South Korea men's national basketball team

Initiation (1947–1951) edit

In 1947, two years after the establishment of the People's Republic of Korea, the Korea Basketball Association joined the International Federation of Basketball (FIBA) and sent its national teams to FIBA-sponsored events. Only one year later, the team already celebrated its first major accomplishment at the 1948 Summer Olympics, when it finished 8th, better than any other Asian nation, and ahead of teams such as Canada, Argentina, and Italy.

Steady improvements (1952–1968) edit

At the 1954 Asian Games, for the first time ever, South Korea finished in the Final Four of a major international basketball tournament in Asia. The team slowly improved its position within Asia almost every year and qualified for the Basketball World Cup several times.

Golden years (1969–1970) edit

In 1969 and 1970, the team enjoyed a brief period to shine, when it won the 1969 Asian Championship^[3] and the 1970 Asian Games and ultimately qualified for the 1970 FIBA World Championship. As the only Asian team that had remained in the championship, South Korea finished ahead of Australia (champion of FIBA Oceania) and Egypt (champion of FIBA Africa) and showed its best performance ever at this event. Korea's Shin Dong-Pa dominated all scorers at the 1970 FIBA World Cup as he averaged 32.6 points per game, almost 13 points more than the runner up, Davis Peralta, from Panama.

Asian elite position behind China (1971–2007) edit

At the Asian Championship, South Korea stayed among the top three teams at 21 straight events, a record that is still unmatched until today.

At the 1996 Olympics, Hyun Joo-Yup averaged 16.6 points through the entire tournament.^[4]

At the 2005 FIBA Asia Championship, South Korea's medal-winning streak finally ended when they lost to Qatar at the 3rd place game . Between 1975 and 2005, South Korea was the only nation besides the Philippines that was able to seriously challenge China's dominance. It interrupted China's championship winning streak in 1997, when it defeated its dominant neighbor in the semifinals and ultimately won the crown as 1997 Champion of Asia.

At the 2007 FIBA Asia Championship, South Korea was able to go on a streak, and won the first 5 games. Because of the "four centers" Ha Seung-jin (221 cm), Kim Joo-sung (205 cm), Lee Dong-jun (202 cm), and Kim Min-soo (200 cm), South Korea had the tournament's highest 2-point field goal percentage (61%). South Korea was also a team that had a strong back court with Kim Seung-hyun (179 cm), Yang Dong-geun (182 cm), Kim Dong-woo (198 cm), and Choi Jin-soo (205 cm), who guaranteed that the team was in the tournaments top-3 in free throw percentage (70.6) and assists per game (11.5).^[5] All these players helped their team to win the bronze medal once again.

Emergence of West Asian competition (2008–2018) edit

In the modern era, South Korea's competition from West Asia intensified as countries such as Jordan, Qatar, Lebanon, and especially Iran improved their basketball programs. South Korea is still considered one of Asia's major teams but its position among the top three teams in Asia is not guaranteed anymore. In 2014, the team qualified for the Basketball World Cup for the first time in almost 20 years. Even though the team was eliminated in the first round, the qualification itself was a success and provided much needed global exposure.^[6] Most of the players that played at the 2014 World Cup returned for the 2014 Asian Games where they helped secure the gold medal on home soil.

Former Jeonju KCC Egis manager Hur Jae took over as the national team coach in 2016. They reached the play-offs of the 2017 FIBA Asia Cup and won the bronze medal.^[7] At the 2018 Asian Games, South Korea was unable to defend their tournament gold medal due to the loss of key players to injuries.^[8] The public outcry, coupled by accusations that Hur had showed favoritism by selecting both his sons into the national team, prompted Hur to resign in September.^[9] Hur's former assistant Kim Sang-shik took over as the new coach.^[10]

2019 FIBA World Cup and generational change (2019–present) edit

Under Kim Sang-shik, the South Korean team secured their place at the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup. Kim also began introducing younger players into the squad on a more regular basis.^[11][12] However, Kim decided on a more experienced squad, with half the players selected aged 30 and above and Heo Hoon being the youngest player at 24. South Korea struggled with injury problems to key players during the tournament but ended their losing streak at the World Cup. They recorded their first win at the World Cup in 25 years by winning their last game of the tournament, a 80-71 win over the Ivory Coast.^[13][14]

