CBA News! On January 10th, Beijing Time. New Messages from Qiu Biao, Wang Shilong, and Min Lulei
The 29th round of the CBA regular season continued with Shandong defeating Jilin 117-84 at home, securing their second consecutive victory. Throughout the game, Shandong dominated from start to finish, leading by 27 points at the end of the third quarter, demonstrating their strength. The team's offense was well-distributed, and they effectively limited their opponents defensively, winning comfortably. Chris led Shandong with a game-high 26 points, adding 7 rebounds and 6 assists, while Moore contributed 20 points and 6 assists, and Chen Peidong scored 13 points. For Jilin, Jones was absent due to injury, but Kizlink scored a game-high 31 points with 8 assists, and Big Bear had 19 points and 12 rebounds. With this victory, Shandong climbed to third place in the standings with a record of 20 wins and 8 losses, just half a win behind second-placed Shanxi, which is quite impressive.
Due to their outstanding performance, Shandong's head coach Qiu Biao happily accepted media interviews. From his interview, we learned that he emphasized three main points. Firstly, he stressed the team's focus, stating that there are no weak teams in the current CBA, as the gap between the 12th and 2nd places in the standings is not significant, and all teams have a chance to make it to the playoffs. Secondly, he mentioned that despite their victory, they should not be too elated, as Jilin's star foreign player Jones and domestic core Jiang Yuxing were both absent, which had some impact on Jilin's overall strength. Thirdly, Coach Qiu praised the team's control of rebounds, which was more than ten higher than Jilin's, indicating a positive trend. Honestly, Shandong's overall teamwork is becoming increasingly cohesive, especially the connection between Gao Shiyan and Chris, which directly linked the entire team, playing in a very organized manner.
Zhejiang defeated Ningbo 119-93 at home, ending their three-game losing streak and maintaining their undefeated record against Ningbo with 11 straight victories. Despite missing four key players, Zhejiang still won under the leadership of Jones and York. Jones and York each scored 33 and 38 points respectively, helping the team take a 17-point lead in the first quarter. In the second quarter, Ningbo managed to close the gap, but Zhejiang widened it again in the third quarter and ultimately won easily. Howard of Ningbo performed well, scoring the highest for the team with 30 points, but was unable to help them secure the victory. With this win, Zhejiang moved up to sixth place in the standings with a record of 19 wins and 9 losses. Although they are currently in sixth place, they are only one point behind second-placed Shanxi and could potentially overtake them at any time. Currently, Guangsha is the only team that can firmly hold onto the top spot, while the other positions are subject to change.
After defeating Ningbo, Wang Shilong, the head coach, also accepted media interviews for the first time. He may have been frustrated recently, as the team kept losing, and he appeared distressed during interviews. However, after today's victory, he was particularly happy. From his interview, we learned that he was extremely satisfied with the performance of all the players on the team, whether it was rebounding or defense, everyone performed clearly and distinctly. I can understand Wang Shilong's response; he does have high emotional intelligence, but honestly, his use of personnel is not good. He doesn't give newcomers the opportunity to train and only relies on the old guard. Newcomers sit on the bench for long periods, while veteran players are overused, and in some games that are basically guaranteed wins, he still doesn't give newcomers a chance, allowing the veterans to rack up stats. In the end, it's either one getting injured or another. Additionally, Zhejiang has a chronic problem where they perform like fresh seafood during the regular season, with every player braver than Lu Bu, and their results skyrocket. However, once they reach the playoffs, a large number of injuries occur, with one player after another getting hurt, which is quite absurd.
Finally, let's talk about Min Lulei, a popular coach in the CBA. After losing to Shanghai, he also accepted media interviews, stating that their Beikong defense is indeed not as good as last season and has encountered some issues. Why am I dissatisfied with Min Lulei's response? Because Beikong has an obvious advantage in the paint, with a complete lineup, especially their foreign players, who should be among the strongest in all the teams. So why has their defense declined? To put it bluntly, apart from individual players not putting in enough effort, Coach Min Lulei also bears significant responsibility. Why is Beikong continuously losing? It's because they are fighting as separate entities, with defense not keeping up and slow retreats, lacking passion in their play. I sincerely suggest that Marbury return as an assistant coach to work alongside Coach Min. If Marbury were still coaching Beikong and brought in He Xining and Salingger, Beikong's results would certainly not be so disappointing.