The East Asian Super League (EASL) has a big matchup. Kim “FlashSun” Sun-hyung is excited to face off against Jeremy “LinSanity” Lin.
The EASL 2023-2024 season will begin on October 11 and end on March 10, 2024. The eight teams will be divided into two groups and play a home-and-home format in the group stage, with the championship being decided through the Final Four on March 8-10, 2024. The KBL will feature Anyang Chungkwanjang and Seoul SK, who reached the championship game last season.
The P.League+ runners-up, the New Taipei Kings, will join the league this season, replacing the Bay Area Dragons, who have decided to suspend operations. New Taipei recently made a splash by signing former NBA player Jeremy Lin.
Jeremy Lin is a Taiwanese-American who also holds Taiwanese citizenship. After falling in the NBA Draft, he was discovered through the Summer League and made his debut with the Golden State Warriors in the 2010-2011 season. He quickly became a mainstay for the New York Knicks in the 2011-2012 season, averaging 26.9 minutes in 35 games.온라인카지노
Jeremy Lin’s growth continued after that. In the 2012-2013 season with the Houston Rockets, he played in all 82 games, averaging 13.4 points, 3 rebounds, 6.1 assists, and 1.6 steals in 32.2 minutes. On February 2, 2014, he recorded a triple-double (15 points, 10 rebounds, and 11 assists) against the Cleveland Cavaliers, proving that ‘Asian guards can play in the NBA’.
Jeremy Lin was dubbed “Lin Sanity,” a play on the word INSANITY in his name, and he even won a Finals title in the 2018-2019 season with the Toronto Raptors. After averaging 11.6 points and 4.3 assists in 480 career NBA games, Lin went on to play in Asia with the Beijing Ducks, Guangzhou Long Lions, and Kaohsiung SeventeenLive Steelers.
SK and New Taipei, who are placed side-by-side in Group B, will meet twice in the group stage. On Nov. 8, the teams will meet at New Taipei’s home gym in Hsinchu, Taiwan, and on Jan. 31, 2024, they will play at Jamsil Student Gym. The matchup between Jeremy Lin and Kim Sun-hyung, two guards born in the same year (1988), has already been highly anticipated by EASL officials.
“I’m a big fan of Jeremy Lin, too,” said Kim. It’s an honor to be able to play against him. I think he made a mark in the NBA. I have a lot of respect for him, so I want to do my best to play against him. I think it will be as fun as playing against Jordan Clarkson. Of course, it’s important to win the matchup, but it’s more important to prepare well and help the team win.”
As the inaugural EASL champion, Chung took home a $250,000 first-place prize, a stipend to attend Champions Week, and $300,000 for winning the qualifiers. While the prize pool is large, last season’s schedule was shortened and played in a cup format in Japan, making it less physically demanding.
This season, on the other hand, the team will have to play EASL home-and-home with the KBL regular season, which will put even more pressure on their bodies. In fact, SK will have to play a total of seven games (six regular season games and one EASL game) in 14 days from December 19 to January 1, 2024.
“This season is a home-and-away format, so there will definitely be a physical burden in both leagues, but this is also a new challenge. If we can control this aspect, it will be an interesting season in many ways. It’s a new challenge for me and for the team, so I’m looking forward to it.”
The team is also highly motivated after finishing as runners-up last season. After the team lost the EASL Finals against Jung Kwan-jang, Kim drew attention from fans when he burst into tears in the locker room.
“I’ve never played a game that left me with so many regrets. If I could have controlled my physicality better, I could have won the title, and I’m very disappointed because it was so close. Of course, it’s also a motivation for this EASL. Last season, we played a total of 72 games (54 regular season games, 13 PO+Championship games, and 5 EASL games). We are determined to do the same this season.”
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