JongKyu honored to play for Korea's national team

SEOUL (FIBA Basketball World Cup 2019 Asian Qualifiers) - Kim JongKyu cherishes playing for the national team, especially when it comes to performing in front of their home fans.

"It's an honor to represent Korea in front of home fans," he said. "I think it's very cool, and it makes me proud compared to any other competitions."

The 26-year-old is one of the most experienced players on the national team, debuting for them in the FIBA Asia Cup 2011 in Wuhan, China. At 6ft 9in (2.07m), his length and athleticism are prime assets for Korea. He relishes the opportunity to play at home, especially because Korea rarely perform in front of their own fans.

"More national games will bring more home fans to the arena," he explained. "More fans cheering makes our performance better, and it also helps get more attention to our league as well."

JongKyu is considered among Korea's finest big men, and though he was not 100% healthy, he still made quite an impact, averaging 9.0 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game.

"We performed better than I expected, but personally I was injured so I felt sorry for my team," he said.

One of their famous wins from the first window was a resounding road victory over New Zealand, 86-80, where JongKyu tallied 9 points. He will face them anew in the second window, and he expects a stiffer challenge from the Tall Blacks.

"We beat New Zealand in the first window, so we have to prepare even more to beat them in the second window," JongKyu shared.

He acknowledges, however, that size will always be a disadvantage for Korea, which puts more pressure on him. Still, he believes they should stay true to their identity as a speedy and sweet-shooting squad.

"We always have a weakness in terms of height," he said. "But I think it is more important to focus on making our strengths, which are early offense and three-pointers, even stronger rather than overcoming our weakness."

FIBA