“I felt a strong desire,” says director Cho Dong-hyun, who moved Kim Jun-il to action
“I felt the details and that’s why I paid more attention.”
The KBL announced today that the Ulsan Hyundai Mobis Phoebus have signed free agent Kim Jun-il. The contract is for four years with a total compensation of 450 million won ($315 million in salary and 135 million in incentives).
Kim’s move was announced on the last day of voluntary negotiations. Kim Jun-il, who played for LG last season, will move to Hyundai Mobis. After working with his twin brother, Cho Sang-hyun, he will now be working with his younger brother, Cho Dong-hyun.
“As a first-time free agent, I wasn’t sure what to do. When my brothers advised me that it would be a headache, I honestly didn’t know, but when it happened, I was very stressed. It was a tough time, but I’m glad I was able to join a good team,” he said.
Kim Jun-il revealed that the coaching staff of Hyundai Mobis was very supportive of his signing. Coach Cho Dong-hyun is also known to have shown interest in Jun-il, specifically presenting him with a utilization plan.
Kim Jun-il said, “The Hyundai Mobis coaching staff was the first to contact me after the FA briefing session at the end of the season. They showed me that they strongly wanted me, so I was attracted to that and made my choice,” he said.
“Coach Cho Dong-hyun, of course, has (Jang) Jae-seok, (Ham) Ji-hoon, and (Kim) Hyun-min as older brothers, but he explained in detail how he would utilize me because I have a different style than my brothers. I felt the details and I think that’s what attracted me to the team.”
As Kim said, Hyundai Mobis has a lot of quality big men, including Ham Ji-hoon, Jang Jae-seok, and Kim Hyun-min. “Ham Ji-hoon is still very competitive, but he’s getting older, so there’s some overlap, but considering his aging, we needed reinforcements,” a Hyundai Mobis official explained.
Kim Jun-il added, “Everyone has a different style and I thought about how to play them. I’ve played as a full-time starter before, and last season I played almost as a sixth man. Competition is competition, but I’ll play in whatever order the coach wants. If he wants me to play a lot of minutes, I’ll play that way, and if he wants me to play a sixth man role like I did at LG, I’ll play that way.”
After tearing his Achilles tendon in his first game after joining LG, Kim spent a long time rehabbing, but his 51 games last season erased any concerns about his fitness.
“I’ve never had such a major surgery before, so I was worried that I wouldn’t be able to perform as well as before in my first season back. However, I didn’t feel much of an impact in terms of performance. If anything, I felt the physical strain of not working out for a year. I had a year off, and the time I lost didn’t come back right away by working out more for one to three months, but I played last season and I will prepare better and be more excited for next season 메이저사이트.”
While Kim had a successful comeback season as a key sixth man for LG, he was disappointed in the playoffs. He was injured in the third game of the best-of-four playoffs against SK, which was the final game, and was unable to perform at his best.
“I didn’t play well in the playoffs, and I got injured,” Kim said. I was injured in my first and last game at LG, and I feel very sorry for the LG officials and fans because it started with an injury and ended with an injury. I also feel grateful to the LG organization for providing me with a good training environment after two years of major surgery.”
Finally, Kim Jun-il said, “When I came back, a fan told me, ‘We waited too long. Thank you for making a good comeback and continuing to play basketball,’ and I still remember it very clearly. I felt the passionate support of the LG fans this time, so I’m sorry that I couldn’t play for LG for longer, but Ulsan and Changwon are not far away, so I hope they will support me. I think my health is the most important thing for Ulsan fans. I will work hard to become a player who can play for Hyundai Mobis for a long time without injury.”