Team Report: Yang Hansen Feels the Gap Between NBA and CBA; Struggled in Debut but Has Potential for Rapid Growth

On October 9th Beijing time, the Trail Blazers dropped their preseason debut 123-129 to the Warriors, enduring a 21-point collapse. Yang Hansen contributed 4 points, 4 rebounds, and 1 assist, shooting 2-for-5 overall, 0-for-2 from beyond the arc, while committing 4 turnovers and 6 fouls. Trail Blazers reporter Mike Richman evaluated Hansen’s performance on his podcast, with the following insights—

Billups deployed three centers in the first quarter: Klingen started, Yang Hansen came off the bench, and later Dupree also got minutes. This rotation might become a norm to manage players’ minutes, so even after Robert Williams returns from injury, the center position can stay fresh. For example, Yang won’t be forced to play a continuous 7 minutes regardless of performance early in his career; if he struggles, he can be subbed out promptly; if he excels, he’ll get more playing time without needing a third center on the floor for now.

Yang Hansen clearly looked like a “20-year-old rookie” struggling on the court.There’s no need to hide it—his debut was genuinely tough. For instance, he committed a turnover right at the start; was slow on transition defense in the first half, allowing Horford an easy score; and got called for a foul after engaging too early in a rebound battle. These details were quite evident.

He only scored in the second half, and still had difficulty against the Warriors’ rotational players. But in the long run, this is not a major concern. Performing poorly in a preseason debut on the road against an experienced Warriors team won’t impact his career negatively.His performance perfectly matches the typical “rookie adjustment period,” very authentic..

However, one point to note: if the Trail Blazers aim to compete for good results this season, Yang Hansen is clearly “not ready yet.”He seems more like a “player who needs development,” which is normal for a rookie. But if the team wants to win, depth at the center position could be a concern—depending on Robert Williams’ health status, the team cannot put too much pressure on Yang; he still requires time to adapt to the NBA pace.

Considering his age and the jump from overseas leagues to the NBA, his adjustment period will be longer, butyoung players usually improve quickly, so he might show significant progress this season and potentially “transform rapidly.”We can keep our expectations high, but objectively, his debut was indeed underwhelming and should not be overlooked.

Even late in the game, facing Warriors bench players like Poole, his performance didn’t improve.It can only be said that he truly felt the “level difference between the NBA and the CBA” and still needs time to adjust.