Former KT Durham won the B.League Finals MVP by leading Ryukyu to the championship.
The Ryukyu Golden Kings won 88-73 against the Chiba Jets in the second leg of the B.League 2022-2023 season final held at Yokohama Arena in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan on the 28th.
Coe Flippin (21 points, 3 rebounds, 8 assists) and Jack Cooley (19 points, 15 rebounds) played an active role, and Alan Durham (13 points, 7 rebounds) was selected as the Finals MVP. Ryukyu, who won both the first and second games, won the championship for the first time since the 2016-2017 season when the B.League was founded.
Durham,메이저사이트 who won the MVP, is a familiar name to Korean fans. In the middle of the 2019-2020 season, he joined Busan KT (now Suwon KT) as a substitute foreign player for Al Thornton. He is not tall at 195cm, but his strength is his strong play under the goal. He was also credited with the ability to spare his comrades.
Durham recorded a triple-double with 19 points, 13 rebounds and 10 assists against the Seoul Samsung on January 29, 2020, his third game after entering the KBL. After joining Durham, KT recorded 6 wins and 2 losses, and was on the rise. He has laid the foundation for a leap from the middle ranks to the top ranks.
However, the league was abruptly suspended due to the spread of Corona 19 that season. Terrified by COVID-19, Durham, along with teammate Byron Mullins, left Korea in the form of a voluntary exit, demanding a contract termination. His KBL record was 11.3 points, 8.6 rebounds and 3.1 assists in 23 minutes on average in 8 games.
Afterwards, Durham headed to Japan and played for Niigata Albirex BB in the 2020-2021 season. From the 2021-2022 season, he has been active in Ryukyu, a prestigious B. League team. He contributed to Ryukyu’s final runner-up last season, and this season, he recorded 15.6 points, 7.7 rebounds and 3.6 assists for an average of 27 minutes and 21 seconds in 59 regular league games.
In the final against Chiba, Durham’s presence was more prominent. In the first game on the 27th, he perfectly dominated the goal with 26 points and 14 rebounds. He filled the void left by Cooley, who was dismissed for five fouls in the fourth quarter, and scored decisive points one after another in the game. In the second game, he did his part with 13 points and 7 rebounds and proudly won the Finals MVP.
Ryukyu, who participated in the EASL (East Asia Super League) Champions Week last season as the runner-up in the B. League Finals, will compete in the EASL again next season. If drawn in a group with Anyang KGC or Seoul SK, Durham will face the KBL team as enemies.
