"After all, our Tianjin team lacked a center (Zhang Zhaoxu) with this tall basket many years ago, and with him, we can create a defensive system." --Zhang Zhihan
After breaking into the playoffs, Zhang Zhihan said the original intention of signing Zhang Zhaoxu with the highest salary. Zhang Zhihan's identity in the Tianjin men's basketball team is the leader, but he is responsible for all the affairs of the first team, and the decision to sign Zhang Zhaoxu is also a decision he made. In fact, this signing was extremely unpopular at the time, because public opinion generally believed that Zhang Zhaoxu was not worthy of the top salary. Zhang Zhihan is considered to be inexperienced and blind, after all, he only retired at the end of last season.
Zhang Zhaoxu is also looked down for a reason, the past 2 seasons, his data are very shabby. In the 2019-20 season, Zhang Zhaoxu averaged only 6.6 points and 4.9 rebounds per game, and in the 2020-21 season, the average data dropped to 4 points and 3.9 rebounds per game. To make matters worse, Zhang Zhaoxu's attendance was also low due to injuries, playing only 16 and 33 games in two seasons. Since the beginning of the 2010-11 season, Zhang Zhaoxu has played for the Shanghai men's basketball team, which is the team's defensive gate and a meritorious achievement. However, the Shanghai men's basketball team is still unwilling to give Zhang Zhaoxu a satisfactory contract, and the two sides broke up, which shows how bleak Zhang Zhaoxu's future is.
But for Zhang Zhaoxu, who was in the trough, Zhang Zhihan resolutely launched a pursuit, not only very sincere, but also opened a maximum salary contract. "In the initial contact, including talking about intentions, to the process of negotiating the contract, Tianjin has always shown me a lot of enthusiasm and sincerity, which impressed me in this aspect," Zhang Zhaoxu said after signing the Tianjin men's basketball team.
In the case of Zhang Zhaoxu, he became a maverick, because Zhang Zhihan still has a heart to change the status quo, and it is also because he understands the ball. Zhang Zhihan frankly said that he was unwilling about the situation in the past year, and he also knew where the problem was. The defense of the Tianjin men's basketball team is too poor, especially the inner defense is like paper paste, and it is necessary to find a high-quality defensive big man. Because the Tianjin men's basketball team is a well-known weak team and is unattractive to the league's top defensive big man, Zhang Zhaoxu is almost the only choice.
Zhang Zhaoxu's score is not high, and he averaged only 11 points per game at the peak of his career. But scoring is not Zhang Zhaoxu's ability to make a name for himself in the CBA, defense is. At 2.21 meters tall, Zhang Zhaoxu also has a variety of defensive skills, and has guarded the Shanghai men's basketball team's inner line well for many years. Relying on excellent defense, Zhang Zhaoxu also entered the national team and won the reputation of the poor version of Yao Ming.
In the past two seasons, although Zhang Zhaoxu's absence rate is very high, as long as he can play, he can still play an important role in the defensive end. This is also an important reason why the Shanghai men's basketball team also intended to keep Zhang Zhaoxu, and he can still play a role. It was only the old owner who was unwilling to pay a high price, and Zhang Zhaoxu chose to leave.
As a result, Zhang Zhihan also made the right choice. When he first arrived at the Tianjin men's basketball team, Zhang Zhaoxu suffered an injury and missed a period of time, and the team's defense was as poor as ever. After Zhang Zhaoxu got rid of the injury, it became a defensive gate almost for the first time, and the defensive level of the Tianjin men's basketball team rose sharply, which is also one of the main reasons for the gradual rebound of the Tianjin men's basketball team. Although Zhang Zhaoxu has only averaged 5 points per game this season, he is an indispensable contributor to the team's return to the playoffs.
Before this season, the Tianjin men's basketball team last time was the 2013-14 season, and the past many seasons have been the representatives of bad teams. This season, I was able to turn around because of the change of management, and Zhang Zhihan became a trader. In addition to signing Zhang Zhaoxu, Zhang Zhihan also introduced two outstanding foreign players from Rochester and Burton, laying a good foundation for the transformation of the team. As the old saying goes, soldiers and horses do not move the grain and grass first, professional teams want to succeed, the successful operation behind it is the first, you need to find the right players for the team.
Great management can change a team, and it's not uncommon in the CBA. Before Zhu Fangyu became the general manager of the Guangdong men's basketball team, the team had missed the championship for many consecutive seasons. After taking office, Zhu Fangyu only took 2 seasons to let the team win the championship and complete a wave of three consecutive championships to rebuild the dynasty. For some teams that want to improve, they can't blindly change coaches and players, and if necessary, they can also change management. In particular, some perennially weak teams should learn from the Tianjin men's basketball team.