Lee Dae-sung (Seoul Samsung Thunder), who advanced to Japan’s B. League, returned to Korea for the first time in a year, and angry basketball fans stand up.
The organizers of the protest said on the 24th, “We will hold a truck protest in front of the Korean Basketball Association (KBL) headquarters and Samsung headquarters from 11 a.m. on the 24th to denounce Lee Dae-sung and Samsung.”
The organizers then said, “The message we want to convey is as follows,” adding, “We are alert to why basketball fans, not the club or the KBL, are angry and how angry they are, so that other players, including Lee Dae-sung, can feel and realize, and prevent similar incidents from happening later on.”
Lee Dae-sung, who was traded to the Korea Gas Corporation in Daegu in 2022, declared his overseas expansion after the 22-23 season. To him, who once more became a free agent, the Korea Gas Corporation did not sign a contract to consider his overseas expansion. Since then, as the FA market closed, Lee Dae-sung signed a one-year contract with Shihosu Mikawa, a Japanese professional basketball league. 메이저놀이터
According to KBL regulations, if a FA-qualified player has been offered a recruitment by one or more of the domestic clubs, but refuses to do so, he will be classified as a “player who refuses to join” and will not be able to play in the league for five years.
The state-run Korea Gas Corporation asked other clubs not to offer Lee Dae-sung for his overseas expansion. With KGC’s consideration, Lee was able to go overseas without being caught by the “refusal to join the team for five years” clause.
However, Lee Dae-sung returned to Korea after only a year, and he angered fans by informing them of his contract with Samsung in Seoul following the news that he registered an FA disclosure with the KBL in May.
The Korea Gas Corporation, which left him without a contract, had no choice but to watch Lee Dae-sung cross to another club without even receiving compensation.
If Lee Dae-sung had moved to a domestic club last year, Korea Gas Corporation could have received 200% (1.1 billion won) of compensation, compensation players, and compensation (275 million won).
Lee Dae-sung further fueled the anger of fans and the Korea Gas Corporation with various words that defied faith at the press conference held on the 22nd.
In his first press conference, which began with the remark that “the offer of the Korea Gas Corporation was not sincere,” Lee Dae-sung said, “It is a little regrettable to say about the KBL system, but there are systems such as voluntary termination. However, I took the risk of five years,” and added, “If the system (my actions) are to block the way of my juniors, wouldn’t it be regrettable for those in the system to interpret the system’s authority? It is absolutely not true that overseas expansion will deteriorate due to this case.”
On top of that, Samsung’s alleged tempering has worsened the public opinion, which was initially negative.
“I hope that other players who have done it with a strong sense of determination, passion, and challenge will not be harmed by this,” the organizers of the truck protest said. “The basketball board is so small that it doesn’t seem to be a problem with this issue, but as you can see from the basketball community, it is extremely burning.”