“How is it? Does it look good on you?”
On May 16th,토토사이트 Hana 1Q’s Taebaek field training was in full swing. When our eyes met during weight training at the Taebaek Highlands gym, Kim Jong-un smiled brightly and asked. The Hana 1Q practice uniform worn again after 6 years was awkward, and he looked embarrassed.
not at all unfamiliar Although he is a veteran who shared the splendid glory of Woori Bank, his history still remains deeper in Bucheon HanawonQ, which started from Shinsegae than Woori Bank. The last option as a player made by ‘Legend’ Kim Jong-un, who made a mark in WKBL history, was ‘Parent’ Hana One Q.
This article has been added/adapted from an article published in the June 2023 issue of <Rookie>.
#0
Over the past few years, WKBL’s April has been hot. Since the FA system was partially changed, the possibility of moving large fish players has increased than before. From Park Hye-jin (Woori Bank) in 2020, Kang Iseul (KB) in 2021, Kim Dan-bi (Woori Bank) and Shin Ji-hyeon (Hanawon Q) in 2022, the FA market has heated up every year due to problems with the future of big fish players.
But this year was different. Sonia Kim (Shinhan Bank) moved due to Danbi Kim’s transfer and compensation, and the market was quiet from the beginning compared to last season, when there was a change in core power.
Next year, Ahn Hye-ji, Jinan, Lee So-hee (above BNK), Park Hye-jin, Park Ji-hyun, Choi I-sam (Woori Bank), Bae Hye-yoon (Samsung Life Insurance), Kim Sonia (Shinhan Bank), etc. In the next two years, the FA market is expected to burn even hotter. The prevailing view was that this year would be a quiet market, like a valley in the middle of the heat.
First of all, Iseul Kang, the biggest fish, directly mentioned the possibility of staying in his team early on, and the other big fish, Kim Han-byeol (BNK) and Kim Jong-un, were evaluated as not easy to transfer as they were in their mid-30s. Therefore, the prevailing expectation was that there would be no movement of players that could make an absolute change to the team’s strength.
However, when the FA list was announced, unexpected rumors appeared. It was a story that Kim Jong-un would be the protagonist of this FA market. Regarding the ‘recruitment of an external FA’, while many clubs expressed their position that “I will take a break this year”, clubs that said, “The number 1 is Kim Jong-un” appeared.
“Yes. I know. I haven’t heard from you yet, but I heard that it is.”
Born on September 7, 1987. After graduating from Onyang Girls’ High School, Kim Jong-un, who joined the pros through the 2006 WKBL New Player Selection, digested 19 seasons in 18 years. He’s a habit of saying “Because I don’t have much time left either” at some point. It has been a long time since I told Kim Jong-un, “Break the WKBL record for the most points and retire.” He was initially confident of breaking the record, but after suffering a major injury in the 2020-2021 season, he also kept quiet about this goal.
“Honestly, I was seriously thinking about retiring after this season. I wonder if there is… I’ll think about it again when I really get in touch. Anyway, since I’ve decided to keep playing, the goal record I talked about before. I will definitely break that and retire. By all means!”
In early April, Kim Jong-un did not show an active stance on the transfer. However, the needs of other teams for Kim Jong-un were firm. Usually, the women’s basketball free agent market is often conducted in a ‘blindfolded aung’ style. Rumors circulate that a certain club is interested in and contacting a certain player, but in most cases, the club denies it. There are, of course, many secrets about the negotiation process.
However, the case of Kim Jong-un this time was different. Hana 1Q and Shinhan Bank made official the recruitment of Kim Jong-un early on.
was active Both teams emphasized that “Kim Jong-un is absolutely necessary.” The advice given on the phone with Kim Jong-un was that “FA must judge and decide selfishly.” However, women’s basketball players mention ‘justification’ more than anything else in relation to free agency transfers.
For Kim Jong-un, both the justification of ‘returning to Hana One Q’ and the justification of ‘being able to spend the last days with his best friend Lee Kyung-eun at Shinhan Bank’ existed. However, transfer was not the only skill.
