Media Professional: From World Runner-Up to Olympic Disaster, There Must Be Something We Don’t Know About the Chinese Women’s Basketball Team

On July 31, the Chinese women’s basketball team faced their second match in the Olympic group stage, ultimately suffering an 81-59 defeat to Serbia by 22 points. Post-match, media professional Su Qun expressed his views on social media regarding the team’s transition from world runners-up to an Olympic disaster within two years. He delves into factors such as player performance and other aspects, inviting us to explore his insights:

Su Qun argues that a sports team’s descent from peak performance to decline is not without reason. It could be due to either a new generation taking over or a lack of ambition, but the current players of the Chinese women’s basketball team are in their prime. His exact words are, “A sports team’s decline follows a pattern, with most reasons being due to the replacement of older with younger talent, a lack of succession, and clinging to the same group of players. Painful reflection and a willingness to cut ties with the old guard are necessary for rejuvenation. However, this particular team is in their prime. Two world-class centers, Han Xu and Li Yueru, are both in their late twenties, while the world-class forward, Li Meng, is twenty-nine. The backcourt has slightly weaker players, but they are also in their late twenties. The only two players above thirty are Wu Tongtong and Sun Mengran. Wu Tongtong returned after a major injury and was tasked with defending the American import Anderson against Serbia; Sun Mengran, as the oldest player, is making a comeback, and she is still in good form.

In the Paris Olympics, Australian women’s basketball player Lauren Jackson is forty-three years old, while the USA team’s Tamika Catchings is forty-two. James will turn forty at the end of the year. The Chinese women’s basketball team has a group of ‘big fish’ who were predicted to last ten years before the Tokyo Olympics. I once forecasted they could thrive for another decade.

Simultaneously, Su Qun also addresses the state of the team’s players and injuries. His exact words are, “This Chinese women’s basketball team lacks a core in the perimeter, with only ‘Little Treasure’ Li Yueru in the frontcourt. This was the case even during their first match against Spain. In the second match against Serbia, Wang Siyu made an effort to become that core player, while Little Treasure took only three shots and made eight free throws. Han Xu aimed to re-establish herself as a versatile, world-class center capable of playing inside and outside, but it seemed she was struggling to do so, scoring only one out of five twos and threes and making eight free throws. Where is our revered ‘LeBron Meng’?

The same Chinese women’s basketball team is vastly different from the one that dominated the Tokyo Olympics three years ago. Back then, they were full of vigor, spirit, and determination, lacking experience. Facing the seasoned European powerhouses, they struggled to control the game, allowing a 31-year-old veteran center to score 18 points. Now, this veteran center is married to an American and no longer participates in the Olympics; Chinese player Shao Ting has also retired. But essentially the same group of people won the silver medal in the World Cup.

Many factors have contributed to the Chinese women’s basketball players not being their former selves. For example, “Female Durant” Huang Sijing underwent a major surgery and is still tasked with guarding the perimeter and attempting threes. Han Xu played in every possible tournament, including the National Games, Asian Games, and university tournaments, while the Chinese women’s basketball team underwent long training for the Olympics, causing her to miss the WNBA games. Li Meng also suffered a thigh injury during the final series between Sichuan and Inner Mongolia, returning to the team much later than usual before the Olympics.

Only Li Yueru has been venturing abroad, playing in Turkey and the WNBA, returning late and performing best in the first game, scoring 31 points and grabbing 15 rebounds, which remains the highest figures in the group stage so far.

Finally, Su Qun acknowledges that the Chinese women’s basketball players are not slacking off, including some external factors, particularly concerning the topic of players becoming influencers. He writes, “If you blame the coach, how can you overlook the fact that Zheng Wei was thrown up in the air when the team reached the World Cup finals? If the coach is doing everything they can but cannot motivate this team, there must be something wrong with the team; if there is a problem with the team, it must be with the individuals; and if there is a problem with the individuals, it must be due to the environment.

Look around you, isn’t everything already different?

Earning money is no longer a result of hard work; earning money comes naturally through fame. In this world, being an influencer is better than anything else, with too many temptations. I’ve always supported Chinese women’s basketball becoming influencers because there are so few girls who earn a living through basketball. Girls are tough. If being an influencer can bring in money, go ahead and do it, as it is a natural reward for their dedication and striving for national glory. Excellent female basketball athletes becoming influencers can inspire more girls to play basketball and contribute to national glory.

But sports have their inherent laws, and mediocrity is the original sin! The foundation of being an influencer is performance, and game results represent everything.

Without results, or even if performance does not meet expectations, the influence will not last long.

This is the Chinese women’s basketball team’s tragedy, and it is also China’s basketball tragedy.

China’s basketball has too many issues, and this is the latest one.