This season in the CBA has been a fierce competition, with no super teams dominating and giving various teams hope for the championship. In the first stage, Beijing Men's Basketball Team's performance was undoubtedly eye-catching. They ranked at the top of the league with a record of 9 wins and 1 loss, clearly one of the strongest contenders for the title.
Many fans even exclaimed, "Beijing Men's Basketball Team is finally rising!" However, just one stage later, Beijing Men's Basketball Team experienced a visible decline in the second stage, with their performance disappointing many, especially in the last four games where they only managed 1 win and 3 losses, falling out of the top six and nearing the bottom. This team, once filled with high hopes, suddenly found itself in a quagmire.
The second stage record of Beijing Men's Basketball Team can be described as a "disaster," with only 7 wins and 6 losses. More worrying is that they only won against weaker opponents, while almost always losing to stronger teams. They lost to Shanxi (twice), Guangdong, Tianjin, Shandong, and Xinjiang, but won against Shenzhen, Guangzhou, Beikong, Jiangsu, Liaoning (by a narrow margin of 1 point), and Tongxi (also by a narrow margin of 1 point), relying almost entirely on victories against weaker opponents.
Looking back at recent games, Beijing Men's Basketball Team's weaknesses have been thoroughly exposed: not only are their offensive methods单一, but they also lack someone to step up in critical moments.
The most representative game was against Xinjiang. Beijing Men's Basketball Team maintained a leading advantage in the first half, but in the second half, they suddenly lost momentum, with the entire team falling into an offensive standstill, ultimately being reversed by Xinjiang with a score of 108:97. Such a game process makes one wonder: Is this really a team with championship-winning capabilities?
In fact, the decline of Beijing Men's Basketball Team was not accidental. During the offseason, Beijing made frequent moves in the transfer market, successively introducing Zhou Qi and Chen Yingjun, two top players whose additions were expected to significantly enhance the team's strength, but things did not go as planned.
Zhou Qi's addition was once seen as a key step to strengthen the interior, but this national-level center disappointed fans to the extreme. He frequently missed games due to injuries, and even occasional colds could keep him out for extended periods. Worse still, even when he played, his fighting spirit was often questioned, with mediocre on-court performances that did not meet the standards of a core player.
Looking at the foreign player configuration, the three foreign players of Beijing Men's Basketball Team can be described as "mediocre." Small forward Jerman averages only 17.3 points, with a shooting percentage of 45.5% and a dismal three-point percentage of just 30.4%. Power forward Omore averages 13.3 points and 3.7 rebounds, lacking presence. Center Solomon averages a mere 9.9 points, posing no threat.
The three foreign players lack both strong attacking abilities and the ability to take over games in critical moments. It should be noted that this season, the CBA has significantly relaxed the playing time restrictions for foreign players, making their importance even more pronounced. However, Beijing Men's Basketball Team's foreign player lineup does not resemble that of a championship-contending team.
In addition to the players, Beijing Men's Basketball Team's performance on the coaching bench is also culpable. Head coach Xu Limin's tactical abilities have been widely questioned.
His ability to adapt to changing situations is virtually zero, with the team lacking a mature offensive and defensive system. Their style of play is overly rigid and mechanical, causing the players to perform like "robots" on the court, lacking adaptability and creativity. When facing strong teams, Beijing Men's Basketball Team often falls into a passive situation, yet Xu Limin fails to make effective adjustments in a timely manner.
For the current Beijing Men's Basketball Team, the crux of the problem is self-evident. If Zhou Qi cannot maintain a healthy state, if the foreign player configuration does not improve, and if the coaching staff continues to lack adaptability, it will be almost impossible for this team to compete for the championship.
Although it is only the mid-season of the regular season, there is still much time for Beijing to make adjustments. However, if changes are not made quickly, this team, once filled with high hopes from fans, may miss the championship again.
So what do you think? How should Beijing Men's Basketball Team adjust to reverse its downward trend? Should they upgrade their foreign players, replace the head coach, or change their tactical approach directly?