The Trail Blazers small lineup encounters setbacks. Can Yang Hansen regain trust after returning from leveling?

Sports Weekly All-Media Reporter Ji Mengnian

After the game against the Houston Rockets, the Trail Blazers players held an internal meeting. Faced with the 116-140 defeat, Grant, Kamara, Sissoko and others spoke one after another. They were not only dissatisfied with the result of the loss, but also expressed disappointment with the attitude and execution displayed during the game.

"We will definitely rebound against the Mavericks. No matter what the process is, we will win." Grant was full of confidence before the game and looked forward to ending this five-game away journey with a victory.

However, the reality was not as he wished. Although the Trail Blazers started with momentum and once led by 12 points, they still lost to their opponents 133 to 138 in the end. After five consecutive away games, they only achieved 1 win and 4 losses, and the overall state of the team is worrying.

After the game, Avdija seemed particularly self-blame. In the last attack of regular time, he had a chance to complete the buzzer-beater, but due to improper time control, he hurriedly shot a three-pointer. "The last shot was my responsibility. I could have done better. I wasted too much time and should have chosen to break through, or at least get closer to the basket. I will learn from it and have to be smarter next time."

However, the reason for the defeat is far more than the details of the last round. The team's overall performance during the entire five-game away period is what head coach Split and the Trail Blazers really need to be wary of.

Thinking back to the five consecutive away games, the Trail Blazers were at their peak - they defeated the Nuggets in the NBA Cup group stage, and then gave the Thunder their first defeat of the season. However, since then, the team's status has begun to fluctuate. The problem was not obvious against the Magic and Heat, but in the three games against the Pelicans, Rockets and Mavericks, the Trail Blazers' performance showed obvious ups and downs.

This season the Trail Blazers are a team with distinctive characteristics: average space and lack of top offensive launching points, so they rely heavily on random battles to win. They are among the best in the league in terms of turnovers made, points scored from turnovers, offensive rebounds and secondary offenses. Especially in terms of turnovers created, they are "unique" - they have averaged more than 10 steals per game for a long time and used turnovers to score more than 20 points.

However, during the five consecutive away games, the team's vitality in this area declined significantly. Against the Pelicans, the opponent only committed 10 turnovers; against the Rockets, it was as low as 6; although the Mavericks committed 14 turnovers, considering their average of 16.9 turnovers per game this season, the Blazers' pressure was still insufficient. Opponent turnover rate data can more intuitively reflect the Blazers' sluggish performance in causing opponent mistakes during the past period. So far this season, the five games in which the Blazers' opponents have the lowest turnover rate in a single game happen to be the last five consecutive away games.

Although the Trail Blazers can still maintain good offensive rebounds and their three-point production is acceptable, after losing the important weapon of using turnovers to score, the game's fault tolerance rate has been greatly reduced. In addition, the team already has problems such as low efficiency in positional warfare and unstable backcourt protection. It is normal to have 1 win and 4 losses in the last 5 games.

In fact, it is not surprising that the Trail Blazers have experienced such ups and downs. The outstanding record before the five consecutive away games was based on the efficient performance of the small lineup - when Holiday, Grant, Avdija, Kamara and Sharp played at the same time, the score was close to 140 points in 100 rounds, with a net victory of more than 17 points. However, over-reliance on a small lineup also has side effects: high-speed tempo and full-court pressure not only bring injury risks - Wesley and Thybulle have been absent for a long time, and Holiday was also injured recently - but also lead to physical and mental fatigue of the entire team. Reflected on the field, it is difficult to maintain the intensity of fighting and the defensive aggressiveness has dropped significantly.

As Holiday said after the battle with the Rockets: "We couldn't find the rhythm at all, and the game was full of strangeness." After only one day's rest, they faced the Mavericks. Although the team's condition has improved, it is obviously unrealistic to repeat the performance against the Nuggets and Thunder.

As the season progresses, the side effects of the Blazers' high-consumption play will become more and more obvious. At the same time, each team is also studying countermeasures: actively slow down, attack rebounds, reduce mistakes, and prevent the Blazers from playing the rhythm they are good at.

In this regard, Split has been actively adjusting. He began to increase the use time of the large lineup, and Klingen's playing time has increased significantly in recent games. He is also more cautious when using a small lineup - after all, this is not a universal solution, but one of the most suitable configurations for the team at this stage. If the small lineup is not effective, sending in a big center can at least maintain a certain initiative in rebounding and protecting the basket.

In other words, if Yang Hansen can continue to perform well in the Development League, will there be a chance to return to the rotation? With the Blazers' increasing reliance on the inside and Lowe's unstable state, this possibility is gradually emerging.

A few days ago, Yang Hansen has completed his first two games in the Development League. According to the arrangement, the next game of the Mixed Team will not be until next Monday, which also means that he will be recalled to the team at least next week. However, even if Hansen Yang can get another chance, he should not be overly optimistic. On the one hand, there is a huge gap between the G League and NBA levels. On the other hand, the other three opponents of the Trail Blazers this week, the Suns, Bulls and Warriors, are all playoff-level teams. They are fast and accurate in shooting, which is a huge challenge for any insider.

Therefore, even if Yang Hansen gets another chance, he will still face a steep uphill road. Xiao Yang needs to remain confident, remain patient, and prove in a limited time that he can adapt to higher-intensity confrontations and more complex tactical environments. For the entire Trail Blazers, how to find a balance between lineup adjustments and record pressure will be a key issue throughout this season.

In the Western Conference, reaching the playoffs is never easy. The Trail Blazers are off to a stunning start to their season, but the marathon has only just begun.