Basketball: Joo Misses Only Eight Games in Ten Seasons

Korean Basketball League player Joo Hee-jeong (30) of the KT&G Kites seems to be aging in reverse.

He appeared on December 5 at his lodgings in Anyang with his forehead covered with hair just like the Beatles, which is the current vogue among middle school girls. Joo smiled, saying, “I had the same hairdo as my three-year-old daughter.”

He is tireless. On October 30, he played his 500th game, a first in Korean Basketball League history. He started playing in the league in the 1997-1998 season, and has only missed 8 games out of a total of 508 games his teams have played after his debut. He is the iron man of Korean basketball.

I wish to play until forty –

“I work out until right before the season starts, working up to my potential. Then, I am not tired until the end of the season.”

He is tough. When he played for Samsung, he wore a 40kg lead jacket on his way home and to the gym, while he worked out until 10 in the evening even in the off-season. KT&G head coach Yoo Do-hun says, “Joo works out to the extent I would have him stopped.”

Joo said, “I think I can play just like now until I am 35. Afterwards, I will concede my starting position to my juniors. Still, I want to play until forty.”

I hope my juniors do well–

Joo Hee-jeong currently is at the vanguard of KT&G, which is ranked in second place. He is second in overall assists and 7th in steals.

“The capability difference (of guards) is ever so slight. A guard is only distinct when he meets a good foreign player and a trusting head coach.”

Concerning a comparison between him and SK rookie Kim Tae-sul, he said, “I am not offended by being compared with him,” and added, “Nevertheless, I do not think one player is better than the other.”

He does not covet the title of most assists, but he wants his junior player Yang Hee-jong to be nominated rookie of the year. “He is like my younger brother,” he said. Joo is the second eldest on the team, following Yoon Yeong-pil.

“When I was on another team, the senior players disciplined us a lot. Nowadays, junior players just get along with me very comfortably.”

Joo pointed out that KT&G’s strength is the good communication between head coach, players, and younger and elder players.

Joo Hee-jeong achieved a championship at Samsung during the 2001-2002 season, and wants his first championship with KT&G. “I am expecting my second child next month. I want to give my baby a championship present.”

hic@donga.com