Y13 [EN]: Chapter 46

Y13-46 (46/296)

00046 Pre-Season =========================================================================

“Oh, there are already people here?”

The third player arrived with a lively laugh. A legitimate seven-footer, even taller than Dirk Nowitzki (7’0″/213cm), sporting a short buzz cut and a face radiating enthusiasm.

“Nice to meet you. I’m Dirk Nowitzki.”

“Tyson Chandler. Looking forward to working with you.”

The two giants shook hands, then turned their attention to Youngjae.

“You’re Youngjae Yoon, right?”

“That’s right.”

Tyson Chandler extended his hand, and Youngjae reciprocated.

“You seem confident, choosing number 13 like that. And backing it up with a great performance.”

“Thank you.”

Youngjae could sense it in Tyson Chandler’s tone and expression. Until the season before last, he had delivered monstrous performances alongside Chris Paul, the quintessential point guard, on the New Orleans Hornets.

In contrast, last year in Charlotte, injuries led to a disappointing performance, causing many teams to question his health during the trade process. In his past life, Youngjae remembered Tyson Chandler as a strong locker room leader, brimming with excitement and passion.

“Do you think you can contribute?”

Tyson Chandler’s grip tightened slightly. Youngjae met the pressure, ensuring his hand didn’t yield, but kept his expression neutral, nodding as he looked Chandler in the eye.

“I still have a lot to learn. Please guide me.”

“…”

Chandler had anticipated an ambitious rookie, confidently proclaiming their abilities. Instead, Youngjae’s humble response – ‘Please guide me. I have a lot to learn’ – reminded him more of a seasoned veteran.

“What… what did you do before basketball?”

Chandler posed the same question Bobo had. His smile vanished. Youngjae maintained eye contact, his expression nonchalant.

“Just… a guy who clawed his way up.”

“Hehe, is that so? Good!”

Chandler playfully waved Youngjae’s hand and began offering advice, treating him with unexpected warmth. He seemed to appreciate Youngjae’s self-description as ‘a guy who clawed his way up,’ someone who understood hardship. He liked Youngjae’s confident yet grounded personality, someone who spoke his mind without making empty boasts or causing trouble.

As more players entered the court, they greeted Youngjae, the newcomer, with varying degrees of enthusiasm. Jason Kidd and Jason Terry, established starters and veterans, welcomed Youngjae without animosity, expressing their hopes for his success. Furthermore, both had guaranteed contracts and were considered franchise cornerstones in Dallas.

J.J. Barea, a point guard who served as Jason Kidd’s backup, represented a more direct competitor for Youngjae due to Dallas’s player rotation strategy. DeShawn Stevenson, a shooting guard who had seen limited playing time (averaging less than 12 minutes last year), offered only a curt nod. Perhaps this was understandable, as both players needed to perform well this season to secure new contracts.

When Dwayne Casey and Terry Stotts, the assistant coaches, and finally head coach Rick Carlisle arrived, the players gathered around them in a circle.

“Welcome to the Mavericks. I’m Rick Carlisle, your head coach. These are assistant coaches Dwayne Casey and Terry Stotts, who will be working with us this season. We have some new faces and some familiar ones, but you’re all professionals, and professionals are judged by results. Our goal is to win a championship, so we’ll set aside personal feelings and build a team based on skill and tactical fit.”

Following Rick Carlisle’s introduction, assistant coaches Dwayne Casey and Terry Stotts briefly outlined the upcoming training schedule and tactical approaches.

“October 6th marks the start of our pre-season, nine days from today. During this period, we’ll evaluate player synergy and tactical suitability to determine our regular season lineup. I will do everything in my power to win. I promise you that.”

The players responded with concise nods and affirmations.

“Our first pre-season opponent is the Washington Wizards. Tomorrow is Media Day, followed by four days of pre-season training, culminating in an intrasquad scrimmage.”

Youngjae felt a strange mix of emotions. Facing John Wall again in the pre-season was both exciting and nerve-wracking. The initial training focused on basic physical conditioning, including ten laps around the court, a form of interval training [alternating between high-intensity bursts and periods of rest or low-intensity activity]. Afterwards, Casey and Stotts began position-specific drills as instructed by Carlisle.

