Lee Jong-Hyun
In a late afternoon basketball game, a 6’9 18 year old kid hauled down 42 rebounds for the Kyongbokgo high school basketball team. That got people talking. Who is this kid? Is he the next Seo Jang-Hoon? Barely three years ago, the 6’9 kid was only 6’1 entering high school as a freshman. Then came the growth spurt and Lee Jong-Hyun grew into his body and played center, notches up his small forward position.
That 42 rebound game started it all for Lee. In the next couple of weeks, he was named into the seniors team who are bound to play in Venezuela for the Olympic wildcard. Lee alongside youngsters Kim Jong-Kyu, Kim Min-Koo and Lee Seung-Hyun got together and mingle with veterans like Yang Dong-Geun and Kim Joo-Sung.
“It was unreal. I grew up watching Kim Joo-Sung and I wanted to be like him. Now I am teammates with him.” Said Lee Jong-Hyun then. Lee would eventually suit up for the national team. He and Kim Jong-Kyu were centers against Russia and the Dominican Republic. Russia had Kirilenko, Dominican Republic with NBA all-star Al-Horford. Although Korea would drop the first game in a humbling defeat and would prove to be troublesome for Horford and his crew, Lee would make a good account of himself against John Calipari.
“That is a kid with a huge upside.” Said Calipari. “Wingspan and the poise to go up against Horford, I tell you, this kid is something special.” Lee Jong-Hyun would go on to have blocked two shots against the bigger and stronger Al Horford.
After graduating highschool, Lee Jong-Hyun chose Korea University despite offers from every college in the peninsula. “Lee Seung-Hyun and I became instant friends during the training camp.” Said Lee.
That 42 rebound game was the start and it was not long before Lee Jong-Hyun was the main man for the South Korean U18 national team where he lead Korea to a second finish against China lead by another teenage sensation, Wang Zhelin.
“We wanted to win, but China was good and have been playing for a much longer time than us.”
Forward, Lee Jong-Hyun and Lee Seung-Hyun formed a powerful combo in the paint. Seung-Hyun was the bruiser while Jong-Hyun was the shot-blocking specialist. They rebounded, scored and blocked shots that continued the line of Korea University being a powerhouse. December 2012, Lee Jong-Hyun would have another monster game of 21 points and 17 rebounds against a Sang-Moo team that was bannered by KBL stars like Park Chan-Hee, Yoon Ho-Young and Heo Il-Young.
That got people talking once more. Lee Jong-Hyun was an important cornerstone for Korea’s future. He was expected to lead the South Korean U19 national team to the 2013 U19 worlds, he was expected to banner the Korean team in the 2013 East Asian basketball qualifiers for the 27th FIBA Men’s basketball tournament in Manila. Lee was expected to be the centerpiece of Korea’s future for the 2014 Asian Games.
How does a 19 year old keep up with the expectations? “I try not to think of it. I have teammates to share the burden.” Said the meek 19 year old. BUt it was not a sign of backing down, but being realistic. Lee is not the only brightspot of the upcoming generation, but he is a major piece. That future was given a tantalizing look in the 2013 East Asian qualifiers where Lee Jong-Hyun teaming up with Kyung-Hee’s Kim Jong-Kyu, Kim Min-Koo alongside other stars like Lee Seung-Hyun, Park Jae-Hyun, Doo Kyung-Min and Choi Joon-Young would lead Korea to a gold medal, against the Chinese team that featured Guo Ailun and his hyped nemesis, Wang Zhelin.
It was a youth team plus the military team that did the trick. Moving forward, Lee would eventually suffer a nasal fracture and would miss the U19 world championship. Despite being brought to Taiwan by head coach Yoo Jae-Hak for the 35th William Jones Cup, Lee would not play a game as Yoo was saving him for the biggest joust in Manila.
Lee wears a mask as he practiced with the national team, and teammates called him the masked man. Mask or not, Lee Jong-Hyun is quickly becoming the face of the national team.
Stay humble, stay hungry.
Sakerland 