Commentator Shin Ki-sung coached the players at the Youth Elite Camp.
The KBL is holding the 2023 KBL Youth Elite Camp at the Yanggu-gun Youth Gymnasium in Yanggu-gun, 스포츠토토 Gangwon-do from the 21st to the 27th.
A total of 70 players, 37 from the secondary and 33 from the high school level, are centered around the camp site of Kim Byung-cheol, and are developing into better players under the guidance of coaches Jung Young-sam, Kim Dong-wook, Oh Yong-joon, Kim Yoon-tae, Song Chang-mu, and Shin Ki-sung.
As with all coaches, Shin Ki-sung pours his heart and soul into every moment with the kids. At first glance, you’d think it was a professional team training session, as he emphasizes every detail of the players’ movements to lead the team to victory.
Shin’s enthusiasm doesn’t stop at the elite camps. Shin is also a frequent instructor at one-day clinics for youth development and the KBL’s Dream Camp, where he contributes to the development of Korean basketball.
“If it was just regular students who wanted to have fun and love basketball, it would be a fun and safe atmosphere,” says Shin. But the players here are looking to become professionals and eventually national teams. It was hard to ignore the time they had invested and the support of their parents,” he explains.
As a player, Shin was known as a bullet man due to his skillful game management, accurate three-point shooting, and speed. As a result, he was able to teach the kids how to play 2-on-2 and how to effectively deal with the other team’s pressure defense. He also emphasized the fundamentals of being a player.
“The most important thing is the mindset. I emphasized that to the players during my time here. They were eager to learn, and I wanted to help them even more. I want them to learn what they need on the field, what they didn’t know, and what they thought was wrong.”
As mentioned earlier, the most important thing for Coach Shin was the mindset and mentality, aside from skill. Despite the fact that Korea is home to some of the most talented players in the world, what was the most disappointing aspect of the sport for Coach Shin?
“There were many players who lacked the basics. It was posture, jumping, dribbling, shooting, catching the ball, and defense,” he said.
After coaching 37 secondary school students for three days, Coach Shin faced 33 high school students from all over the country on the afternoon of the 24th. Although there was not much difference in age between the secondary and high school teams, the coaching direction was definitely different.
The court temperature was also the opposite of the secondary schools. When the players were distracted, the coaches would yell at them to get them back into the game with tough defensive drills.
Coach Shin Ki-sung said, “Middle school players need to grow up. If we have created an environment where they can overcome that atmosphere and play together, the high school players have grown up to a certain extent. That’s why we emphasized details and accuracy.”
Finally, Coach Shin expressed his satisfaction with the KBL’s initiatives such as the Youth Elite Camp. He hopes to see more such programs.
“The fact that the KBL is doing this is important. We need to produce players who will represent Korea in the distant future. Through this opportunity, I hope the players will be motivated and confident and approach basketball more seriously. This is not an ordinary camp, and I hope it will be a big turning point for them.”