“Terry Stotts here.”

Terry Stotts spoke casually with Dwayne Casey, but addressed the players with a more formal tone, mindful of his official role.

“The most fundamental skill in our offensive system is accurate shooting. Given that this is our first training session after the break, we’ll start with some light spot-up shooting.”

Stotts instructed the assistant coaches to pass the ball, and the players paired up to shoot immediately upon receiving the pass.

In the first group, Jason Terry and J.J. Barea, both guards with excellent shooting touch, each made 7 out of 10 three-point attempts. Despite some playful banter, both seemed satisfied with their performance for the first session.

The second group consisted of Jason Kidd and Caron Butler. Jason Kidd, who had developed a reliable three-point shot later in his career, sank an impressive 9 out of 10, living up to his reputation as the team’s leading three-point shooter last season. Caron Butler managed only 6, appearing to still be adjusting his aim. He seemed to be getting used to his bulked-up physique.

The final group was Youngjae and DeShawn Stevenson.

“Start.”

Bee-beep-

At the sound of the whistle, the two coaches began passing the ball. The players sprinted from the sideline, where they received the initial pass, and shot two shots from five spots, alternating from one side to the top of the key and then to the opposite side. DeShawn Stevenson kept glancing at Youngjae’s shooting, but Youngjae focused on his own shots, trying to ignore Stevenson’s presence.

“Stop.”

“DeShawn Stevenson made 6 out of 10 shots.”

“Youngjae Yoon made 9 out of 10 shots.”

Youngjae regretted the one shot that grazed the rim and bounced out, but he didn’t dwell on it, knowing that perfection was unattainable.

“Tsk.”

Stevenson clicked his tongue in disappointment as he returned to his spot.

“Now, let’s move on to some more varied drills.”

Coach Stotts instructed the same shooting drill as before, but this time incorporating a dribble. While spot-up jumpers benefited from the stability of shooting from a stationary position, pull-up jumpers, shot after dribbling, were inherently less accurate. Unless you were a skilled ball-handler, pull-up jumpers were generally avoided, but Dallas emphasized versatility, requiring all players to be able to shoot from anywhere on the court.

“Ah!”

Terry and Barea, in the first group, couldn’t help but groan at their narrowly missed shots, a testament to the rustiness of their shooting after the off-season break. Still, these two were more accustomed to pull-up threes and attempted them more frequently than Kidd and Butler.

Jason Terry and J.J. Barea scored 6 and 5 respectively. Jason Kidd and Caron Butler each scored 4, and then it was DeShawn Stevenson and Youngjae’s turn again.

‘……’

Youngjae stole a glance at Coach Terry Stotts, trying to gauge his expression. Stotts was intently observing the players.

‘He’s evaluating.’

Terry Stotts was currently assessing the players, considering how to structure the guard rotation for the upcoming season. The most basic approach involved combining and allocating playing time based on player performance and skill sets.

Of course, training and actual games were vastly different. For instance, a player might consistently make 8 out of 10 free throws in practice but struggle to hit even 50% in a game.

Therefore, the results of the current training might not be particularly significant. With the pre-season approaching and the regular season a month away, the focus was on gradually improving physical condition and sharpening instincts.

But Youngjae was a rookie, only 19 years old. Despite his past life experience, he still felt inadequate and had dedicated himself to intensive basketball training during the off-season.

That’s why he didn’t want to take any of the current training lightly. His career wasn’t at a point where he could treat the pre-season and training as mere condition checks. Like all rookies, he needed to impress the coaches and management. Only players with guaranteed starting positions could afford to view the pre-season as a simple warm-up.

Bee-beep-

A pass to the top of the key. Youngjae gently caught the ball with his left hand, dribbled a few times, and skillfully transitioned the ball to his right. During the dribbling sequence, Youngjae quickly stepped forward and confidently elevated, feeling his body leaning forward.

A pull-up jumper is a challenging shot because the body tends to lean in the direction of movement. Every aspect changes from moment to moment, from the degree of lean to the shift in the center of gravity, making it fundamentally different from a spot-up shot. The dribbling must be stable, the body’s balance must be maintained in the air, and the distance must be accurately judged.

“Hup!”