More signs of a "generational change" were visible as Kim called-up a squad composed only of players born in the 1990's for a 2022 FIBA Asia Cup qualifier against Indonesia.^[15] However, the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted much of 2020 as the closing of international borders and government-mandated quarantine regulations discouraged KBL teams from releasing valuable players to the national team, prompting a conflict between the Korean Basketball League (KBL) and the Korean Basketball Association (KBA).^[16][17] Kim resigned in late January 2021, citing his frustration over being caught in between the KBL and KBA and the failure of all parties to come to a resolution.^[18][19] Cho Sang-hyun took over in September 2021 and is expected to remain in charge until the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup.^[20]

In preparation of South Korea's participation in the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup Asian qualifiers, a two-week break from the regular season was scheduled in February 2022 for the national team call-ups. The Korean Basketball League was hit by the coronavirus as early as December 2021, with Changwon LG Sakers reporting their first case within the team.^[21] At the end of January 2022, KBL even made their first-ever match postponement due to the coronavirus, as multiple positive cases were reported in Seoul Samsung Thunders.^[22] Although stringent testing requirements and quarantine rules were implemented by KBL, it failed to lower the number of infections in the league. In February 2022, a massive outbreak occurred as many teams reported positive cases among their players and staff within a span of two weeks.^{[23][24][25][26]} Some teams could not field their main players as they were infected. Even so, KBL carried on with the scheduled matches as long as the participating teams could fill up the roster. Some players eventually took to social media to express their frustration publicly over the forced commencement of the league and lack of concern towards the wellbeing of the players.^[27] On the next day, KBL announced a suspension of the season for two weeks by postponing all remaining matches scheduled in February to a later date.^[28] The national basketball team took a major hit as most of the players on the preliminary roster submitted to FIBA at an earlier date, were infected by the coronavirus.^[29] Despite Cho's efforts of putting together a new roster, a player from the renewed roster was tested positive right before they depart to the Philippines on February 22. As a result, South Korea pulled out of the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup Asian qualifiers and was eventually disqualified.^[30][31] South Korea did try to appeal that decision, but it was rejected by FIBA.^[32] Hence, South Korea's appearance in the 2023 FIBA World Cup and the 2024 Summer Olympics is unclear as of now.

On April 29, 2022, Cho was announced as the new head coach of Changwon LG Sakers, and terminated his contract as the national team's head coach.^[33] After an open recruitment of a new head coach by the Korean Basketball Association, Choo Il-seung, previously a head coach for Goyang Orion Orions was chosen to lead the men's national basketball team effective May 19, 2022.^[34]

Olympic Games edit Summer Olympics Year Position Pld W L 1936 Did not enter 1948 8th place 8 3 5 1952 Did not qualify 1956 14th place 7 1 6 1960 Did not qualify 1964 16th place 9 0 9 1968 14th place 9 2 7 1972 Did not qualify 1976 1980 1984 1988 9th place 7 2 5 1992 Did not qualify 1996 12th place 7 0 7 2000 Did not qualify 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024 Withdrew Total 6/20 47 8 39 FIBA World Cup edit FIBA Basketball World Cup Year Position Pld W L 1950 Did not enter 1954 Did not qualify 1959 1963 1967 1970 11th place 8 4 4 1974 Did not qualify 1978 13th place 7 1 6 1982 Did not qualify 1986 22nd place 5 0 5 1990 15th place 8 1 7 1994 13th place 8 3 5 1998 16th place 5 0 5 2002 Did not qualify 2006 2010 2014 23rd place 5 0 5 2019 26th place 5 1 4 2023 Did not qualify 2027 To be determined Total 8/19 51 10 41

Asian Games edit Asian Games Year Position Pld W L 1951 Did not enter 1954 Fourth place 6 2 4 1958 Fourth place 8 4 4 1962 Third place 8 6 2 1966 Third place 7 6 1 1970 Champions 8 7 1 1974 Runners-up 7 4 3 1978 Runners-up 9 8 1 1982 Champions 9 9 0 1986 Runners-up 7 6 1 1990 Third place 7 5 2 1994 Runners-up 6 5 1 1998 Runners-up 7 6 1 2002 Champions 7 7 0 2006 5th place 8 5 3 2010 Runners-up 8 6 2 2014 Champions 7 7 0 2018 Third place 6 5 1 2022 7th place 7 4 3 Total 18/19 132 102 30 FIBA Asia Cup edit Main article: FIBA Asia Cup Year Position Pld W L 1960 4th place 9 3 6 1963 3rd place 10 7 3 1965 3rd place 9 6 3 1967 Runners-up 9 8 1 1969 Champions 8 8 0 1971 3rd place 8 6 2 1973 Runners-up 10 9 1 1975 3rd place 8 6 2 1977 Runners-up 8 7 1 1979 3rd place 7 5 2 1981 Runners-up 7 6 1 1983 3rd place 7 5 2 1985 Runners-up 6 5 1 1987 Runners-up 8 7 1 1989 Runners-up 8 7 1 1991 Runners-up 9 8 1 1993 3rd place 6 5 1 1995 Runners-up 8 6 2 1997 Champions 8 7 1 1999 Runners-up 8 6 2 2001 3rd place 8 7 1 2003 Runners-up 8 7 1 2005 4th place 8 5 3 2007 3rd place 8 6 2 2009 7th place 9 6 3 2011 3rd place 9 7 2 2013 3rd place 9 7 2 2015 6th place 9 5 4 2017 3rd place 7 5 2 2022 6th place 4 3 1 2025 To be determined Total 30/30 240 185 55

