The fact that there is no ‘Prince of Egypt’ means that there is no way to stop Warnie… ‘Ferry risk’ sure
The absence of ‘Prince of Egypt’ Assem Marey means that Jamil Warney is unstoppable.
Changwon LG lost 68-73 in the first leg of the 2022-23 SKT Adot Pro Basketball Quarterfinals playoff against Seoul SK held at Changwon Indoor Gymnasium on the 14th. It was a game where you could feel the difference by more than 5 points.
LG was the team with the strongest defense this season. With the ‘salty water defense’ that gave only 76.6 points per game, he was able to rise to second place in the regular league. At the center of it all was the best rebounder in the league, Marey.
Having Marey was very reassuring. It is difficult to expect him to score more than 20 points, but instead, he was able to reduce the scoring power of foreign opponents and gain confidence in not being pushed back in the height fight.
The reason why LG was able to record 3 wins and 3 losses in the regular league match against SK, and the reason why they were able to tie them to the early 80s, which boasts the best offense in the league, was also Marey. Warney was also the most struggling foreign player, and it was also a force that could attract them to their proud ‘swamp basketball’.
Now there is no Marey. Instead, Reggie Perry, who has the exact opposite tendency, joined as a new foreign player. Perry is one of the top scorers in the G-League. However, due to the nature of the G League, which prioritizes the individual rather than the team for an NBA call-up, Perry’s defensive power was unpredictable compared to his excellent offense. LG was well aware of this risk, and it could be seen that they gambled. And the result in the first game ended in a complete failure.
Warney struggled quite a bit against Dante Cunningham last Game 1. Although the team’s energy level dropped overall in the first half, it was somewhat difficult for Cunningham and Kim Jun-il to double-enclose LG’s under-the-goal defense. It was a big blow to SK because it was a situation where even Kim Seon-hyung could not regain his rhythm안전놀이터.
However, the moment Perry stood on the court, Warney became the man who would lead a KBL champion that even Stephen Curry could not. He became an angry lion and bit Perry. It was also the point of raising the energy level that had fallen to the bottom. Perry had no idea how to deal with Warney’s ‘that shot’ and allowed a stretched rim. It was the starting point of overturning the 11-point gap in an instant.
But that doesn’t mean that Perry showed off the destructive offensive power he showed in the G-League. Perry scored 17 points in Game 1, but his field goal success rate was disappointing at 41%. Even in the G-League, the closer he was to the rim, the more powerful he was. The problem was that SK was well aware of this and defended tightly. Efficiency had to go down. He made three 3-pointers, but was silent when the team needed him.
If both the offense and defense are clumsy, it is the current KBL that has no choice but to become a prey for Warney. Even considering the adaptation period, Perry showed less than expected performance. LG was fine when Cunningham stood on the court, but considering his age and stamina, even 20 minutes was difficult. It was only regrettable that ‘Ferry Risk’ came as bad news.
LG had no choice but to miss Marey. In addition to his strengths mentioned above, the solid screen is also a part that proves that Marey is the best foreign player in KBL. Perry’s screen was not rigid and was less effective. The worst sluggishness seen by Lee Jae-do and Lee Kwan-hee is also LG’s defeat, but if Marey’s screen was present, it would not have been so lethargic.
LG only played one game, but exposed too big a problem to SK. In the end, if you can’t change the ‘ferry risk’ positively, you can become a victim of upsets without working hard. If you can’t do as many invisible things as Marey, you need to put in at least 30 points to be able to fight on an equal footing with Warney. It’s really difficult.