Youngjae gave his best effort in training, just as he had been doing. He had to dribble once and step once to get past the defender, imagining that there was a defender blocking him in front of him and shoot.

Youngjae’s shooting form was more passionate than other players.

“Youngjae Yoon, 9 out of 10 successful.”

Coach Stotts, who was observing the training, was genuinely pleased. He felt rewarded for the time invested during the off-season. Youngjae’s accurate shooting release was remarkable for a rookie. Despite receiving passes irregularly with either hand, he transitioned the ball to his right hand with ease after a single dribble. Even with his body leaning, his focus remained fixed on the rim. Thanks to this intense concentration, Youngjae’s shooting was like that of a sniper.

“Hey, our rookie, turns out you’re something?”

The first to applaud and approach was JET, Jason Terry. A living legend with a career 3-point total in the top 5. The Sixth Man Award winner and All-Star, a deadly 3-point shooter, came over and patted Youngjae on the back.

“Not bad.”

Jason Kidd, who rarely expressed much emotion, offered a positive reaction for the first time, nodding in approval. Barea and Stevenson, on the other hand, looked nervous. Barea was gaining Carlisle’s trust, but Bobo was improving, and if Youngjae developed, securing as much playing time as last year would be difficult. If Stevenson was further marginalized, guaranteeing a contract next year would be a challenge.

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

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

※Interval Training: For example, it means repeating walking for 5 seconds and running for 5 seconds infinitely to the target point. The term interval training means a training method that increases endurance by exercising before recovering from fatigue while taking incomplete rest in the middle of exercise. This training is said to train whole body endurance and speed.

＠As I wrote in Rico Men, I will try to shorten the pre-season. I don’t want to break our plan, so I won’t skip the pre-season completely. If you skip the pre-season, the development of the regular season will have zero probability. The pre-season is an important time to determine the team’s rotation, tactics, and time allocation for the season. It’s like a war, especially for non-starting players.

＠Dallas’s three-pointers in the previous year (09-10) season are Kidd (42.5%) – Nowitzki (42.1%) – Boboa (40.9%) – Terry (36.5%) – Barea (35.7%) – Butler (34%) – Stevenson (32%). Despite being a jumper team, the deviation is a bit severe for each player.

zigichacha/// Haha, I feel really rewarded as a writer when you say that.

커요커요/// Novi is best when he cheats ㅋㅋ

Shiori/// Thank you. I remembered it wrong. I looked it up again after hearing what you said, and it’s written in various ways, such as 6-10, 6-10.5, and 6-10.75, but 6-10 is the most common. 6-10 seems to be accurate as you said.

…(-1)…///Hmm, Shin Hyun-cheol is close to the prime Nowitzki. Usually, stretch types lack breakthrough ability, but Shin Hyun-cheol is close to all-around…

氷烏/// Yes, he’ll get along well with Nowitzki, one of the best pick-and-pop partners.

니앞에꽃미남, 가연을이, 나날///I’ll try to shorten it as much as possible. Skipping is impossible. At least one game is needed.

dydqlsl/// Hmm, not quite Curry. Curry is too unique, so not that far ㄷㄷㄷ

쿤다라, 백예, 오마리온, -DarkANGEL-/// Always thank you for your comments.

뽀잉뿌이잉/// Hehe, everyone is thinking of John Wall, but as you said, this year is the year Griffin, a used rookie, wins Rookie of the Year. His record is so fraudulent that I’m still worried.

권우현™/// Thank you for your interest in basketball novels~

라피르and진트, 날림키스/// Thank you for your feedback^^

백월량, 파뱐, 우유동자/// The appearance of prime Novi ㅎㅎ

천사의사정/// Y13!!!!

킹덤브라더스/// Hmm, there’s still time left for this part, so I’ll share my opinions with the readers again later.

큐티동/// Whew, Olynyk and J.R. are a bit of a problem. J.R. has been crazy since before, so I hate him even more. Perkins didn’t do well either, but I’ll still understand… Anyway, all three were really wrong. As a result, Cleveland suffered a loss. I understand the feelings of Cleveland fans, but I disagree with the view that J.R. is less wrong than Olynyk. Besides, the referees who stood by and watched this situation are hopeless. They don’t know how to calm down.