奧運前行 男籃三人組逆風翻盤秘籍

2024 International Basketball Federation (FIBA) 3x3 Basketball Challenge in Langfang concluded on July 14th.

As the debut of the three-man national basketball team Olympic lineup and the last challenge before heading to Paris, the Beijing team lost to the Princeton team in the semi-finals and ultimately finished third.

Head coach Wang Zhanyu affirmed the effectiveness of the training in this tournament: "In this competition, the team showed some good performance. The players' ability to play against the wind is a sign of improvement. I hope they can continue this ability in the Olympic Games."

"Against the Wind" is the Best Summary

Looking back at the matches of the three-man national basketball team in this Langfang tournament, the ability to play against the wind is undoubtedly the best summary.

In the first match of the group stage against the Japanese Fujisawa team, the Beijing team fell behind by four points, but gradually regained rhythm with Zhang Ning's layup and Zhao Jiaren's chase-down block. In the end, Zhang Ning and Zhao Jiaren scored a total of 19 points, helping the Beijing team win 22-12 against the Japanese team and a good start.

In the second match against the Mongolian Sansar team, Zhang Ning committed two fouls within 16 seconds in the opening, and the Sansar team shot well from the outside, leading the Beijing team 8-3 at one point. In the last three minutes, the Sansar team led 19-16 with free throws and long-range shots. In a situation where the opponent could "blow the game", Zhao Jiaren hit two consecutive two-pointers, and Zhu Yunbo made a put-back after a scramble, leading the Beijing team to a 21-19 victory and advancing as the first in the group.

In the quarter-finals against the German St. Pauli team, the Beijing team once again replayed the script of "falling behind and coming back". When trailing 4-8, Lu Wenbo's two long shots sounded the horn for the Beijing team's counterattack. Eventually, the game was tied at 17 at the end of regulation time. In the overtime, Zhu Yunbo scored with a back shot, leading the Beijing team to another 19-17 victory.

Two heroic victories and three comebacks, although the debut of the Chinese three-man national basketball team Olympic lineup was slow, their tenacity shined through.

Before the players entered the mixed zone, a media teacher exclaimed: "In previous high-level matches, it was difficult for teams to make a comeback once they fell behind. Being able to play against the wind in this tournament shows that they have performed very well."

It is understood that due to constant experimentation with lineups within the team, Zhang Ning, Lu Wenbo, Zhao Jiaren, and Zhu Yunbo did not have much collective training before the tournament. Therefore, there is still room for improvement in the team's understanding of each other.

Zhang Ning believes that being able to play against the wind reflects the improvement of the three-man national basketball team: "Being able to play against the wind shows that our current level is getting closer to many international teams and our confidence is growing. This comes from last year's 'Wandering Earth' journey. We feel that we are not much worse than international players, so apart from continuously improving our technical level, our confidence has also increased."

"But if we want to further advance on the stage of the Olympic Games, I think we still have a long way to go."

Adapting to the Environment and Integrating the Lineup

After the conclusion of the 2024 FIBA 3x3 Basketball Challenge in Langfang, the three-man national basketball team will return to Beijing overnight and fly to France from Beijing on July 15th to participate in the training camp in Deaville, entering the final sprint stage of the Olympic Games.

Coach Wang Zhanyu revealed that during the Deaville training camp, the coaching staff will focus on ensuring the players' health, adjusting their physical condition, and improving the team's understanding of each other.

Zhang Ning emphasized that after the three-man national basketball team arrives in France, the most important thing is to overcome the environmental challenges: "In this regard, we need to learn from international players. When I was with the Serbian Liman team last year, I really admired Kokiche and Vasic. They travel all over the world to play games, and they can sleep on the floor no matter how many people there are. We need to learn from international players' ability to overcome objective challenges."

In addition, Zhang Ning also emphasized the need for lineup integration: "We need to further familiarize ourselves with the current lineup, review the footage of this tournament, analyze our offensive and defensive strengths and weaknesses, as well as the strategies against different styles of teams. As always, we need to approach the Olympic Games with a mindset of having fun."

According to the schedule, the Chinese men's team will face the Netherlands in the first game of the 3x3 basketball event at the Paris Olympic Games. After that, they will compete against Serbia, Latvia, Poland, Lithuania, and the United States. The last opponent in the round-robin stage is the host team, France.

As the only interior player in the "Three Small, One Big" lineup of the three-man national basketball team, Zhu Yunbo said he will focus more on defense: "The other three perimeter players in this lineup are all strong offensive players in the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). My role is to grab rebounds and play defense, to create more opportunities for them. When they open up the outside, I will have more chances inside."

At the same time, Zhu Yunbo believes that this lineup can better solve the problem of offensive stall at critical moments: "All three perimeter players are CBA players. They are the key offensive players in their respective teams. Their individual abilities are strong. So our lineup's offense will be more sharp. When there is a need for a strong solution, someone will step up, and we will have more options and better cooperation."