Can the inspiring story of the movie “Rebound” be replicated in Hangzhou?
The 3×3 men’s basketball team, led by coach Kang Yang-hyun, arrived in Hangzhou for the finals on Nov. 22. The team, comprised of Signe Jin (24, Hyundai Mobis), Kim Dong-hyun (21, KCC), Lee Doo-won (23, KT), and Lee Won-seok (23, Samsung), all of whom have professional basketball experience, will play Iran, Maldives, Japan, and Turkmenistan in Group B of the tournament. South Korea will face Iran in its first match at 5:45 p.m. on Aug. 25.
Kang is known for being the real-life protagonist of the movie “Rebound,” which was released in April. He took over as coach of his alma mater, Busan Chungang University, in 2012 while serving as a public service worker. With only six players, Kang led the team to a runner-up finish in the association championship and made a big splash. The inspiring story, more cartoonish than comics, was made into a movie.
Chun Ki-beom, a star player at Busan Jungang High School at the time, went on to play for Samsung. He entered the Nippon Professional Basketball League last year, but recently failed to re-sign and is without a team. Heo Hoon, who won the championship 11 years ago as an ace for Yongsan High, will try to win gold at the Asian Games with the 5-on-5 basketball team.
The 3×3 team is made up of young players who are promising in professional basketball. However, 5×5 and 3×3 are completely different sports. In 3×3, if you play switch defense, you’re a mismatch and you’re going to get open shots. Signing Jin, who is a long guard at 6-foot-8, is also a target in 3×3.
It’s also essential for everyone to be able to shoot from the outside in a 3×3, where a 3-pointer counts as two points and spacing is even more important. Even proven big men Lee Won-seok, 207 centimeters, and Lee Doo-won, 205 centimeters, have no outside shot, which can greatly hinder their effectiveness.온라인바카라
The team also had some struggles in the lineup. Jang Shin-jae was selected for the 5×5 team first, and the 3×3 team was pushed to the back burner. Overseas forwards such as Lee Hyun-jung, Yeo Jun-seok, and Yang Jae-min were also considered but ultimately failed to join the team. As a result, Kim Dong-hyun, who hadn’t gotten much playing time in the pros, was the last man standing.
It was a difficult situation, but Kang was already used to being an underdog. He is used to leading underrated players and making mistakes. He said, “The players followed my instructions well under difficult conditions. They worked hard with the attitude of going to China and dying, so I expect good results.”
The first opponent, Iran, will be a challenge. The Iranians are physically fit and 3×3 basketball is very forgiving. “I talked to the players a lot about fouls in 3×3 basketball,” Kang said. The players are eager and so am I. First of all, we want to reach the quarterfinals of the tournament, which is our first goal.”