"For so many years, for the sake of Liaoning basketball, I am also unashamed and have given everything I have. Maybe I don't have anything to look forward to next. After Liaoning won the championship, there was a lot of laughter in the dressing room, and Guo said this sentence with a little sadness.
As Guo has said so much in his career over the past 12 seasons, some still see it as a careless and enthusiastic young man's speech when secondary two needs it. However, he was not calm for a while, and then disappeared with the wind. There are also some media friends who feel the real loss in his eyes, and then carefully analyze some things that were thought possible at the time, but can never be done after careful consideration.
A year ago, he and Liaoning Guo lost the CBA Finals for the second consecutive year. In the players' tunnel, the 28-year-old couldn't control himself, crying uncontrollably, crying to death. At that time he said: "I just want to be the champion of the provincial fans!" But a year later, when he actually won the championship, he lost his former passion.
The emotional changes are so intense, I am afraid it is not a year's accumulation. Perhaps the story began with the departure of Guo Shiqiang, an old uncle who had worked hard for Liaoning for nearly 30 years. As Guo said on a live broadcast after this year's finals, "Nothing is eternal. Everything will change over time. ”
The FMVP who lost the finals is just a microcosm of Guo's bad situation in recent years. In 2018, after Guo and Liaoning won the first championship in team history, the 18-19 season really began to enter the peak of their careers. That season, he and Wang Zhelin ultimately failed to compete for MVP. But he has since failed to squeeze into the top three candidates for the 19-20 season. In the 20-21 season, he was banned by teammate Zhao Jiwei because of the league's selection rules. In the 21-22 season, he didn't make enough appearances and missed the selection...
A few days ago, the terrible poster of the official media of the Liaoning men's basketball team (pictured above) threw Guo into the deepest part of the background and was placed in the corner of the team photo like a rookie, which made Guo, who was far away in Spain, very angry and strongly dissatisfied.
There have been too many things that have happened to Guo in the past few years. From the 2019 Men's Basketball World Cup defeat, he was in bad shape, he was insulted by fans on the road, and then he and Zhou Qi boarded the spit conference at the beginning of last year, which caused heated discussions. In addition to reaching the finals with Liaoning for three consecutive seasons, he is also engaged in a terrible confrontation with public opinion.
Guo has always been an underrated team leader, but in the more than two years since Guo Shiqiang left the team, people can see Guo's rapid maturity. In the 20-21 season, Yang Ming took office. In the playoffs, in order to support the manager's formation, Guo served as a substitute twice in six games, and he also played more no-ball games.
That season, Yang Ming's guidance and Liaoning did not go as expected, although Guo once again shouldered the team's number one offensive core task, and Liaoning once again fought a life-and-death battle with Guangdong in extra time, but in the end it was regrettably defeated. However, this also allowed Guo to temporarily relax his mind and concentrate on winning the championship. The following year, he brought the National Games championship and CBA championship to Liaoning.
When the champion came and the champagne was opened, Guo was a little drunk before he could drink it. Looking back, the carousel flashed in his mind, and his purpose was achieved. He felt that he had a good conscience about Liaoning basketball, and he immediately became interested in it. As for what finally made Guo make up his mind, no one but Guo himself knew. Maybe when he retires in the future, he will be interested in making this mental journey public.
Guo's transfer application was by no means a flash of fanaticism, and he did not have a nervous breakdown over a poster as one suspected. This can also be seen in the details of his handling of transfer applications. Xinhua News Agency, the state-run media outlet, was the first to disclose the news. They announced to the CBA in the most official text message: "Guo Yu submitted a transfer application to the Chinese Basketball Professional League (CBA) Xinke champion Liaoning Team through the agency team on the 2nd."
The shorter the news, the bigger the matter, and the CBA offseason was blown out of a big hole. The heaviest seismic transfer application in history did not appear in any professional basketball media. Perhaps, Guo and his team just want to block fans' speculation about the truth of the news and convey their seriousness and determination.
It is difficult to transfer to ride the tiger, and the rest of the discussion becomes where Guo should go?
Guo and Liaoning's top-salary contract expires this summer. Although the exclusive right to renew the contract is still in liaoning's hands, the CBA will not interfere with restricted free agents like him who go abroad. That is to say, if Guo wants to go to overseas leagues, in fact, he does not have to spend so much trouble to issue a transfer application.
Continuing to play in the CBA should be Guo's first choice, and it is also a key reason for his public application for transfer. In this regard, the latest version of the "2022-2023 CBA League Player Selection, Salary Cap, Employment and Transaction Management Regulations" has detailed and clear provisions in Chapter V, Article 46. After the expiration of the D-class maximum salary player, the exclusive signing rights go to the team. Players sign with new clubs, and teams are required to charge training fees in accordance with the relevant regulations.
Article 47 on category E veterans' contracts referred to another situation. Veterans who are at least 34 years old or have served the team for 12 seasons can sign a veteran contract with the team, and the salary does not count towards the salary cap. The term of the contract is one or two years. After the contract expires, the team still has the exclusive right to sign players. But if the two sides break up peacefully, players don't have to pay training fees to their parent team when signing to a new team.
