Kim Min-wook has rebounded well since joining Sono.
The Goyang Sono Skygunners won 85-51 in an exhibition game against Hanyang University at the Goyang Sono Arena Auxiliary Gymnasium on Saturday.
The Skygunners are coming off a preseason schedule without any major injury setbacks in their key rotation. Kim Min-wook, the oldest player on the Korean roster, had a solid performance with six points and 토토사이트 순위 two rebounds.
For Kim, last season was a significant one. After not receiving playing time and becoming less and less recognizable to fans, he took a risk and headed to Day One under his former coach Kim Seung-ki, and later became a member of the Sky Giants after Sono took over.
The move was a success. After spending last season as Sono’s starting big man, Kim played in 47 games and averaged the most minutes (23:34) in his rookie year. He averaged 8.1 points per game and was nicknamed “Minook Jingis” by Sono fans due to his size and shooting ability.
“It’s been a few years of ups and downs, and I think the season ended just as I was starting to find my groove and get back into the swing of things.(Laughs) It’s a season that I wish I could have played more games sooner,” says Kim, reflecting on the past season.
Kim continued to work hard in the off-season, but a small injury to his calf prevented him from joining the Hongcheon training camp in late June. However, his rehabilitation went well and he is now in good shape.
“I think I was a little greedy when I came back from my off-season vacation because I kept building my body steadily. I should have taken a break, but I scratched my calf while training with the mindset that it would get better, so I couldn’t go to the pre-season training, but it didn’t affect my workouts too much, and I’m personally investing to catch up with the amount of training that I couldn’t keep up with the rest of the time.”
In addition to the off-season LG, Sonoda has undergone a lot of roster changes. Last season’s core players have retired or moved on, and the likes of Lee Jae-do, Jung Hee-jae, Choi Seung-wook, and Lim Dong-seob have joined the team. The starting lineup for today’s scrimmage was also all transfers except for Lee Jung-hyun, making offseason chemistry a priority.
“At first, I jokingly felt like I was a transfer,” Kim said, ”but it’s not up to me as a player to decide the composition of the team, and the new players are training well together. They all have very good personalities, so I didn’t have much trouble adjusting,” he laughed.
Regarding Lee Jae-do, who will have to work together as a guard and big man, he said, “He was a player I traded for in the past, and he was a player who did well even when he was on another team. I have to adjust to him a lot. We’re still talking about what we want to do in practice, and I’m trying to adjust to what he wants to do little by little.”
In some ways, Kim Min-wook will have to compete for playing time even more than last season. Jung Hee-jae has joined the team as a free agent, and Park Jin-chul is also on the verge of leaving the military. Kim emphasized that competition is natural in any team and that he will stick to his role.
“Competition is the same everywhere. We may have slightly different styles, and the coach will give me playing time according to the situation because he needs me. If there is a difficulty in a matchup, he will play another player, so I don’t worry about playing time and just try to fulfill my role in my position.”
As a team, Kim said his goal is to make the playoffs, and as an individual, he wants to be on the roster for all 54 games and play consistently.
“As a team, of course, the coach wanted to make the playoffs, and the composition of the team has changed a lot. With new players coming in and Jae-do joining the team, there are players to help relieve some of the work that (Lee) Jung-hyun had to do on his own. (Choi) Seung-wook came in, and (Jung) Hee-jae came in, so I’m hoping that we can accumulate more wins than last season’s 20,” he said.
“For me personally, it’s to be in the lineup no matter the time, never miss a game and play all 54 games without injury. At the same time, I’d like to have a season where I have something to say to the younger guys.”
Like other teams, Sono has seen a large number of fans attend its practices. On the 15th, a national holiday, nearly 500 fans visited the SONO Arena Auxiliary Gymnasium, and many more came to watch the practice on the same day.
Kim Min-wook said, “There were so many fans. Yesterday, even though it was just a practice game, the stadium was already full an hour before the game, which gave us more focus and energy to play. I’m going to continue to work hard in training,” he said, expressing his gratitude.