a formal contract with the Golden State Warriors.

“Yeah. You probably think I have no idea how you feel. You might be right; I might not know how you feel. But, I know this one thing.”

The player frowned at Youngjae, as if to say, ‘What do you know?’ But he was surprised by Youngjae’s last words, smiled, and stepped onto the court.

John Wall thought,

The game feels unusually difficult today.

The 2-2 play using Trevor Booker and JaVale McGee was effective. If one of them set a screen, John Wall would use it to shake his defender, and the screener would move to the basket.

If he had space, he would shoot or drive to score himself, or use his shooting motion to create opportunities for the big men with no-look or strong bounce passes.

But today, the plays weren’t working. When Youngjae was on the court, he felt helpless. Even though the passes were aggressive, he made sure to throw passes that were difficult for the opponent to block, but Youngjae’s hands barely grazed the ball. Besides, all the shots were tough shots, so his field goal percentage was terrible.

As he seemed to adjust, John Wall couldn’t play aggressively after a few passes were stolen. Youngjae’s tenacious defense, sticking to him and denying him acceleration, was exhausting. His man-to-man and 2-2 defense were both excellent.

‘That last smile…’

John Wall still didn’t understand. He was trying to prove himself in the intense Summer League, but Youngjae was smiling—a deep smile, as if he was thrilled. And then he suffered a miserable defeat behind that smile. The opponent was literally enjoying the situation.

Euro step [a basketball move] – post-up [playing near the basket] – face-up [facing the basket] – jumper [jump shot]… How could he, smaller and weaker than his opponent, block a player who suddenly used a post-up when he had never used it before?

Then, Youngjae was substituted. The replacement didn’t have Youngjae’s impact, but John Wall, already losing momentum, struggled against him, making disappointing plays.

“So, this is it.”

The new player said something incomprehensible to John Wall, then smiled the same smile as Youngjae. A decent frame and strength, though clumsy. Not very accurate, but usable mid-range shooting and smooth dribbling.

Even in defense, he tenaciously stuck to John Wall, just like Youngjae.

“Hot!”

Even with a slightly high upper body, he confidently drove to the basket, making his breakthrough more threatening than usual. John Wall tried to chase Jeremy Lin but was caught in a screen by Omar Samhan and missed him. Lin cleverly sidestepped and quickly drove to the basket.

“Kuh!”

John Wall, one of the fastest players in the league, caught up with his unique speed.

As Jeremy Lin was about to attempt a layup, John Wall reached from behind toward his hand. He thought the layup would be slow because the center was defending in front, so he tried to block it. But Jeremy Lin instantly retracted his hand and passed to the open player next to him.

Shoosh—

The ball went accurately to J.R. Giddens, who was standing on the 3-point line. Giddens casually made a spot-up 3-pointer without paying attention to the late defense.

“Nice!”

The player smiled broadly at Giddens’ score and high-fived him.

“Nice play! Lin!!!”

The player waving a towel and cheering was Jeremy Lin, the future star of Linsanity [a period of exceptional performance by Jeremy Lin in the NBA] a few years later.

[Jeremy Lin, is this really the same player who seemed to lack confidence?]

[That’s right. He’s not a bad player, but he always committed turnovers at crucial moments.]

Whether it was a sudden whim, guilt that Jeremy Lin was being harmed because he had returned, or a sense of solidarity as a fellow Asian player, Youngjae couldn’t help but keep an eye on Jeremy Lin, who seemed so innocent and intimidated.

Besides, even in his past life, Jeremy Lin had shown equal skill to John Wall in this game, and the audience shouted, ‘Don’t take Lin out, put Lin in!’ when Jeremy Lin was dribbling past John Wall and putting in a double-clutch layup. Lin was starting to get the spotlight in this game, but he felt like he was blocking his path, so he was quite concerned.

‘It’s fun. And it’s more fun to win, right?’

Those were Youngjae’s last words. An emotion he had forgotten: fun, enjoyment. Why did I start playing basketball in the first place? How could I forget the passion I wanted to dedicate to basketball for the rest of my life, and the joy of holding a basketball for the first time?

He had only pretended to forget it because reality was so urgent and harsh. Jeremy Lin was also just pretending to forget it—the desire to succeed, the despair of not being able to.

Youngjae knew Lin’s heart better than anyone. That’s why Youngjae could smile as brightly as an excited child while looking at Lin, and tap him on the shoulder.

‘What if it doesn’t work out!’

Not everything can work out. If it doesn’t, there’s nothing you can do. But even if it doesn’t, let’s enjoy it as much as possible, and let’s make it work out as much as possible. The process of making it is fun, and if it works out, you become addicted to the thrilling sense of accomplishment.

Lin had rediscovered the fun of basketball that he had forgotten.

[Jeremy Lin, even though he’s facing a tired Wall, it’s really surprising that he’s showing such an equal performance.]

[Looking at Jeremy Lin’s performance so far, it’s no exaggeration to say that he’s made remarkable progress. He was evaluated as a player with enough skill to show his potential in the Summer League, but he couldn’t avoid being sluggish when he was invited to Dallas in this Summer League. Even though his shooting range isn’t very long and his strength isn’t outstanding, he’s a player who mainly uses his game-making ability, passing, and precise finishing under the basket to offset those weaknesses, but he’s always been passive and tends to get tangled up when something doesn’t work out.]

[But today, it’s no exaggeration to say that Jeremy Lin has been rediscovered. Many teams will be interested.]

As if encouraged by Brian Dunton’s words, Lin grabbed the ball at the top of the key and was now expressing his opinions to his teammates and even directing the team with his fingers. The Washington bench members, who had been tenaciously defending the 3-point lead that Youngjae had created for about 8 minutes, were struggling to stop Washington from chasing after them, and Washington seemed flustered as if they hadn’t expected it.