When Park Hye-jin obtained FA qualification in the past, Kim Jong-un first helped her stay by conceding her annual salary, and last year, Kim Dan-bi’s transfer to Woori Bank had a lot of influence. It was not easy to make the decision to leave after calling his juniors. However, as time passed, word came out that Kim Jong-un was putting more weight on transfer than staying, and eventually he chose to return to Hana 1 Q.
Searching for romance in the #1
pro is a waste of time, but at least Kim Jong-un’s choice seemed to stimulate nostalgia in an era where romance has disappeared. Woori Bank is a team that competes for the top spot in the league, and the system basketball that coach Seong-Woo Seong-Woo has established is an elaborate team. There were quite a few ups and downs after moving to Woori Bank six years ago, but Kim Jong-un quickly adapted to Woori Bank’s system.
Woori Bank, who won the combined championship last season, is a strong candidate for the championship next season as well. Although Woori Bank is famous for its toughest and most rigorous training, coach Seong-Woo Lee is very considerate and respectful of veteran players.
Of course, Woori Bank was also the place where Kim Jong-un could spend the last years of his career most comfortably. There was not much room for the salary cap, but considering various conditions, the most stable option was to stay. However, after much thought, Kim Jong-un decided that now was the time to leave Woori Bank.
“I really sympathized with (Yang) Hee-jong’s older brother (KGC)’s retirement article. ‘I think the 20 minutes my juniors run are more valuable than the 20 minutes I run,’ which was something I always thought about before. Retirement This was one of the reasons why I was thinking about “WKBL” coach Wie (Sungwoo) would have given me the time and place to play if I stayed on the team, and if I said I was going to challenge for the record of the most points scored in WKBL, he would have given me that opportunity. But that time I thought it would be better for young players to play than for me to play.”
The biggest reason why the decision to leave Woori Bank was difficult was coach Seong-woo Seong-woo and coach Joo-won Jeon. In the first year of his transfer to Woori Bank, it was not once or twice that he sat down to the floor due to coach Seong-woo Seong-woo’s harsh training, but looking back, it was that period that made player Kim Jong-un reborn.
Kim Jong-un, who had been aiming for the playoffs all his life, was able to win the combined championship and win MVP because he met a good team and a good leader. Woori Bank’s recruitment of Kim Jong-un was also a ‘God’s move’. With the retirement of center Yang Ji-hee, who shared the history of the combined championship, and the departure of John Quell Jones, a super-special foreign player, Kim Jong-un took the place, Woori Bank was able to maintain its organizational power and power like a fortress.
After taking office at Woori Bank, head coach Seong-Woo Lee always formed a 3-man focal point on the court.
Last year, Kim Dan-bi joined Woori Bank’s main line, which started with ‘Park Hye-jin-Im Young-hee-Yang Ji-hee’ and continued through ‘Park Hye-jin-Im Young-hee-Kim Jeong-eun’ and continued to ‘Park Hye-jin-Park Ji-hyun-Kim Jeong-eun’. Kim Jong-un was also the basis for Woori Bank’s ability to steadily wage a war against KB without being shaken in women’s basketball, where scores often plummeted after winning consecutive championships.
“It was difficult and I cried a lot, but coach Wie is like a benefactor to me. I am always grateful. I wouldn’t be where I am today without the coach and coach Jeon Joo-won. Even when I came out, he gave me advice, ‘Go and don’t overdo it and get hurt’.
There is no ‘Woori Bank Kim Jong-un’ anymore. Even while running for first place alone last season, only the variable of ‘Park Ji-soo’s return’ existed in coach Sung-woo Wi’s head. KB, where Park Ji-soo returns, is the biggest obstacle for Woori Bank to keep its champion position. In that respect, it can be a pity for Woori Bank that there is no Kim Jong-un, who controlled Park Ji-soo with his strength and experience. However, Kim Jong-un shook his head.
