Women’s professional basketball will resume on the 14th after the All-Star Game break.
The three-week reorganization time just past the halfway point of the season is expected to act as a significant variable. While Woori Bank’s first place and Hana 1Q’s bottom place are virtually certain, four teams — 안전놀이터 Samsung Life Insurance, BNK Some, Shinhan Bank, and KB Stars — jumped in for the second to fourth places. The factor that will determine the game is KB Stars’ Park Ji-soo and the rise of key players.
Currently, the atmosphere between Samsung Life Insurance, which is in second place, and KB, which is in fifth place, is most clearly at odds. This is why rankings can change at any time.
In the last game before the break, Samsung Life lost Kiana Smith and Lee Joo-yeon, the team’s key resources, at the same time. Both players suffered serious knee injuries and the season was confirmed, and the first goal was to secure 4th place, which is the last line to advance to the playoffs, let alone 2nd place. There is room for 5th place KB and 7 games to ride, but it is a difficult situation to guarantee ‘spring basketball’ if you have at least a 50% win rate in the remaining games. Danbi Kim, Iseul Shin, Sooah Jo, and other Sixth Men must fight hard.
Conversely, KB’s prospect of joining Park Ji-soo, who has become healthier, is ‘clear’. Despite not participating in off-season training, Park Ji-soo appeared in 4 games in the first half and played 16 minutes per game, averaging 13.25 points. During his three-week period, the key is how much he has improved his game stamina, balance, and ability to control rebounds under the goal. While other players are participating in the All-Star Game or on vacation, Park Ji-soo is expected to play a key role in the winning equation as before, as he has devoted himself to training without a break.
After Park Ji-soo’s return, not only the performance of guard Huh Ye-eun and Kang I-seul and Kim Min-jung, but also the confidence as a defending champion is increasing, so raising the ranking to at least 4th place can be said to be a sufficiently possible scenario if the atmosphere is favorable. . There are currently 4 games against Shinhan Bank in 4th place.
Shinhan Bank, which was somewhat chaotic in the first half due to the addition of new players, is improving teamwork towards the middle of the league, and a clear understanding of their role and a sense of responsibility are added, so better performance can be expected. BNK has not been able to show the same power as before after Kim Han-byul, who played a clear pivotal role in the first 안전놀이터 half of the year, was injured.
While Woori Bank, which lacked resources due to Kim Eun-seon’s season out, is expected to do its best in the early stages of the second half to quickly secure first place, Hana 1 Q, joined by sixth-men who have gained real-life experience by playing on the court without hesitation during the absence of key players’ injuries, is ranked. It is clear that playing the game without any burden will be a variable that can never be ignored by the four teams.