Kim Jeong-eun of Hana Bank, a living legend in women’s professional basketball, will embark on WKBL’s first ‘retirement tour’.
Hana Bank announced that Kim Jong-un’s retirement game, which leaves the court at the end of this season, will be held in five stadiums where the last away game will be held during the 5th to 6th round.
This retirement tour was planned to honor Kim Jong-un’s dedication and achievements on the court over the past 20 years. It was first discussed at the WKBL secretariat meeting held last January, and all teams are recognizing Kim Jong-un’s contribution to women’s basketball and will proceed with a retirement tour sequentially, starting with an away game against Samsung Life Insurance in Yongin on the 4th, and will have time to exchange final greetings with the opposing team’s players and fans.
Kim Jeong-eun, who debuted as the first overall pick in the 2006 WKBL new player selection, is a ‘living legend’ who has consistently stayed on the court for 20 years since her professional debut and is rewriting the history of Korean women’s basketball.
On December 2, 2024, he scored a total of 8,141 points in the game against Samsung Life Insurance, surpassing the record of Jeong Seon-min (Hana Bank head coach), and holds the record for the highest scorer in WKBL history. He also played in the Woori Bank game on December 21, 2025, and achieved a total of 601 game appearances, surpassing Lim Young-hee (Woori Bank coach) and holding the record for the most game appearances ever. He also holds the record for being the youngest player ever to score 2,000 to 8,000 points, ranking first in total playing time.
In addition, he played a great role in the league and national team, winning the 2006 Winter Season Rookie of the Year Award, the league scoring award four times, being selected as the league’s Best 5 six times, winning the championship game MVP once, and winning a gold medal at the 2014 Incheon Asian Games.
Kim Jung-eun, who is about to embark on a retirement tour, said, “I feel a heavy sense of responsibility for being granted this position that even my seniors who have walked a greater path than me have not been able to enjoy. I have carefully accepted the retirement tour because I want to contribute in a small way to creating a culture where the time spent on the court by female basketball players is fully respected. I think this position is not my personal glory, but a courtesy to the sweat of all the players who have protected Korean women’s basketball.” “I am sincerely grateful to each club and federation for generously considering and respecting his retirement, and I will not forget the thoughts of everyone who shared Kim Jong-un’s basketball life,” he said.
An official from Hana Bank’s women’s basketball team said, “First of all, we would like to thank the five clubs and WKBL for participating in Kim Jong-un’s retirement tour.” He added, “Kim Jong-un is not only a talented player, but also the team’s spiritual leader and a living textbook that shows juniors through actions, not words, what attitude a professional player should have on the court. I hope that her final road trip will be a festival to celebrate and show respect for her journey, regardless of whether she wins or loses.”
Meanwhile, Kim Jong-un’s retirement tour will be held sequentially at the Samsung Life Insurance Game (Yongin Indoor Gymnasium) on the 4th, the BNK Game (Busan Sajik Indoor Gymnasium) on the 7th, the Woori Bank Game (Asan Yi Sun-sin Gymnasium) on the 14th, the KB Stars Game (Cheongju Gymnasium) on the 23rd, and the Shinhan Bank Game (Incheon Dowon Gymnasium) on April 1.
Reporter Nam Jeong-seok bluesky@sportschosun.com
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