The “average age of 25.5” young tigers hunted Japan mercilessly. The South Korean basketball team, led by head coach Ahn Joon-ho, won 85-84 in the first round of the warm-up match against Japan at Ariake Arena in Tokyo on the 5th (Korea time).
Until this game, not many people predicted that Korea would win against Japan. It was not that they ignored Korean basketball. There was a clear reason. 메이저놀이터
The national team is 25.5 years old on average, which is perhaps the youngest. Byun Jun-hyung, who was born in 1996, was young enough to be the eldest and captain. After Byun, Lee Jung-hyun, Ha Yoon-ki, Oh Jae-hyun, Lee Woo-seok, Yang Jae-min, and the youngest were Moon Jung-hyun, Park Moo-bin and Yoo Ki-sang, who were born in 2001.
It was difficult for the national team to have the best power due to the lack of communication between the Korea Basketball Association and the KBL, and on top of that, the amazer contract period expired, so it was inevitably a weaker power than before.
However, this does not mean that the preparation period was long. Even this was different between the Korea Basketball Association and the KBL, and eventually, they were able to train at Goyang Auxiliary Gymnasium for four days. Without the help of Goyang Sono, who left Hongcheon Training Center just in time, it would have been difficult to find a proper training site.
The national team players were not in perfect physical condition. Even the players who started off-season early had never trained to handle balls. As most players were preparing their physical strength, they could not afford to have a warm-up match. Ha Yoon-ki, Lee Doo-won and Moon Jung-hyun from Suwon KT were even summoned during their vacations.
“I touched a ball for the first time in the national team,” Lee said. “It’s the same for other players. Personally, I did ball training while doing skill training, but it’s my first time playing basketball since I’m building up my stamina after the start of the offseason,” Lee expressed concern.
His physical stamina did not increase. Most of them take about one to two months to build up their physical stamina after the start of offseason. In most cases, players’ performance does not improve even when they practice. Therefore, it was not easy to play against Japan, which has long been eyeing the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Finally, as mentioned earlier, Japan’s chances of winning seemed low as it was preparing for the Paris Olympics. Hachimura Rui and Watanabe Yuta were absent due to conditioning and injury problems, but it was difficult to assess them as worthy of a try.
Since Hachimura has not been on the national team since the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, he has been classified as out of power. Watanabe’s case is different, but even so, Japan, which has Kawamura Yuki, Tominaga Keisei, Togashi Yuki, Hiejima Magoto, Baba Yudai, and Josh Hawkinson, was actually considered the first team. What they achieved with the main axis was the best performance in Asia, that is, the ticket to the Paris Olympics.
Nevertheless, the “young tigers” fiercely attacked Japan. Japan was embarrassed by Korea’s tough defense and only appealed to the umpire for fouls. In particular, Japan’s strength, including solid defense and rapid transition of offense and defense, was that Korea was better at basketball and was able to lead by up to 20 points.
Lee Jung-hyun also proved that he has surpassed KBL as the best guard in Asia. He also outperformed Kawamura, who is considered one of the best guards in Asia along with Wael Araji. Ha’s control under the basket completely erased concerns over Ra Gun-ah’s absence.
Japan’s jujube battle shook Japan for a while in the fourth quarter, but it was also natural. It was not easy for players who had just started physical training to maintain constant performance for 40 minutes. Of course, Japan’s full-court press and Kawamura showed remarkable performance.
What matters is that he overcame them in the end. In particular, Lee Jung-hyun’s amazing mid-range jumper made Ariake Arena, where 15,000 people gathered, quieter than the Seoul National University library. And Ha Yoon-ki’s free throw of the winning game really ruined Japan’s expectations for a come-from-behind victory. It was the result of the fighting spirit of the national team players.
In this way, the Republic of Korea has overtaken everyone’s expectations and caught off-putting Japan. It was a great gift from young players to the basketball community and fans, who have only received bad news recently.
There is also a flaw in one jade. Naver, or Internet broadcasting, was the only route on which players could watch such a spectacular game. Although Korea had a victory over Japan for the first time in a long time, it is regrettable that tens of thousands of basketball fans had to rely on Internet broadcasting (in other words, Naver did a great job).
Perhaps the biggest problem is the players’ efforts alone. Basketball popularity cannot be revived. Only when administration and marketing work together with the players, a small chance can rebound. At present, however, it is hard to expect anything other than the players’ efforts. It is a dark corner that is eclipsed by the team’s victory over the Korea-Japan match.