Park Chan-suk (63‧190cm), who is called the ‘basketball empress’, is one of the best players of all time in Korean women’s basketball without a doubt. The best center that dominated her contemporaries, she played an active role as a central player in various international competitions as well as her team.
She was an all-around player-style big man, rare at the time, with Park Chan-sook as her center and impeccable offensive and defensive prowess, as well as her ability as a forward. She is good at post-up and face-up and puts in a high-accuracy shot near her 3-point line. She was able to make middle shots more than any shooter when there was space, regardless of whether she was on the top or side.
In addition, she had the sense to read the flow of the game and put in a pass that fit the situation, so she was able to assemble the attack to some extent. Where is that? Even when her mood was down, she even possessed outstanding leadership skills, capable of raising the fighting spirit of her colleagues again with a few words. Because of this, there were many cases where her overall performance itself depended on whether she was on her court or not. Unlike her, she is not what many players have believed in, followed, and relied on.
“My own best 5? If so, I want to form a team centered on players who were active in the national team together. Do you think the old players are unconditionally the best? It’s not. There are trends that go well by era, and there are strengths and weaknesses among players. There are so many good players in this era. In particular, it seems that there is a considerable difference in the size part.”
Nevertheless, the fact that the best 5 was composed mainly of the national team colleagues was a big part of the so-called breathing. When you think of being together as a player or leader, it’s because it’s more comfortable with familiar characters who know every detail and can quickly get along. The that I picked was center Park Chan-sook herself, power forward Sung Jeong-ah (57‧184cm), small forward Kim Hwa-soon (60‧178cm), shooting guard Choi Ae-young (died in 2008, 168cm), point guard Kang Hyeon-sook ( 67‧172 cm).
“At that time, despite the harsh environment, the results in international competitions were quite good. Although there were many talented players, it is true that it was overwhelming against strong Western teams. Instead, I think we had the advantage that our hands and feet matched well enough that our bodies reacted quickly just by looking at each other’s eyes. The teams are different, but since we were very young, we met often in the national team and became close, so when we went to international competitions, it was possible to move like
the original team. Park Chan-sook, as mentioned earlier, was the main gun and pillar of the national team, and although there was a slight age difference with power forward Seong Jeong-ah, she was called a team behind the goal because her hands and feet matched well. Seong Jeong-ah was good at dirty work, but she herself also excelled in her individual skills, so the ‘twin towers’ of the two were able to play a key role in karate and defense, as well as a control tower to some extent.
“As for the breathing under the goal with Seong Jeong-ah, there is no need to explain it anymore because it was properly shown on the big stage such as the Olympics. He did really well as a power forward at a young age. He was also the first player to score after receiving my behind pass. Kim Hwa-soon was a scorer who silently fulfilled her role. They flew reliably on the wings.”
Kim Hwa-soon, Seong Jeong-ah, and Park Chan-suk’s numbers 3, 4, and 5 were also mentioned in the previous Seong Jeong-ah episode. However, Guard Jin was different.
“Choi Ae-young is more memorable because I can’t see him anymore. He was a typical wait-and-see plastic surgery player. He became a national representative rather late, but he was one of the hidden contributors to the LA Olympics. He showed off his tremendous amount of activity, diligently running around and doing a lot of dirty work in the front line. He’s a style that raises the team’s energy level. Kang Hyeon-sook is a senior I respect. As a point guard, she led her team stably and well, as well as being a fixer in some situations. She was one of the number 1 people who saved the big man. ”