“Do you think Woori Bank’s lack of me will show through? No. Coach Wie will somehow create a player who plays the role of Kim Jong-un. If not, he will create a different form. It’s also because I was convinced that other players could play all the roles without me.”
#2
Why did Hana One Q and Shinhan Bank want Kim Jong Un? experience, experience, and leadership. Except for Kim Jong-un, Hana 1Q, where all players are in their 20s, and Shinhan Bank, which pushes forward with fighting spirit based on their physical strengths, all need a control tower that can lead the players on the court. There was a desperate need for a veteran who could hold the center of the players on and off the court, taking care of both the technical and mental aspects.
Kim Jong-un chose Hana 1 Q after much thought.
Kim Jong-un started his professional career by joining Shinsegae, the predecessor of Hana 1Q. Regarded as ‘the best rookie of all time in WKBL’, Kim Jong-un was an ace and the head of a girl who kept the Shinsegae, which had fallen into the lower ranks, behind his past glory. The team did not escape from the lower ranks, but struggled and led the team.
After the playoff elimination was confirmed, when he played the garbage season, he said, “The road to the stadium is too hard,” and expressed his pain, but he gritting his teeth and devoted himself to the team. He played 13 seasons from the 2006 winter league to the 2016-2017 season and played in 367 regular league games. He averaged 16.0 points, 5.0 rebounds and 2.5 assists while playing for an average of 34 minutes and 20 seconds.
After the 2015-2016 season, Hana 1Q changed. A full-fledged rebuilding began, and Kang Iseul rose to the center of the team. Success stories of late stars such as Yeom Yun-ah and Baek Ji-eun also appeared, and promising players Kim I-seul and Shin Ji-hyun won the Rookie Award.
On the other hand, Kim Jong-un’s pace fell little by little due to a chronic back injury. For two consecutive years, he could not play 20 regular league games, and his average score was reduced to less than half of the previous one. There was also an evaluation that Kim Jong-un, who had many minor injuries, entered the aging curve faster than expected as he looked at his 30s.
After the 2016-2017 season, which received the worst report card after his professional debut, Kim Jong-un obtained the status of a free agent. He seemed to be renewing his contract, leaving various conditions and circumstances. At this time, before the change of the FA system, it was a time when the player had no choice but to remain unconditionally if the original club presented the annual salary of 300 million won, regardless of the 1st and 2nd qualification distinction. No one expected the breakdown of negotiations for Kim Jong-un’s original team. But it actually happened.
At the time, the Hana One Q working group did not see the value of Kim Jong-un as the same as before. The team’s center of gravity was naturally shifting to young prospects, and Kim Jong-un found it difficult to play the role of an ace any longer. He was no longer the team’s ace or captain.
It was a negotiation that hurt Kim Jong-un, who devoted 13 seasons. Aside from the terms of his contract, Kim Jong-un, feeling a lot of disappointment in the negotiation process, ended negotiations with Hana 1Q. Hana 1 Q also did not offer the maximum amount to forcibly keep Kim Jong-un.
At the time, an official from Hana 1Q said, “I have chronic injuries to my knees and back, so it’s difficult to play as well as before. Now I need to adapt to the team’s changes. There is an injury risk and I’m old, so even if I go to the free agent market, I can’t get satisfactory results. It’s a burdensome situation in many ways, but which club would want to take him? Kim Jong-un should know this reality. However, as a player who has devoted himself to our team, even if he returns in the third round, he will not cut the amount offered in the first round and will sign a contract. that,” he said.
If a player whose negotiations with the original club (1st round) has failed is unable to find a new team in negotiations with the other team (2nd round), he is supposed to go through a third round of negotiations with the original club again. And in the third round of negotiations, it was possible to cut up to 20% of the amount offered at the time of the first round of negotiations. Hana 1 Q was in a position to show consideration for the franchise star by presenting an amount without cuts to Kim Jong-un, who will return to the third round of negotiations ‘of course’.