East Asian Games edit East Asian Games Year Position Pld W L 1993 Runners-up - - - 1997 Runners-up - - - 2001 Runners-up - - - 2005 Runners-up - - - 2009 Champions - - - 2013 Third place - - - 2017 Runners-up - - - Total 7/7 - - -

East Asia Basketball Championship edit East Asia Basketball Championship Year Position Pld W L 2009 Champions 4 4 0 2011 Champions 4 3 1 2013 Champions 5 5 0 2017 Runners-up 4 2 2 Total 4/4 17 14 3

FIBA Asia Challenge edit FIBA Asia Challenge Year Position Pld W L 2004 Runners-up 5 3 2 2008 Did not enter 2010 2012 2014 2016 Runners-up 8 6 2 Total 2/6 13 9 4

William Jones Cup edit

William Jones Cup
Year	Rank	Pld	W	L
1977
1978	Runners-up
1979	Not held
1980
1981
1982	5th place
1983
1984
1985	6th place
1986	Runners-up
1987
1988	Third place
1989	Not held
1990
1991	Third place
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998	Third place
1999	Champions
2000	Runners-up	6	5	1
2001	Runners-up	7	6	1
2002
2003	Not held
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008	7th place	9	2	7
2009	5th place	8	5	3
2010	Did not enter
2011	Runners-up	9	7	2
2012	5th place	8	5	3
2013	Third place	7	5	2
2014	Did not enter
2015	5th place	8	4	4
2016	Runners-up	8	6	2
2017	Third place	9	6	3
2018	Third place	8	6	2
2019	Runners-up	8	7	1
Total	?/37	?	?	?

Current roster edit

Tournament: 2022 FIBA Asia Cup (July 12, 2022 – July 24, 2022)^[35]

South Korea men's national basketball team roster – 2022 FIBA Asia Cup roster v t e
Players	Coaches
Pos. No. Name Age – Date of birth Height Club Ctr. F 1 Choi Jun-yong 28 – (1994-04-04)April 4, 1994 2.00 m (6 ft 7 in) Seoul SK Knights G 2 Heo Hoon 26 – (1995-08-16)August 16, 1995 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in) Korea Armed Forces Athletic Corps G 3 Heo Ung 28 – (1993-08-05)August 5, 1993 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) Jeonju KCC Egis F 7 Lee Woo-seok 23 – (1999-07-10)July 10, 1999 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) Ulsan Hyundai Mobis Phoebus F 11 Yang Hong-seok 25 – (1997-07-02)July 2, 1997 1.99 m (6 ft 6 in) Suwon KT Sonicboom C 15 Kim Jong-kyu 31 – (1991-07-03)July 3, 1991 2.07 m (6 ft 9 in) Wonju DB Promy C 20 Ra Gun-ah 33 – (1989-02-20)February 20, 1989 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) Jeonju KCC Egis C 21 Lee Dae-heon 30 – (1992-04-29)April 29, 1992 1.97 m (6 ft 6 in) Daegu KOGAS Pegasus F 26 Kang Sang-jae 27 – (1994-12-31)December 31, 1994 2.02 m (6 ft 8 in) Wonju DB Promy C 31 Jang Jae-seok 31 – (1991-02-03)February 3, 1991 2.04 m (6 ft 8 in) Ulsan Hyundai Mobis Phoebus G 43 Lee Dae-sung (C) 32 – (1990-05-30)May 30, 1990 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) Daegu KOGAS Pegasus F 55 Song Kyo-chang 26 – (1996-07-03)July 3, 1996 2.00 m (6 ft 7 in) Korea Armed Forces Athletic Corps	Head coach Choo Il-seung Assistant coach(es) Lee Hun-jae Legend (C) Team captain Club – describes last club before the tournament Age – describes age on July 12, 2022

