"Full of romance." What Kim Jong-un wanted more than the highest score ever in WKBL..."I want to go to the championship with Hana Bank"
"Full of romance." What Kim Jong-un wanted more than the highest score ever in WKBL..."I want to go to the championship with Hana Bank"
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Before I retire from Hana Bank, I want to go to the championship game."
Kim Jong-un, the "first sister" of Bucheon Hana Bank, delivered a romantic goal at the opening media day of Hana Bank's 2024-25 Women's Professional Basketball held at the Seoul Grand Ballroom at The Plaza Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul on the 21st.
Kim Jong-un was named by Shinsegae as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2006 WKBL New Player Selection, and after being acquired by Hana Bank, he wore only one uniform until the 2016-17 season.
Kim, who was the present and future of Korean women's basketball, was an ace player at Hana Bank, but had little relationship with spring basketball. Notably, he was named the first championship game in his career in the 2015-16 season, but it was nullified due to the Chelsea crisis.
Kim Jong Un transferred to Asan Woori Bank ahead of the 2017-18 season and won his first championship. After that, he returned to his hometown of Hana Bank after winning his last championship at Woori Bank in the 2022-23 season.
At the time, Kim Jong-un considered retiring from Woori Bank, so the FA didn't mean much. However, it was too popular to retire. Kim Jong-un's experience, skills, and instinct to solve the game were still attractive, even though his heyday was past.
Kim Jong-un decided to transfer to Hana Bank after much consideration. The queen of Bucheon has returned in six years.
"I was a founding member of Hana One Q and spent my youth together. When I went to Woori Bank, there were times when I hated myself to death (laughs). But seeing a good player leave and crumble again, I felt emotion beyond words. It was heartbreaking. I didn't think this team should be like this, and eventually, it made me move because it was my family home," Kim Jong Un said, making the decision to return to the team.
After returning to Hana One Q, Kim failed to display ace performance as he did in the past. Instead, he served as a helper to help Jihyun Shin and Yang In-young, and eventually achieved his goal of advancing to the playoffs for the first time. He also maintained his performance. He played in 27 games and averaged 29 minutes and 9 seconds with 10.4 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 2.4 assists, displaying robustness.
Although Hana Bank, which lost three consecutive semifinal playoffs against Cheongju KB Stars and was eliminated early, it was meaningful to play its first spring basketball with Kim Jong-un.
In the upcoming 2024-25 season, Kim Jong Un is looking at Hana Bank and spring basketball once again. Jihyun Shin has left, but Jinan has joined. Hana Bank, which had not been considered a candidate for the semifinals, has now become a strong playoff team selected by fans, players and media.
The 2024-25 season feels special to Kim as well. This is because he is set to set a new WKBL record of scoring the most points in his career.
The WKBL record holder is Jeong Seon-min, the "basket queen" who has recorded the most points in his career. He scored 8140 points. Kim is 58 points shorter than Jeong with 8082. If he scores 59 points this season, he will make a new history in the WKBL.
"I thought I would be able to do it for a long time, but I couldn't catch it well," Kim said. "Many seasons were missed due to injuries. I am personally happy that this record has come close to my eyes throughout my career."
For Kim, however, the title of the highest number of goals scored in his career was not the most important thing. For Kim, the top goal for this season was romantic. 메이저놀이터
"This may seem a bit clichéd, but my goal is to go to the championship game before I retire from Hana Bank. I want to focus on that," Kim said.
Hana Bank has yet to officially make the championship game since its foundation. If Kim Jong Un is on the top stage with his family, there will be no more touching story than that. It is not impossible. Analysts say that this season will be the Warring States era, with Park Ji-soo and Park Ji-hyun advancing to overseas leagues. Hana Bank's bid for the presidency is certainly possible and gives great trust to Kim Jong Un.
Will Kim Jong Un be able to achieve his goal of advancing to the championship game for the first time with Hana Bank? There is enough reason to watch him and Hana Bank this season.