With a high-paying B-class contract from Liaoning Basketball, he has only made a few appearances this season and hasn't even made it into the 12-man squad in recent rounds of games. Although the season is not yet over, it is estimated that he will definitely leave during the next offseason.
When he returned to Liaoning Basketball from Jiangsu Basketball, many fans were still expecting him to strengthen Liaoning's last link, which was three-point shooting. However, after a season, not only did the fans not see the three-point shots they wanted to see, but they also rarely saw him on the court. After new recruit Weber joined the team, he made it into Liaoning's 12-man squad in the first game, while Zhao Lüzhou was removed from the squad by Yang Ming.
He was very hopeful when he first came back, after all, he had some outstanding performances in Jiangsu and he is a local player. But indeed, there is no place for him in a championship-level team, or rather, it's quite awkward in Liaoning's current system. It's not suitable to let him go to a weaker team, and it's actually a waste of his career to stay in Liaoning. The No. 3 position is currently having a big impact on Liaoning. Liaoning didn't have Zhang Zhenlin back then, at the peak of Hardson, at the peak of Guo Ailun, and mature Zhao Jiwei could only win one championship, with Gao Shiyan as a substitute. These four are already considered the top configuration of the so-called three guards, but it still doesn't work. They were blown up by Li Gen, Weems, and even Zhang Chunjun, showing how important an excellent No. 3 position is.
In the first few games after arriving in Liaoning, Zhao Lüzhou actually performed well, but as the games progressed, his slow rate became more and more obvious, coupled with his mentality issues, always lacking confidence. Zhao Lüzhou's luck is also too bad. If he had returned to Liaoning earlier, he could have played a big role under the single foreign policy. The double foreign policy just hits his weak point. Double foreigns need 3D, only D is okay, but having 3 without D is not enough. Moreover, the bench has taken away all the 3s.
Currently, in Liaoning's lineup, he definitely has no place. Yan Shouqi's position is the most stable, Li Huyi's defense is also good, and he occupies a position. There is still Cong Mingchen who has not returned to the guard line, and Zhao Lüzhou probably won't even get playing time in garbage time. Yu Zechen, although sometimes distracted on the court and sometimes makes some low-level mistakes, is a full-sized forward. His presence on the court is better than the three guards, as evidenced by the positive-negative value in the last two games, and his order of appearance is ahead of Zhao Lüzhou.
The perimeter problems are serious, and the interior also needs to change. If the list occupied by the perimeter players is not returned to the interior substitutes, the fourth quarter of the next game will still be difficult to play. Liaoning now has eight foreign players, and by the fourth quarter, Liaoning will have no room for adjustment because at least one of the two old players will be physically exhausted, and the same goes for the small foreign players on the perimeter. Regarding Yan Shouqi, once he doesn't score, his destructive power to Liaoning's defensive integrity is no less than adding three referees to the other side, and he doesn't play well normally. Yan Shouqi's so-called game experience has no value in the current 4 quarters and 7 rotations.
For Zhao Lüzhou, leaving might be the best choice.