There was one person who was happier than anyone else about the 5% miracle that Changwon LG was able to achieve. It’s Yang Jun-seok.
The Yonsei University product is considered one of the Big 3 in the upcoming 2023 KBL rookie draft, along with KU’s Moon Jung-hyun and Park Mubin. He is one of the best shooters in college and is widely regarded as an instant powerhouse.
Yoo is a player that Suwon KT, Ulsan Hyundai Mobis, and LG, who have the first, second, and third overall picks, are all interested in. The fact that everyone wants him, regardless of his ranking, means he’s a highly valuable player.
“I watched the lottery with the kids from Yonsei, and I had the college league finals right after, so I didn’t think about anything else, but I just wanted to know. After the finals, I just wanted to leave it to fate,” Yoo said in a phone interview with MK Sports.
After the ranking draw, Yoo’s phone caught fire. His “best friend” Yang Jun-seok had called him immediately to express his happiness.
Yang Jun-seok and Yoo Yoo-sang are both in the 20th class of Yonsei University and have been the mainstays of the team since their underclassmen years, leading their alma mater to the top of the college league. In particular, their chemistry was perfect. They maximized each other’s strengths and complemented each other’s weaknesses, creating a great synergy. Last year, Yang Jun-seok left the team as an early entry, but there is a possibility that they could reunite in a year.
Yoo says, “Jun-seok (Yang) contacted me right away and was very happy (laughs). In fact, after Jun-seok went to the pros, we had a conversation about ‘when can we play together’ and ‘shouldn’t we see each other in free agency’. But when LG got the third pick and there was a possibility of playing together, he seemed to like it even more.”
Of course, there’s no guarantee that Yoo will be selected by LG. He was rated as the No. 1 overall player just last year. This year, Moon Jung-hyun’s call-up to the national team has raised his stock, and while this has lowered Yoo’s projected ranking, it’s not impossible that one of KT or Hyundai Mobis will call his name.
Furthermore, if Yoo is selected by LG, he will be the last of the Big 3 to be called. It could be a matter of ego. If he can play alongside Yang Jun-seok, the synergy between them will be higher than that of KT and Hyundai Mobis. Instead, it’s a matter of pride.아톰카지노
However, Yoo Yoo-sang said, “If it was last year, I would have cared about the ranking. But in my fourth year, I realized that even if I lose my ranking, I won’t lose out to my peers. Fourth-year players from all universities participate in the draft. I think it’s disrespectful to the players I’m drafting with if I think I’m behind them. I hope that (Moon) Jung-hyun, (Park) Mubin, and of course me, all go to the right team. It’s good to be drafted high, but I want to go to a team that really wants me and commit to them,” he said, showing his maturity.