Seoul Samsung Thunders secured a dramatic 75-73 comeback victory over Goyang Sono Skygunners on November 11, propelling the KBL club to its first three-game winning streak to start a season in 23 years, Chosun.com reported.
Kim Sun-hyung Steps In Late After Five Seasons At The Bottom
Head coach Kim Sang-shik took over the Seoul-based club in July, marking the latest appointment among all 10 Korean Basketball League teams ahead of the new campaign. The arrival followed a turbulent stretch for the organization. Samsung finished at the bottom of the standings for five consecutive seasons, recording a 25.6% winning percentage behind a 69-201 record. That run stands as an unprecedented streak of last-place finishes across South Korea’s four major professional sports leagues spanning baseball, football, basketball, and volleyball.
Roster Turnover and Preseason Losses Test the New Coach
The squad faced steep hurdles during the summer preparations without major acquisitions to offset personnel losses. Forward Lee Won-seok and guard Park Seung-jae enlisted in the Sangmu military basketball program, removing key rotation depth. Veteran guard Lee Dae-seong remained sidelined with an injury, while American forward Derrick Williams requested a contract release in August to move to Greece, leaving the franchise scrambling for foreign replacements. Kim Sang-shik acknowledged in an interview with Chosun.com that colleagues initially expressed concern rather than simple congratulations given the severity of the team’s internal challenges.
The Samsung Thunders will play their last home game on April 8.Jamsil Arena in Seoul, which Samsung club has used as its home stadium since 2001, will be demolished after this season and disappear into history.#SamsungThunders #KBL pic.twitter.com/XHgXPmRzIU
Defensive Rigor Fuels the Early Season Surge
Trailing 68-57 heading into the final quarter, Samsung limited Sono to 13 points while scoring 25 of their own, capped by a game-winning three-pointer from Kerem Kanter just before the final buzzer. Through the first three games, Samsung dropped its scoring average slightly to 76.3 points per contest but slashed defensive concessions from 83.3 points last season down to 71.7 points. Kim attributed the defensive turnaround to repetitive, structured team drills aimed at establishing cooperative help-defense principles.
Strict Standards Replace Individual Blame
Upon taking charge, Kim addressed a locker room burdened by past losses by showing the roster game footage of the Boston Celtics, emphasizing unselfish ball movement and floor spacing over individual heroics. The head coach established a strict team rule penalizing selfish play or attempts to shift blame onto teammates, applying identical standards across the entire roster. Veteran guard Lee Kwan-hee saw his playing time drop to an average of 10 minutes and 19 seconds per game, while younger contributors such as Lee Kyu-tae stepped into expanded roles, scoring 16 points including four three-pointers in the victory over Sono.
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