As the game moved into the second quarter, the situation worsened. Washington’s assistant coach had approached the Summer League with confidence in JaVale McGee and Trevor Booker, who had experience in the NBA, including the outstanding rookie John Wall.

The Washington Wizards, who were strong in the regular season but were evaluated as weak with only Summer League members, were overturning the evaluation that they would be nothing without Beaubois and Mahinmi, who had been selling picks.

[Ah, the Maps’ momentum is scary.]

[The Maps’ Summer League power, which has won 3 games in 3 games so far, was evaluated as the lowest among the 22 teams, but when the lid was opened, the result was that all the experts were stunned.]

[Again, Beaubois, a pass to Yoon on the outside, Youngjae Yoon spot-up 3 points!]

[BANG!! PUTS IT IN!]

[Youngjae Yoon, accurate!]

Because of the distribution of stamina, as soon as Wall was out and the Washington members mixed the bench and starting members, the aftermath was directly linked to the loss of points. In particular, Beaubois and Youngjae, who had rested during the bench time that Jeremy Lin had solidly endured, were flying around like fish in water.

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

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

★Thank you for the support coupon, Marinex!

※There are many types of 2:2 plays. The most basic is pick and roll, and there are also pick and pop, pick and slip, give and go, screen and jumper, etc. By the way, pick and screen mean the same thing. EX) Set a pick = Set a screen

※Tough Shot: A tough shot refers to a difficult shot, such as shooting with a defender in front of you or shooting from a difficult position. Of course, the field goal percentage is low. The team’s aces are mainly in charge. Kobe, Nowitzki, LeBron, Pierce, Durant, etc.

※By the way, I’m explaining the terms in the afterword every time they appear, but should I collect them and put them in the work setting section or the yard? I’m trying to write as easily as possible, but I can’t not use them at all. I’m waiting for advice from readers on this part.

＠Houston and Washington seem to be going up easier than I thought. Dallas is in terrible shape. It’s a big deal that Parsons and Harris are missing. Houston is also missing Beverly and Motiejunas, but the difference in importance is big. Besides, the team chemistry looks terrible.

Toronto also has terrible team chemistry, and I don’t know what the coach is doing. He was a talented person in Dallas’ defensive tactics, and he was doing okay in the regular season, but he’s completely hopeless in the playoffs.

Cleveland is winning easily by overworking LeBron Irving, but Boston’s team organization and tactics are overwhelmingly superior. They’re barely winning because of the difference in individual ability.

Charming Legacy/// I’m glad you’re immersed in it.

Lafir and Jinte/// Thank you for your comments as always.

Windy Man/// Shasha Shashat~~

Mr. Handsome in Front of You/// Hehe, it was a refreshing episode.

Duni/// We’re not used to it yet, so the speed of extracting it is slow ㅠ.ㅠ

Ikaize, Star is Up/// I remember LeBron surpassing him in MVP share (cumulative MVP ranking sum). Still, Jordan is still a bit more superior in terms of story and cumulative record. However, LeBron still has a career left, so there is enough room to surpass him. Of course, it seems difficult in terms of popularity… Even people who don’t know basketball have heard of Jordan. So much so that when comparing basketball, there is a saying that ‘that person’ should be excluded.

WHOareyou/// Here I am!!

Shadow Boy/// Thank you for pointing out the typo. I’m proofreading a little faster these days because it’s exam season.ㅠ.ㅠ He’s already incomparable to most rookies ㄷㄷ.

Frog Power/// Hehe thank you

Jo Chang-hyun/// Ah, today Dwight Howard was at the level of Houston’s twin guns with Josh Smith. Today’s game was as good as his prime.

Zaichev/// It’s your first comment ㅎㅎ. Thank you~

Khan/// As you said, John Wall has improved little by little, but his growth has been slower than expected by experts and the media. His performance and efficiency in his first season weren’t good compared to his stats.

Heavenly Star/// Thank you for the compliment~~

Baekwolryang/// That’s right. There are so many players who are unfortunate due to injuries… If it’s an injury caused by overwork, it’s a bit better, but if you get injured due to bad luck, it’s really a pity.

sosuHands/// Haha, Youngjae’s impact has been a bit disappointing so far.

dydqlsl/// The media and experts had high expectations for John Wall.ㅠ.ㅠ. That’s right. Teardrop was learned from Parker, and Eurostep was learned from Ginobili. Dallas won the 10-11 season.

Ithilien/// Hmm, the explanation might be a bit long. First of all, Youngjae’s former team is San Antonio, which thoroughly pursues team basketball. There are no outstanding individual records. There are few players in the top ranks of stats in recent years. It’s a team that chose practicality over splendor. Besides, he spent his past life as a bench point guard, so he’s more used to support. Besides, Popovich, the coach of San Antonio, immediately kicks out anyone who doesn’t have hustle. He will gradually develop his ace instincts. Please think of it as a growth period. Anyway, the Asian Games are 4 years away.

Ultra 10/// Thank you for the book review. Please watch Youngjae’s growth well~

whomi, Omarion, GUIN』/// Thank you for the compliments~

Marinex/// I’m glad it was cool. Thank you for the coupon.

-DarkANGEL-, Financia/// Thank you for your comments as always~

Aragadam/// I’m also sad that there are no basketball novels, so I’m doing my own production ㅎㅎ

AdYang/// Thank you. The exam is ㅠ.ㅠ

Minrad/// ㄷㄷㄷ Thank you for the coupon and support.

Cabomile (5 episodes)/// Thank you for reading.