Lee Jae-do (180cm, G)’s attack power maintained the possibility of LG’s second place on its own.
Changwon LG lost to Seoul SK 69-74 in the regular 2022-2023 SKT A-Dot professional basketball league held at the Changwon Indoor Gymnasium on the 26th. With 35 wins and 18 losses, he tied for second place with SK. However, the opponent record is the same as SK, and the opponent’s goal difference is +5 ahead of SK. If you win Ulsan Hyundai Mobis, which will be held in 3 days, you can look at the sole 2nd place.
LG reinforced its power after the end of the 2020-2021 season. The key to power reinforcement was Lee Jae-do. He signed a contract with Lee Jae-do on the condition of a total compensation of 700 million won (salary: 490 million won, incentive: 210 million won) for the 2021-2022 season over a three-year contract period.
Lee Jae-do is a point guard that combines stability and offense. In the 2020-2021 season, he was the main character of ‘PERFECT 10’ along with Byun Jun-hyung (185cm, G) – Jeon Seong-hyun (188cm, F) – Moon Seong-gon (195cm, F) – Oh Se-geun (200cm, C). He was a member of ‘the first 10-game winning streak in KBL history’.
There is another strength of Lee Jae-do. he is durable Lee Jae-do has played 385 regular league games in a row from the 2014-2015 season to the present (excluding the period of his military service and selection period for the national team), and maintains the 2nd place in KBL’s history of consecutive game appearances.
LG, which recruited Lee Jae-do, has a clear backcourt combination called ‘Lee Jae-do-Lee Kwan-hee’. However, throughout the 2021-2022 season, the power of the backcourt combination was not shown. Both Lee Jae-do and Lee Kwan-hee (191cm, G) failed to show their worth.
It had to be different in the 2022-2023 season. Lee Jae-do also recognized that. So, I took a lot of responsibility for winning. There were a lot of games that went well, but there were also a lot of games that didn’t.
Nevertheless, Lee Jae-do said, “When it comes to winning, I think there are players who have to do it. Because Marey and I play with a lot of balls. I think that Marey and I should do it in the match,” he said, thinking that it was essential to play an active part in the match.
He continued, “When our team lost, I missed a lot in the game. Even so, you shouldn’t try. If that happens, I, as a player, will stop there. You have to try to make up for it. I don’t care if I lose because of me,” he said, thinking that he should enjoy the game. And he was responsible for a lot of important moments in recent matches. 토토사이트
However, LG and Lee Jae-do have recently gone through a difficult journey. 3 games in 4 days, including SK match. Since the SK match was the last game, the physical burden of the players was high overall. Besides, LG and SK are opponents competing for second place. It seemed that the pressure on the players was greater.
Lee Jae-do faced strong pressure from Choi Won-hyeok (182cm, G) from the start. However, Lee Jae-do used the strong pressure as a breakthrough. After breaking through, he used the space widely with a kick-out pass.
Due to Lee Jae-do’s pass, the ability of several players lived. It also meant that the attack was carried out in various places. In addition, Lee Jae-do was active in dirty work, such as backcourt defense, match-up defense, and rebound participation. Although the record for the first quarter was only 2 assists and 2 rebounds (attack 1), Lee Jae-do’s presence never diminished.
Lee Jae-do fulfilled his duty as a point guard. However, Lee Jae-do’s other role is the main scorer. SK’s defense must be broken with offense to balance LG’s attack. So Lee Jae-do’s score was ultimately necessary.
Lee Jae-do broke a tie at 3 points (29-29) from the right wing 4 minutes and 33 seconds before the end of the second quarter. Lee Jae-do, who gained confidence with the first 3 points, cast a mid-range jumper after using the screen, which was his original skill. After that, he intercepted the ball from Kim Seon-hyung (187cm, G) and made a solo fast break. LG regained the initiative with 33-29 3 minutes and 31 seconds before the end of the second quarter.
However, LG was pushed to 0-5 in the last 3 minutes and 31 seconds of the second quarter. The first half ended 33-34. A turning point was needed. If Lee Jae-do makes it, the best scenario.
However, Lee Jae-do was pushed around by Choi Won-hyeok’s strong defense. Because Lee Kwan-hee went back and forth between the court and the bench, Lee Jae-do received stronger checks. He tried hard to attack, but it was off balance. The reason why the field goal success rate in the 3rd quarter was only about 17% (2 points: 1/5, 3 points: 0/1). LG also moved further away from SK with 45-49.
Lee Jae-do’s power seemed to have fallen. The LG bench appointed Yang Jun-seok (181cm, G). However, when Yang Jun-seok committed a turnover in SK pressure defense, LG coach Cho Sang-hyun put Lee Jae-do back in. Lee Jae-do, who was put back in, responded with a dribble jumper.
Choi Won-hyeok blocked Lee Jae-do more vigorously, but Lee Jae-do combined physical fights, dribbles, and jumpers. However, LG allowed SK’s fast-paced defense to concede. Even in a well-organized defense, he scored 3 points. 2 minutes and 40 seconds before the end of the game, it was pushed to 59-69.
If LG loses by more than 10 points, there is no second place for LG on its own. Lee Jae-do was like that too. He did not lower his attacking instinct until the very end. Lee Jae-do, who recorded 19 points, 5 rebounds (attack 3), 4 assists and 1 block shot, maintained LG’s second place to some extent.