“Oh Se-geun and Kim Sun-hyung want to focus on the Asian Games”
The Korea Basketball Association (KBA) announced the strengthened training roster and preliminary roster of the Korean men’s national basketball team for the Paris Olympic Preliminary Qualification and Hangzhou Asian Games on April 26. A total of 16 players were included in the reinforced training roster, while 24 players, including the reinforced training roster, were included in the preliminary roster.
The team’s key resources are Oh Se-geun and Kim Sun-hyung (Seoul SK). Both players are in their mid-30s, but are still top-tier competitors in the KBL. They will also be needed in the big games of the Olympic Qualifiers and Asian Games.
However, both Oh and Kim played in the championship game, which went to overtime in game seven. Their bodies are not in perfect condition. They need to rest.
Chu Il-seung, the head coach of the South Korean men’s national basketball team, who has been watching them all season, knows this. “Both (Oh) Se-geun and (Kim) Sun-hyung played until May,” he says. They need a break. We want to give them time to build up their bodies,” he said, emphasizing the word ‘build up’ first.
“They are veterans who are among the top players in the league. They’re still very competitive. However, it’s been a long season and they need time to recover. We’re going to focus on the Asian Games. I’m going to improve my body in time for the Asian Games,” he said, explaining the significance of Osegun and Kim.
Despite the presence of national team regulars like Oh and Kim, there are a number of new faces on the roster. In particular, Park Ji-hoon (Anyang KGC Ginseng Corporation) and Yang Jae-min (B League Utsunomiya) were included in the national team training roster for the first time.
“When I watched (Yang) Jae-min play, I felt he had a good shot, and I think we can use him if (Lee) Hyun-jung can’t join us or (former) Sung Hyun-i is not in good shape,” said Chu Il-seung. “He blocked a lot of foreign players in Japan. I think his physicality is also a strength,” he said, first pointing out Yang Jae-min’s strengths.
“Park Ji-hoon showed stability in the championship game. I felt that he is one of the guards who is developing,” he added, explaining why he chose Park Ji-hoon.
He continued, “We’re still in talks, but we’re going to use 16 players when we play the Japanese national team in an exhibition game. We want to be flexible with the roster. There is an injury factor, so we want to test as many players as possible,” he said, explaining the significance of selecting new resources in general.
Chu Il-seung also selected Moon Jung-hyun 메이저사이트 (Korea University) for the 2022 squad. Moon is the only university student on the 16-man roster, but Chu Il-seung praised his senses and potential for improvement.
“When I trained with him last year, his basketball sense was not inferior to the professional seniors. I want to see how competitive he is with adult players, and he has great potential for development.”
Coach Chu Il-seung, who recognized Moon’s potential, said, “It was like watching former Chosun University coach Lee Min-hyun in action. He was the originator of the all-around player. He didn’t limit himself to one position and did his share, so he was a varsity player from high school and was ahead of his time,” said Chu, who saw his potential as an all-around player.
Meanwhile, the 16 players on the national team’s strengthening roster will meet at 11 a.m. on June 21 at the Jincheon Athletes’ Village. Lee Jung-hyun (Dayone Sports), who was selected to the Chengdu Summer Universiade team, will join the squad after that event.
