![Hyun-jung Lee in action at the Snakepit. Picture by Adam McLean. Hyun-jung Lee in action at the Snakepit. Picture by Adam McLean.](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/ViGe8NXxNszpWGz2Wi7TWd/00df566a-f12f-414a-b667-d2276ea9d707.jpg/r0_0_3582_2388_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
Mention his 50-40-90 shooting year as a college sophomore and you'll see Hyun-jung Lee cringe. He knows what question's coming next.
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It's not the benchmark numbers - more than 50 per cent from the field, more than 40 per cent from three-point range and more than 90 per cent from the free-throw line - aren't something to be proud of.
It's more to do with the fact that he's the only player in the history of his alma mater of Davidson College to achieve the feat.
Given it's also the alma mater of NBA megastar Stephen Curry, widely regarded the greatest shooter of all time, it becomes kind of a thing; even if the Hawks recruit is keen to avoid it.
"Everyone's been saying 'Lee did 50-40-90 which Steph didn't do in his college career' but I don't want to take that credit," Lee said.
"I guess it's a great honor, but it's Steph Curry. He's a point guard, he draws two or three defenders, he's forcing some tough shots, sometimes he had to do that.
"I had a lot of good teammates so I was able to shoot wide-open threes or wide open jumpers, cutting lay-ups. I like the title, but it's Steph Curry."
He offers up the last statement like it's most obvious thing in the world - and it is - but the numbers point to just how lethal the Korean sharp-shooter can be from the field.
It created enough interest for him to forgo his senior year and declare for the 2022 NBA Draft, only to suffer an ankle injury in a pre-Draft workout with the Hornets.
The timing was brutal, but the 22-year-old has enough optimism to declare it a valuable, if painful, experience.
"It was two weeks before the draft but I can't complain," Lee said.
"I had to put the screw in and I had to put the screw back out, so it took me 8-10 months to get through rehab. I was always thinking 'what if injury did not happen? Where would I be right now?' but shit happens.
"You can't dwell on the past and I learned a lot from that. I think it's a great [learning] experience for me mentally too. I've just got to move on to focusing on right now to help this team win the championship."
Lee made his return to action with the Santa Cruz Warriors in the G League ahead of a stint with 76ers in the Summer League, but inking a three-year deal with the Hawks is a homecoming of sorts.
His time at the NBA Global Academy in Canberra in 2018 saw him form strong bonds with current Hawks teammates Sam Froling, Dan Grida and Wani Swaka Lo Buluk.
"When you're a professional it's always tough to be in the new spot, obviously a new country too, but those guys make me feel really comfortable," Lee said.
"I think it's a really good [path] to the next level, but not only to be prepared for the NBA, I want to be a better person, more professional, tougher.
"Everything I want to get better at, I feel like this is the right place. I feel like NBL is still an underrated league. It's really physical, tough, quick, high quality basketball.
"There's a lot of good offers for me back home, in Japan or whatever, but I really want to do whatever I can to challenge for the NBA and I think the NBL is the closest door to the NBA."