Back to face the Warriors, Yang Hansen's composure is visibly apparent.

Since Yang Hansen was drafted, what has been the most surprising aspect? I think it’s his capacity to adapt and learn quickly.

Therefore, after his tough first game against the Warriors, I wasn’t concerned about his ability to adjust. He has repeatedly shown he can swiftly adapt to various competitive environments, which explains his explosive third quarter in the previous match.

Today, facing the Warriors again, Yang Hansen didn’t have such a standout single-quarter performance, but his progress was still very noticeable. Against the Warriors and his own team’s fast-paced offense and defense, at least Yang Hansen managed to keep up with the speed.

In the first quarter, Yang Hansen continued to match up against Horford, who had previously taught him a lesson. This time, Yang Hansen firmly held his position in front of Horford, securing two rebounds and quickly accumulating a good number of boards. There was also a mismatch under the basket against Poole; after missing his first layup, he followed up with a put-back score, finishing the quarter with 2 points and 4 rebounds.

In this quarter, during his 4 minutes on the court, Yang Hansen performed the typical duties of a traditional center: grabbing rebounds and setting screens. His positioning and presence on the floor were clearly improved. This aligns with what I said after the first game — start by doing the blue-collar work to ensure you stay on the court, master the fundamentals before focusing on other things.

In the second quarter, Yang Hansen played even better based on that foundation. He positioned himself in the corner to space the floor, received a pass from his teammate, and when Horford came to defend, Yang Hansen made Horford miss. He then smoothly drove to the basket for an easy floater. This move, shaking off Horford, was a complete turnaround from the first game, clearly showing the importance of having a three-point threat.

There was another play where Yang Hansen and Avdija ran a “Gortat screen.” He set an on-ball screen to free up a teammate from Payton, then set another screen inside on Horford, fully opening the path to the basket for his teammate. This play highlights Yang Hansen’s basketball IQ very well.

With this kind of inside play, the ball handler only feels comfortable. This is an area Yang Hansen needs to maintain and improve. High-quality screens are crucial in modern basketball, though he also needs to be careful not to commit screening fouls.

In the first half of the third quarter, the Warriors and Trail Blazers went back and forth in transition. Yang Hansen was constantly running back and forth in this fast pace but didn’t make much impact. It wasn’t until the Trail Blazers started feeding him the ball that he hit a three-pointer. Then Curry answered with a three of his own — it was surprising to see Yang Hansen and Curry trading threes in a preseason game.

In the next play, Yang Hansen’s assist was interesting as well. After catching the ball in the corner, he moved back towards the baseline with his back to the basket. When he jumped to pass, all defenders were focused on him. Using a no-look pass, he fooled the defense and found a teammate under the basket for a score.

Yang Hansen still needs to have the ball in his hands to maximize his offensive impact. In the final quarter, there was a play where he tried to finish inside but failed, and another where he caught the ball beyond the three-point line, shook off a defender at the free throw line, and scored inside. Yang Hansen is clearly more confident when he has the ball.

The more I watch Yang Hansen play, the more I feel he is following a playing style similar to Jokic’s. Of course, there’s no comparison between them at this stage, but in terms of on-court details and style, Yang Hansen is moving toward the path of his idol.

Yang Hansen has a kind of magic about him. He may spend several minutes running back and forth with the team, but once he receives the ball, he quickly finds his rhythm and uses his influence to change the game. While adapting to the game, he is also impacting it, which is a unique talent of his.

Today Yang Hansen played 20 minutes, shooting 4 of 11, 1 of 4 from three, scoring 9 points with 6 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 block, 1 turnover, and 4 fouls. Overall, he performed much better than in the first game against the Warriors and looked more composed on the court.

As the regular season approaches, Billups’s rotation is gradually taking shape. The Trail Blazers play at a fast pace, which causes the center’s stamina to drop quickly. Therefore, the rotation between Yang Hansen and Klingen should be frequent. Klingen starts the game playing about five minutes, then Yang Hansen comes in for a few minutes, and Klingen returns to close out the first quarter. This was the rotation used today.

Klingen scored 9 points and grabbed 8 rebounds in the first quarter alone, eventually dominating the paint with 15 points and 11 rebounds for the game. He even made a three-pointer in the first quarter. There is definitely a competitive relationship between him and Yang Hansen, but it seems to be a healthy competition. For now, Yang Hansen hasn’t yet threatened Klingen’s position.

The day after tomorrow, the Trail Blazers will play their last preseason game against the Jazz. Yang Hansen is expected to deliver an even better performance. Looking forward to it.