Coach Lee Sang-beom resigns after taking responsibility for poor performance. He laid down the baton of the DB, following his belief that it was “a position to make decisions and take responsibility.”

Wonju DB said in a press release on the 5th, “Director Lee Sang-beom conveyed to the club his intention to resign voluntarily for health reasons and responsibility for the poor performance of the team on December 31 of last year. He said, “I’m sorry I couldn’t live up to the expectations of the fans and the club.” DB decided to play the rest of the game with head coach Kim Seong-cheol also resigning and acting manager Kim Joo-seong.

Director Lee Sang-beom, who resigned from the Anyang KGC command tower in the middle of the 2013-2014 season, returned to the KBL stage in April 2017 after being appointed as DB’s 8th manager. In the first season after coach Lee Sang-beom, DB was classified as a lower rank because of the overlap of Heo Woong’s military enlistment and Park Ji-hyun’s retirement, resulting in a weakening of bench power, but unexpectedly won the regular league championship and advanced to the championship match.

It was called ‘Sangbeom Magic’. Doo Kyung-min, who was tagged as a ‘perennial prospect’ because of his clear strengths and weaknesses, grew into a regular league MVP, and role players such as Kim Tae-hong and Seo Min-soo made a surprise appearance. The mercenary technique that Kim Ju-seong, who had been through the retirement season, was a great help to the team. The synergy effect from the Deonte button was the biggest driving force, but coach Lee Sang-beom’s ability to control the squad, which clearly instilled motivation, also received favorable reviews.

DB only ranked 8th in the 2018-2019 season, when the contract renewal with Button failed and Doo Kyung-min’s military enlistment overlapped, but regained the appearance of a strong player again in the 2019-2020 season. He signed a contract with Kim Jong-gyu, the biggest fish in the free agency market, for the highest amount ever (1.279 billion won), strengthened his power, and won the regular league joint championship with Seoul SK. The season ended early in the aftermath of Corona 19, so the desired championship victory was not achieved, but it was enough to make up for the sluggishness of the 2018-2019 season.

However, this was the last championship won under coach Lee Sang-beom. From the 2020-2021 season, DB has been constantly injured by key players and has fallen into the lower ranks. It ranked 9th in the 2020-2021 season and 8th in the 2021-2022 season토토. This season also seemed to rebound with 5 consecutive wins after 2 losses in the opening season, but due to line injuries such as Dewan Hernandez, Park Chan-hee, Kang Sang-jae, and Doo Kyung-min, they are still in 9th place with 11 wins, 18 losses. If they fail to make the playoffs even this season, they will fail to advance to the playoffs for the first time in club history for three consecutive seasons.

Director Lee Sang-beom has been in a lot of trouble lately. They escaped from their 2nd consecutive loss with a complete victory (102-90) in Basketball Youngshin against Jeonju KCC, but they still have a long way to go. Head coach Lee Sang-beom said ahead of the home game against Anyang KGC on the 2nd, “I think I used all my luck during the 3 seasons after taking over as DB coach. Since then, injuries have not ceased every season,” he said with a bitter smile.

He continued, “It is difficult. Still, the director has to decide and take responsibility. He should not take responsibility and supervise,” he indirectly expressed his inner meaning. In the end, the 34-point defeat (63-97) in the away game against Seoul SK on the 4th remained the last game coach Lee Sang-beom played at DB. After taking the DB command tower, the record was 147 wins and 141 losses in the regular league.