Watching Game 2 of the CBA playoff series between Guangsha and Shanxi yesterday was frustrating. Shanxi had home-court advantage and already won Game 1, needing just one more victory to sweep into the semifinals. But a questionable substitution in the final quarter cost them the win, igniting heated debate among fans and even creating a potential opportunity for Guangdong to bolster their frontcourt.
The game was tightly contested from start to finish. Shanxi trailed by four points after the first quarter and narrowed the deficit to five at halftime. In the third quarter, Liu Chuanxing came off the bench and immediately made an impact, scoring and grabbing rebounds to stabilize Shanxi’s interior defense. It seemed obvious that the coaching staff would keep him on the floor for the decisive fourth quarter, especially with Guangsha relying heavily on inside scoring. However, head coach Pan Jiang replaced Liu with Ge Zhaobao, who had been struggling with his shooting.
The moment I saw the substitution, I had a bad feeling. And it was justified. Once Liu left the court, Guangsha’s big men—Hu Jinqiu and Wu Xiao—dominated the paint, grabbing multiple offensive rebounds and converting second-chance points to stretch the lead. Guangsha ultimately won 86-81, tying the series 1-1 and forcing a decisive game in their
