“I will secure a ticket for the final Olympic qualifying round.”The Korean women’s basketball team, led by head coach Jeong Seon-min (49), will bet their pride on the 2023 International Basketball Federation (FIBA) Asia Cup. The Asia Cup, which will be held in Sydney, Australia from the 26th of next month to July 2nd, serves as a regional qualifier for the 2024 Paris Olympics. The top 4 will qualify for the final Olympic qualifying round. In an interview with the Segye Ilbo held at a cafe in Yongin City, Gyeonggi Province on the 8th, coach Jeong revealed the team’s plan along with his determination for the tournament, saying, “I will definitely be in the top 4 to move toward the Olympics.”
There are a total of 12 ‘warriors’ participating in the Asia Cup. In the 2022-2023 season, the main players of each team, including ‘veteran’ Kim Dan-bi (Woori Bank), who became the best player (MVP) in the women’s professional basketball regular league and championship match, Ji-hyun Shin (Hanawon Q), Ji-soo Park, and Iseul Kang (KB), etc. included ‘Duo born in 2000’ Park Ji-hyeon (Woori Bank) and Lee So-hee (BNK) also boarded.
The part that director Jung focuses on is ‘health’. Park Hye-jin, Choi Yi-sam (Woori Bank), and Bae Hye-yoon (Samsung Life Insurance) are out due to injuries. Coach Jeong said, “It’s unfortunate that Park Hye-jin, who is the key player, is missing, but in order to efficiently produce results in a short period of time, we need to raise our best energy in a healthy state.” Park Hye-jin’s vacancy will be filled by Lee Kyung-eun, who joined the national team after 8 years with Shin Ji-hyun.
It is encouraging that Park Ji-soo, a “national treasure center” who was absent from the national team last year due to panic disorder, joined. It is because he is needed as the ‘tallest man’ at 198 cm for height competition. Coach Jeong said, “In women’s basketball, Park Ji-soo is a player who cannot be ignored.” He explained that the role of the director is to bring out the influence he has while managing well.”
◆Outside shot with high probability and organic basketball
Coach Chung foreshadowed ‘organic basketball’ unique to Korean women’s basketball. There may be changes depending on the opponent, but the ‘Best 5’ are Kim Dan-bi, Kang I-seul, Park Ji-soo, Lee Kyung-eun, and Park Ji-hyun. You can’t rely on just one or two players in an international competition where you play multiple games in a short period of time. In order to face teams with good physique conditions such as China, Australia, and New Zealand, you must move as a ‘one team’ and increase the probability of 3-point shots. Coach Jeong emphasized, “Basketball is a battle of odds, but the probability of a 3-point shot is relatively low,” and “we need to create space and increase accuracy while moving organically.” 온라인카지노
For the national team, which will gather at the National Athlete’s Village in Jincheon, Chungcheongbuk-do on the 15th, there is only one month left until the tournament. not long The reason coach Jeong delayed the call-up date a little is to manage the condition of the players who have just finished the season. A ‘legend’ with the record for the most points in women’s professional basketball with a total of 8102 points, she also had the experience of being called up without being able to properly rest as a player. It is more efficient for players to fully concentrate on training after taking enough rest. It is his own philosophy and his way of communicating with the players. He said, “Like in the past, ‘do it until it is done’ is over. Players these days won’t even listen,” he said, “the most important thing is to train like a real game.”After two weeks of training, the national team will go to Latvia for training on the 4th of next month. Latvia, which had an evaluation match in Korea last year, invited Korea this time. Afterwards, the national team returns to Korea and trains for about 10 days before heading to Australia.