For your better reading and interactive experience, in order for you to see more content in time, click "Follow", we update wonderful stories and share different wonderful moments for you every day!
The burning summer of the basketball world is waiting for the return of a charismatic star - Guo Allen of the Liaoning team. Fans have been waiting for him to bring new energy to the team. However, his comeback was not all smooth sailing, with five turnovers but still being recognized for his performance with 13 points and eight assists. Guo Allen's return is like a firework, but the recent offensive performance of the Liaoning team has not fully met the expectations of fans, especially the decline in the 3-point shooting percentage, which has attracted widespread attention.
On the surface, Guo Allen's 13 points and 8 assists after his return are quite gratifying, however, through the underlying data of the game, we find that Liaoning's offense is not a matter of course. In the last game, despite facing a weaker defensive team like Fujian, the Liaoning team only scored 97 points in the whole game, and the offensive efficiency was only 117.4. At the same time, other teams have performed more eye-catching against similar opponents, Shanxi 143.6, Zhejiang 131.4, Guangdong 129.9 and Xinjiang 128.8. This has led to thinking about the problems of the Liaoning team on the offensive end, especially when Fogg was pinched, and the team's overall performance has seen a significant decline.
As the season stats show, Liaoning's offensive efficiency of 115.5 still ranks fifth in the league. However, this data obscures the fact that this is only the first stage of performance. In 11 games in the second period, Liaoning's offensive efficiency was only 111.9, and the ranking slipped to 12th in the league. This kind of performance, if it continues to the playoffs, is bound to become a big hidden danger for them. The team should not be complacent just because of the 20-2 win rate, but should face up to the problems on the offensive end and find a solution.
So, what is the problem on the offensive end? The answer may be hidden in the offensive core of the Liaoning team - Fogg. Fogg has long been the arrow of the Basketball's offense, but he has faced a lot of trouble this season. In past games, teams have used flanking tactics to force Fogg to surrender the ball. Fergus's stats also dropped significantly, especially in the first period, when he made 20 dribbles and made 12.7 free throws per 36 minutes, while in the second period, those numbers dropped to 15.8 and 9.2, respectively. The round possession rate plummeted from 34.3% to 28.6%. This pinch-and-shoot tactic not only reduced Fogg's scoring efficiency, but also led to a decrease in ball possession, which caused huge problems for the team's offensive system.
In order to fill the vacancy of Fogg, the Liaoning team transferred the ball to other players, including Li Xiaoxu, Zhang Zhenlin, Zhao Jiwei and Yu Zechen. However, this is not the solution, as the performances of these players have not been as good as they could have been. Li Xiaoxu added 3 points in the open position but the efficiency dropped significantly, Zhang Zhenlin added the frame but the true shooting percentage also declined, Zhao Jiwei added 3 points for misplaced singles and single blocks, but the shooting percentage also decreased, and Yu Zechen increased 3 points but the efficiency also decreased. At the same time, the efficiency of Dahan and Fu Hao has also been affected. Overall, the team's offensive effectiveness has not been effectively improved.
In such a situation, Allen Guo's return is particularly important. Not only can he bring more scoring opportunities to the team, but he can also organize the attack by holding the ball and share the pressure on Fogg and Zhao Jiwei. The return of Guo Allen may be able to put the offensive efficiency of the Liaoning team back on track. He has a more well-rounded style of play with and without the ball, and is able to deal effectively with both pinching and off-ball situations. Moreover, Guo Allen's shooting is more inclined to the mid-range and offensive frame within the 3-point line, which coincides with the current offensive problems of the Liaoning team.
However, the crux of the problem is not just that Fogg is being pinched, but that the team's 3-point shooting percentage continues to decline. Liaoning's 34.2 points per game this season are the most in team history, but their shooting percentage is only 33.6%, and the league's top scorer list is not impressive. Among them, Cong Mingchen, Zhang Zhenlin, Li Xiaoxu, Fogg and other players failed to reach the ideal level of 3-point shooting percentage. Although the team created a large number of outside openings through tactics such as blocking and pick-and-roll, the Liaoning team failed to convert these opportunities into actual points due to the lack of shooting percentage.
Perhaps, the Liaoning team should look for opportunities on the inside line and reduce its dependence on the outside line. After Guo Allen's return, the team can improve the offensive efficiency of the interior line by adding air cuts, counterattacks, misplaced back shots, and the center's downward offensive frame and mid-range. This can not only reduce the dependence on outside shooting, but also better play the advantages of Guo Allen on the inside. After all, on the basketball court, whether it's a 3-point or a 2-pointer, as long as the offense is excellent, it is an effective means.
However, for the Liaoning team, Guo Allen's return is not harmless. While his ball-handling offense and mid-range shooting can solve Fergus's pinch problem to some extent, it may also make the team's offense more reliant on Allen Guo alone. In a tightly defended, competitive league like the CBA, it may not be wise to rely on one person to support the entire offensive system. It is easy for other teams to break up Liaoning's overall offense by focusing on Guo Allen's defense.
Perhaps, the real key to solving Liaoning's offensive problems is to break the sluggish outside shooting rate. Liaoning's current outside shooting percentage in the league is relatively low, which makes opponents dare to pinch Fogg and Zhao Jiwei, because they know that Liaoning's 3-point shooting is not very consistent. After Guo Allen's return, if the team wants to truly return to the forefront of the offense, it may need to re-examine the shooting training and tactical arrangements of outside players to improve the overall 3-point shooting percentage.
Overall, the return of Guo Allen has injected a new vitality into the Liaoning team, but solving the team's offensive problems is far from overnight. By adjusting tactics, reducing over-reliance on the outside line, and improving the offensive efficiency of the inside line, it may be the key to the re-emergence of the Liaoning team. However, all of this is inseparable from a comprehensive consideration of the team's overall tactics and the individual abilities of the players. In this CBA season full of uncertainties, whether the Liaoning team can find an offensive system that really suits them under the leadership of Guo Allen is still a controversial topic. Only on the basis of truly solving the offensive problem can the Liaoning team achieve more outstanding results in future games.