Official Team Reporter: It’s unlikely for Yang Hansen to take Healthy Lowe’s spot; the Trail Blazers won’t rush to pressure him

On September 27th Beijing time, Trail Blazers’ official reporter Casey Holdahl released a podcast update covering the forthcoming training camp and preseason. He addressed Yang Hansen’s role, which hinges not only on his own output but also on Lowe’s condition. Moreover, Holdahl stated that the Blazers won’t specifically “shield” Yang Hansen, yet they won’t apply excessive pressure prematurely. Here is the content of his podcast—

Yang Hansen showed impressive skills during the Summer League, but the NBA is a completely different level. Whether he can demonstrate those abilities on the NBA court will directly impact his playing time, butif Lowe stays healthy, the backup center spot will most likely remain his, since he serves as a substitute for Klingenberg.

The Trail Blazers selected Yang Hansen with the 16th overall pick. His Summer League performance excited everyone, and many believe he has star potential in the NBA. However, it’s important to remember he’s still a 20-year-old who previously played in the CBA, where the competition level is vastly different from the NBA.

Of course, his Summer League performance was outstanding, even exceeding many expectations—at least personally, I think he was much better than I anticipated. I initially thought he would need time to adjust to the NBA’s pace and that the game might be too fast for him, but that wasn’t the case. He appeared very composed throughout the Summer League, which is a positive sign for him.

However, the Summer League is not the NBA regular season, and that must be made clear. So,the preseason could be a crucial period to evaluate Yang Hansen: can he maintain consistent performance? Can he adapt to the NBA’s pace and physicality?

Regarding physicality, I’m not actually worried about Yang Hansen, but every rookie (especially big men) needs time to adjust to the NBA’s physical demands—the NBA’s pace is faster, and big men must defend both inside the paint and sometimes out to the three-point line, which is very taxing for players who are 7 feet (2.13 meters) or taller, requiring time to adapt.If Yang Hansen can reach this level of fitness this season and display even half of his playmaking ability from the Summer League on the NBA court, he might earn some playing time.

Of course, this also depends on Lowe’s health—Lowe is an excellent defensive center, and if he stays healthy, he will undoubtedly be a great asset to the team.While I admire Yang Hansen’s Summer League showing, it’s hard to believe a rookie just starting high-level NBA play can take Lowe’s spot if Lowe remains healthy—partly because I have great confidence in Lowe’s ability, and partly because the intensity of the NBA far surpasses other leagues, so styles that work in Europe, China, or Australia might not be effective in the NBA.

I personally have high hopes for Yang Hansen’s potential but believe he still needs time to adjust, so I don’t expect him to immediately replace a player like Robert for playing time. However, such “intense competition” is beneficial for the team, andthe team also won’t put too much pressure on Yang Hansen too early—I have always emphasized that in the NBA, simply “giving young players minutes and letting them fend for themselves” is not a good development strategy and may even backfire.If a player performs poorly and loses confidence, especially when being exposed by opponents in nationally televised regular-season games, it does no good for their career.

I believethe team won’t deliberately “protect” Yang Hansen but will create an environment where he can maximize his strengthsand won’t ask him to do things he’s not ready for just to help the team win—they won’t take such risks.