Yang Yi: Yang Hansen’s counterattack starts from here

At Mullette Stadium in Phoenix, Arizona, Yang Hansen is surrounded by his teammates. Guard Javonte Cook was clapping at him, and forward Alex Reese came over to teach him. Dillon Jones, who scored 30 points in this game, raised his left hand high and ran over to give Yang Hansen a high-five. Although Yang Hansen made 4 of 11 shots in this game and only scored 8 points on the stat sheet, the players on the field knew very well who directed this 22-point reversal. After playing side by side with Yang Hansen for just one game, they all had the same thought in their minds:

This young big man from China is indeed not simple.

His bounce is average, but it does not affect his ability to grab an offensive rebound from the head of this year's No. 10 pick, 218-centimeter-tall Maluachi. He is not fast, but he can deceive his opponents with pass fakes, dribbling all the way from the top of the arc to the basket for dunks. He can flash and move under the basket with dreamy footsteps that are rare in today's NBA. He can also direct traffic at the top of the arc and pass the most appropriate pass from the highest place, allowing his teammates to easily attack the basket.

In the first game of Mixed in the Rip City, Yang Hansen found his anchor in this league.

If I had not witnessed this game with my own eyes, it would be difficult for me to imagine that this player who changed the course of the game with his support in the second half was still at a loss on the court in the first half.

In the first half, Yang Hansen did play a few beautiful rounds, but in more rounds, he seemed slow, stiff, and out of tune with the entire team. On the one hand, this is due to the fact that he has not played for too long. He has been DNP in 6 consecutive games in the NBA. At the beginning of the game, he seemed not used to the offensive and defensive intensity of the G League and still needed some time to feel it.

On the other hand, as a subsidiary team of the Portland Trail Blazers, Torn City Mix plays exactly the same as their parent team: pressing, pressing, and pushing the rhythm. Their coach Jonah Helscu did not specifically plan tactics for Yang Hansen. He just used him as a blue-collar engineer like Klingen, occasionally giving him some hard-hit ball rights in the low post. However, after Yang Hansen ran with the team for a few times, he had actually completely entered an anaerobic state, and his efficiency in holding the ball and fighting hard dropped greatly. Coupled with the fact that the team does not have a high-level point guard, it is difficult for Yang Hansen to get the ball after the pick-and-roll, and can only shoot three-pointers through outside bounces. The score difference quickly widened in the first half, with Mix falling behind by as many as 20 points in the first half. Yang Hansen's plus-minus was the lowest in the team at -25.

But after halftime, everything changed. The fight back starts now.

The first person to change was Yang Hansen. He shook off the rust from his body through half-time, his movements became lighter and his reactions became more responsive. He began to show the positional awareness of the CBA's best defensive player on the defensive end. Unlike the first half, he was able to delay the ball holder in the opponent's pick-and-roll while taking care of the center forward. The opponent Valley Sun's offense suffered repeated setbacks here, which became the basis for the Blazers' counterattack frenzy.

The next thing that changed was Helscu. He seemed to suddenly remember after halftime that he had picked up the wrong tactical manual. Yang Hansen was not a blue-collar player like Klingen. He was a support center that the team selected with the 16th pick in the first round. Therefore, in the second half, Yang Hansen had a lot of tactical authority to hold the ball at the top of the key and deal with cards, and Xiao Yang did not live up to the coach's trust, sending beautiful passes continuously, some of which were directly converted into points, and others caused fouls by the opponent. Tear City Mix's piecemeal offense in the first half suddenly became holistic and efficient under his organization. Even after he briefly left the field due to physical problems, his teammates continued the offensive rhythm he led. And these are exactly what the Blazers most wanted to get from Yang Hansen when they selected him.

In the end, the Mixed Team completed a 22-point reversal with a score of 107-104. Yang Hansen's total statistics were fixed at 8 points, 13 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal and 1 block. What is even more gratifying is that his plus-minus value in the second half was as high as +25, becoming the absolute winner of the team's comeback.

This hearty reversal may just confirm the deep value of Yang Hansen's landing in the G League. Nowadays, there are always voices from the outside world questioning that he "has not reached the level of NBA rotation at all" and that being sent to the G League is "exposing his secrets". This may be a misunderstanding of the NBA ecology.

The NBA is the highest-level league in the world. Except for a few super talents and top-level immediate combat capabilities, most rookies are unable to play at the NBA rotation level in their rookie seasons. Taking this season as an example, there are 38 2025 rookies who have played more than 5 games in the league, and only 5 of them have a positive BPM (meaning their game contribution exceeds the league average). What a team like the Trail Blazers needs most is not that Yang Hansen will immediately become an NBA rotation, but that he will truly become a player who can contribute to the team in the future.

If Yang Hansen wants to meet this requirement, he must settle in the G League. The value here is first reflected in actual combat protection. In the NBA, it is difficult for Yang Hansen to get stable playing time. But we can look back. In the summer league, he performed well; in the preseason, he occasionally showed his talents. This shows that his core has not changed. It is just difficult to perform in the NBA because his opponents are too strong. But in the G League, the level of opponents is often on par with him. This is more conducive for him to verify his progress through games, and it is also conducive for him to build his self-confidence through good performances.

Secondly, it also provides him with the possibility to polish his role. In the NBA, he is just a marginal person on the court, with no tactical status. Teammates like Sharp and Kamara cannot give him the ball to start tactics at the top of the key.. But in the Tearing City Mixed Team, he is the core of the offensive and defensive system. He needs to independently judge the flow of the offense and direct the movements of his teammates. This role change can further demonstrate his court IQ.

Only here can he hone his coping ability and rebound protection awareness while further improving his three-point shooting and running abilities. When the opportunity comes, he can truly demonstrate his core competitiveness and gain a foothold in the NBA.

From the brief silence of the NBA to the reversal of the G League, Yang Hansen's growth path has not been smooth, but every step has been solid. For Chinese fans who follow Yang Hansen, such a moment of growth is worth witnessing every time. Now here’s the good news—Kuaishou platform will present Yang Hansen’s G League journey to veterans for free. Whether you want to relive the highlight moments of his consecutive assists or follow his technical progress in each game, you can find the most intimate game viewing experience in Kuaishou.

Kuaishou is NBA China’s first content secondary media partner. It is also the NBA’s official short video platform and NBA video content creation community. Here, 150 million sports-loving veterans follow various sports content every day. They have also been paying attention to Yang Hansen and other young Chinese players who are brave enough to challenge themselves.

In today's game, Kuaishou also invited Zhu Fangyu, the former Chinese men's basketball national player and current general manager of Guangdong Hongyuan Club, to provide commentary for the veterans. As a current professional sportsperson, Mr. Zhu has injected unique professionalism into the commentary of the game through his own perspective; in addition, he has been a national team player and has been spotted by NBA scouts. During his player period, he trained outside for a long time. He can also empathize with Xiao Yang who is currently working alone outside. He can always put forward some professional and heart-warming suggestions, which will give fans in the live broadcast room a thumbs up.

At 8:30 a.m. on November 17, Hexion will face the Nanwan Lakers in the second game of its G League. There is no need to pay or be a member. Kuaishou has prepared seats for you to watch the game. Search for the "NBA" account on the Kuaishou APP and you can watch the live broadcast of the game for free. We also welcome you to search #上快手同壹SON and continue to pay attention to every event of Hexion. Kuaishou will work with the NBA to bring him every G League game in the future. As long as you continue to follow Kuaishou APP sports and NBA accounts, you can join us to witness him fighting monsters and leveling up step by step, gradually becoming stronger, breaking out of the G League, and climbing up step by step.

His counterattack starts now, from here.