Past rosters edit

1970 World Championship: finished 11th among 13 teams

Shin Dong-pa, Lee In-pyo, Kim In-kun, Kim Young-il, Park Han, Choi Jong-kyu, Yoo Hee-hyung, Lee Byung-koo, Yoo Jung-kun, Lee Ja-young, Shin Hyun-soo, Kwak Hyun-chae (Coach: Kim Young-ki)

1978 World Championship: finished 13th among 14 teams

Kim In-Jin, Kim Pyung-Man, Jung Young-Soo, Jang Bong-Hak, Park Sang-Ung, Park Soo-Kyo, Kim Sang-Chun, Kim Hyung-Nyun, Kim Dong-Kwang, Koo Jong-Hoo, Lee Mun-Kyu, Choi Bu-Young (Coach: Kim Moo-Hyung)

1986 World Championship: finished 22nd among 24 teams

Hur Jae, Park In-kyu, Lee Min-hyun, Cho Yoon-ho, Han Ki-bum, Lee Mun-kyu, Kim Hyun-jun, Kim You-taek, Kim Sung-wook, Lee Won-woo, Lee Chung-hee, Goh Myong-hwa (Coach: Kim In-kun)

2021 Squad at the 2020 FIBA Men's Olympic Qualifying Tournaments – Kaunas^[36]

South Korea FIBA Men's Olympic Qualifying Tournaments roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. No. Name Age – Date of birth Height Club Ctr. G/F 1 Lee Hyun-jung 20 – (2000-10-23)October 23, 2000 2.01 m (6 ft 7 in) Davidson Wildcats G 2 Byeon Jun-hyeong 25 – (1996-03-11)March 11, 1996 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) Anyang KGC G 4 Kim Nak-hyeon 26 – (1995-03-12)March 12, 1995 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) Incheon Electroland Elephants C 8 Ha Yun-gi 22 – (1999-03-12)March 12, 1999 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) Korea University F 10 Moon Seong-gon 28 – (1993-05-09)May 9, 1993 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) Anyang KGC F 11 Yang Hong-seok 24 – (1997-02-07)February 7, 1997 1.99 m (6 ft 6 in) Busan KT Sonicboom F 13 Kang Sang-jae 26 – (1994-12-31)December 31, 1994 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) Incheon Electroland Elephants F 20 Ra Gun-ah 32 – (1989-02-20)February 20, 1989 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) Jeonju KCC Egis F/C 22 Yeo Jun-seok 19 – (2002-03-20)March 20, 2002 2.06 m (6 ft 9 in) Yongsan High School G 23 Jeon Seong-hyun 29 – (1991-11-05)November 5, 1991 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) Anyang KGC C 33 Lee Seoung-hyun 29 – (1992-04-16)April 16, 1992 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) Goyang Orion Orions SG 43 Lee Dae-sung 31 – (1990-05-30)May 30, 1990 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) Goyang Orion Orions	Head coach Cho Sang-hyun Assistant coach(es) Kim Dong-woo Legend (C) Team captain Club – describes last club before the tournament Age – describes age on June 30, 2021

• Jung Sang-yun (1948)
• Kim Young-ki (1970)
• Bang Yeol (1982–1983)
• Choi Bu-young (2006–2007)
• Hur Jae (2008–2009)
• Yoo Jae-hak (2010–2014)
• Kim Dong-gwang (2015)
• Hur Jae (2016–2018)
• Kim Sang-sik (2018–2021)
• Cho Sang-hyun (2021–2022)
• Choo Il-seung (2022–present)^[37]

Manufacturer edit

• 2002–present: Nike^[38]

Sponsor edit

• 2016–2017: Hana Financial Group^[38]
• 2018–present: KB Kookmin Bank^[39]

• Sport in South Korea
• South Korea national under-19 basketball team
• South Korea national under-17 basketball team
• South Korea women's national basketball team

Wikimedia Commons has media related to South Korea men's national basketball team.

• Official website (in Korean)
• FIBA profile
• South Korea National Team – Men at Asia-basket.com
• South Korea Basketball Records at FIBA Archive

Videos edit

• Korea v Iraq - Semi-Final Highlights - FIBA Asia Challenge 2016 YouTube.com video