After that, the Trail Blazers were steady when crushing weaker teams, but they clearly struggled against top-tier teams, lacking in game control.
Bird and the coaching staff studied the matches and identified a serious problem: the gap between Ah Gan and his teammates was too wide, his teammates couldn't keep up with him.
In some December games, Gan Guoyang's shooting attempts significantly increased, while the team's assists, movements, and cooperation decreased.
At the same time, Gan Guoyang's average turnovers reached a career high, not because his skill declined, but because some teammates couldn't catch his passes.
Bird could feel Gan Guoyang's frustration; after all, a high-level player watching his teammates fall behind in all aspects, wouldn't their mindset explode?
Bird understood this well, but as the head coach, he had to balance the locker room while soothing Gan Guoyang's emotions.