The CBA veteran will leave the team as a free agent, and the best way is to break up with the team after turning 35 or playing for 13 years. Otherwise, no matter how you leave, the new team will pay a big price.
The year before, Fan Ziming of Guangzhou Dragon and Lion transferred to Beijing Shougang, and the new team paid a price of 30 million yuan. Last year, Shanghai Jiushi let Fujian buy regular season MVP Wang Zhelin. The online courier sent 80 million yuan in cash, and at the same time sent out draft picks and lease Junxuan. Although this is only from the media population, Shanghai has not refuted that the real price should be relatively close.
According to Shenyang Daily, the Liaoning team has made a statement on this, and they will continue to issue a maximum salary contract in accordance with the rules, so Guo will not leave easily. Other CBA teams can only negotiate with Liaoning by playing high chips, and Guo's value is obviously only high or low compared to Wang Zhelin. If you quote last year's market, I am afraid that a small goal is not exaggerated.
However, with economic growth slowing and the league as a whole struggling to make ends meet, few teams can afford such high prices. This team must maintain good relations with Liaoning, not pose a direct competitive threat, and be able to impress management in negotiations. Obviously, it is almost impossible to meet the above conditions.
In front of Guo, the most realistic and feasible way to leave Liaoning is to stay in the ocean like this.
A few hours after the news of the transfer application was sent, Xinhua sent another long article in the afternoon. Guo not only said again that it was a well-thought-out decision he and his family and the brokerage team made, but also gave an in-depth explanation of the idea of leaving. "Through the recent World Cup and Asian Cup matches, the performance of my teammates has touched me a lot. I think I'm doing a great job, but now I realize there's still a lot of room for improvement. So I need a more suitable tactical system to tap into greater potential. ”
During the national team, Guo and the former "spit brother" Zhou Qi got along day and night. Although he has won two titles for Liaoning in the past year, his reputation in public opinion has not been quickly reversed. On the contrary, many people questioned his value because he was too easy to win the CBA Finals championship in Liaoning. Zhou Qi successfully saved his reputation from falling to the bottom through his promotion to the NBL this year and his domineering performance in the national team.
The ancients said: "Brothers fight against the wall, and foreign enemies defend against them." No matter how loud it is at home, once you go out, you have to work together. Zhou Qi won the full support of fans across the country in the Australian League. Last season, Zhou Qi averaged 21 minutes per game in the NBL, averaging 11.6 points, 6.6 rebounds and 2 blocks per game, which is already the performance of the league's top interior line.
For Zhou Qi, Australia's strong jungle is obvious. In just one season, in the face of attack and confrontation under the basket, his possession is more stable and calm. In direct dialogue with Australia in the World Cup, the Asian Cup faced Lebanon with 22 points and 21 rebounds and was selected for the first team of the Asian Cup. Zhou Qi fell ill and supported the Chinese men's basketball team, making people's impressions of him quickly change.
As Guo himself said, in the past period of competition, he feels that he still has room to improve, hoping to seize the last opportunity and take the initiative to jump out of his comfort zone to meet the challenge. The national team's counterattack performance obviously gave Guo a big shock. Next year's Men's Basketball World Cup will be the key to the Chinese men's basketball team's impact on the Paris Olympic Games. At Guo's age, I am afraid that it is also his last big game opportunity as the core of the Chinese men's basketball team.
Opportunities are challenges. Guo played well in Liaoning last season, averaging 29 minutes per game, with 21.5 points, 3.7 rebounds, 6.5 assists and 1 steal. He once threw the best long-range shot of his career. Although he has played for 12 seasons, he still shows continuous improvement in the peripheral projection and reading competition, and still has potential to be tapped.
Guo's expectation is actually the idea of many fans when they learn that he has applied for a transfer, in order to find a suitable system for themselves in the fiercely competitive league and maintain their status. The Chinese men's basketball team is still at the trough of losing its Olympic qualifications. One Zhou Qi is obviously not enough to save the men's basketball team. Through various competitions this summer, fans have gained more understanding and support for players staying abroad.
Of course, it is also necessary to remain calm about this. After all, Guo was almost 30 years old, which was not the age at which he slept at the age of eighteen or nineteen. His study abroad will be a formidable challenge for his career. Whether it's going to the NBA and its other leagues, going to the NBL like Zhou Qi, or seizing the opportunity of the Chinese men's basketball team's European Tour to reach European teams, going to any new team, he will face a big role change.
In the Liaoning team, Guo is an excellent offensive player with the ball in the middle. But when he plays overseas, the first problem he faces is how to win the trust of his teammates and coaches. Like Zhou Qi, he has to start with the smallest details, such as defense, blocking, rebounding and no-ball offense. On the other hand, Guo, who has never played in overseas leagues, has to face an insurmountable language barrier. After all, communication is the most direct means of integration.
As far as the rules are concerned, this is the most likely outcome. The chances of moving to other CBA teams are slim to none, and going overseas will face the toughest challenges. No matter which path Guo eventually goes, this offseason has made his thinking about his career more mature. If a year later, in the preliminaries, it is possible to replicate the story of the outbreak after the overseas experience. As a fan of the Chinese men's basketball team, it will probably be the best ending of this story.