Head Coach Choi Hee-ahm Suddenly Resigns

Head coach Choi Hee-ahm (48, photo) of Mobis professional basketball abruptly resigned from his position.

Choi told General Manager Shin Il-kyu on Friday morning, after a come-from-behind loss at the overtime game against ETLand on Thursday, that he wanted to resign and take responsibility for the team’s poor performance. Mobis team to dissuade Choi, but failed to change his mind and had to accept the resignation. With this, Chang Il (36) becomes the acting head coach.

Choi said, “The team status is so poor and needs some changes before it’s too late. I thought it was necessary for me to take responsibility as head coach. With this, I hope the atmosphere will be reformed.”

Choi finished his journey midway only, working 20 months and failing to complete his contract which ends next April, after jumping to the professional league as the Mobis head coach last March.

Choi, following Choi Jong-kyu (former Sambo), Choi Myung-ryung (former Dongyang), and Kim Dong-wook (former Sambo), expressed his exhaustion, saying, “I want to rest and to study for a while.”

Mobis was projected to finish high this year, but as of December 5, it was ninth out of a total of ten teams. Basketball experts have pointed out the reason for his failure is his continuous use of an amateur university style in the professional league.

Choi was the successful leader who won the Basketball Grand Feast not to mention capturing the summit of university basketball since he commanded Yonsei University, his alma mater, since 1986.

However, he had some limitations as he always won because his team always consisted of the best players. He was inexperienced at taking feeble teams and had difficulties in commanding and tactics with the weak Mobis team.

There are no go-to players on the team, because the head coach has directed every little detail. Mobis has suffered eight come-from-behind defeats, including five times in six overtime games because of lack of self-confidence. The defense blew chances to increase the lead by allowing the opponents to crawl back into the game. Also, they made a barrage of turnovers. Baset had hoped for but didn’t score a lot in the fourth quarter due to lack of stamina, and the failure to adequately replace McDowell was a problem.

After his team fell into an extended slump, Choi mentioned resignation to the team several times 15 days ago, and on November 26 when Mobis lost after the opponent came from behind, Choi handed in his resignation letter.

Choi, who has made a scar in his success story, has survived several crises for the mean time through the transformation. Will Choi, who left the pro stage in which he made his debut, rise again?

Jong-Seok Kim kjs0123@donga.com