What are you afraid of "dropping little pearls"? Yang Hansen s talent in the preseason has already given the NBA a glimpse of the future

Reprinted from: Yangtze Evening News

The 2025-2026 NBA preseason has come to an end, and Chinese young insider Yang Hansen made his 4th debut in a Trail Blazers jersey. From the draft to the summer league to the preseason, this young player born in the CBA has brought surprises all the way. This answer sheet contains both eye-catching talent bursts and hidden shortcomings in cross-level challenges. And the self-deprecating phrase "a few little pearls fell out, but it's not a big problem" allowed fans to see his resilience and made everyone look forward to the first official season of his NBA career.

Visible talent brings surprises to Chinese insiders

As a traditional insider who came out of the CBA, Yang Hansen has broken many people's stereotype of "CBA insiders". The most amazing thing among them is his three-point ability. He made 4 three-pointers in 4 preseason games, and his 40% shooting rate was definitely not a blessing of luck - against the Kings, he picked and rolled with the defender, caught the ball, jumped, and shot in one go. His smooth movements were not inferior to the NBA's local space-based inside players. You must know that the Trail Blazers are in urgent need of the fifth position that can open up the space. This shooting ability makes him directly become the "hot potato" of tactical design. Some fans even compared him with organizational insiders like Jokic on American social media.

The explosive power on both offense and defense also exceeded expectations. In the game against the Kings, he scored 16 points and 3 blocks in just 17 minutes. In the third quarter, he was even more powerful: while scoring 14 points in a single quarter, the defensive end continuously sent big blocks, showing his inside deterrence; he turned his head and could quickly follow up to participate in the counterattack, and the offense and defense conversion efficiency was high. What's even more rare is his tactical value. As an insider standing at the axis, he sent out 3 assists in the game. One of his long passes across the court accurately found his teammates. This "organizational insider" trait is the core competitiveness that NBA teams rarely find.

What attracts more fans than his statistics is his mentality - this is almost the most resilient among the Chinese players who have landed in the NBA. In the final game of the preseason, he committed two fouls in 51 seconds, and finally left the field with six fouls. The courtside camera captured the moment when his eyes were red. But in the post-match interview, the young man had already adjusted his condition. While mocking himself with "dropping a few little pearls", he also specially thanked the fans on the sidelines for their cheers. From being trapped by a foul problem against the Warriors in the first game, to achieving a full-scale explosion in the second game, this resilience to quickly correct mistakes is the most valuable foundation for the growth of young players.

The pain of growth cannot be avoided, the only way to cross-level challenges

No matter how brilliant the talent is, it cannot escape the test of the "Novice Village". Yang Hansen's shortcomings are directly exposed in the NBA-level confrontation.

The first thing to bear the brunt is the shortcomings of confrontation ability. In the final game of the preseason, facing "heavy tanks" such as Kessler and Nurkic of the Jazz, Yang Hansen's shortcomings in tonnage and strength were infinitely magnified: in 15 minutes of playing time, he failed to score any points and failed to grab a single rebound. When blocked, he was repeatedly squeezed out of favorable positions by his opponent's body, and he could only watch helplessly as his opponent controlled the rebounds. He only averaged 4 rebounds per game throughout the preseason, which is far from the 10.8 rebounds per game he averaged during the CBA. This gap in tonnage and position experience is destined to take time to gradually make up for.

The disadvantage in the confrontation directly led to more difficult foul problems. He averaged 5.3 fouls per game in four games, and "graduated" with two early fouls: he fouled out six times and left the game in 21 minutes against the Warriors in the first game, and was sent off after only 15 minutes in the final game. It's not that his defensive attitude is not positive, but the small movements such as hand interference, blocking and pushing the waist, etc. developed during the CBA period have all become "point-sending problems" under the strict penalty standards of the NBA. The scene of two consecutive fouls in 51 seconds in the last quarter is the most intuitive manifestation of this rule adapting to the dilemma.

Tactical integration also takes time to polish. Although head coach Billups has made it clear that he will create adapted tactics for him, in the preseason, except for the smooth cooperation against the Kings, he still occasionally "collided" with his teammates in other games, and the timing of the rebound after the pick-and-roll was not precise enough. With only 1 assist per game, there is still a lot of room for improvement from the "fifth position tactical axis" role expected by the coach.

Reduce "rookie expectations", growth requires time and patience

Fortunately, Yang Hansen's growth is not "alone". The Trail Blazers did not select him on a whim. Now they have prepared a full set of "growth gift packages" for him; and as fans, what we need to do more is to be patient.

The team’s support is quite strong: head coach Billups bluntly stated that he would increase his free throw line support role and help him quickly integrate into the system by simplifying tactics; the team specially hired an assistant coach who has coached Jokic to carry out special strength exercises for him every week During training, his bench press weight has increased by 15 kilograms during the preseason; veteran Jeter is more like a "big brother" who escorts him throughout the process. Not only does he comfort him with "well done" when he is depressed, but he also watches videos with him to analyze foul traps and help him avoid low-level mistakes.

For Yang Hansen himself, the goal of the regular season is clear and pragmatic: first control the foul problem, and then firmly seize the rotation opportunity. He himself is also clearly aware of his shortcomings, and bluntly said that he will focus on polishing physical fitness and defensive details next, "You have to learn to withstand confrontation without fouling." It just so happens that the Trail Blazers are in a rebuilding period, and the team has plenty of room for trial and error. As long as he can reduce the number of fouls per 36 minutes to less than 4, it is not difficult to lock the rotation position of the backup center.

For Chinese fans, it is crucial to learn to take a "long-term" view of growth. Looking back at Yao Ming's rookie season, there was also the pain of adaptation when he averaged 3.3 fouls per game. No player can achieve success in one fell swoop. Yang Hansen has already demonstrated the "potential stock" qualities of projection, support, and resilience. The rest is only a matter of time. Instead of focusing on the flaws of 0 rebounds and a few fouls in a game, it is better to focus on his subtle progress in each game. This is a rational attitude towards the growth of young players..

Looking back at Yang Hansen's first preseason tour, it was more like a real exercise of "the beginning of talent + the exposure of shortcomings": there was the surprise of 40% three-point shooting rate, the explosion of 16 points and 3 blocks in a single game, the embarrassment of 0 rebounds and high fouls, and the cuteness and tenacity of immediately cheering up after "dropping a little pearl". But it is the intertwining of these that is the most realistic appearance of a rookie landing in the NBA.

Yangzi Evening News/Ziniu News reporter Huang Xiyin

Proofreading by Pan Zheng