{"id":366742,"date":"2025-12-24T03:11:08","date_gmt":"2025-12-24T03:11:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/366742\/"},"modified":"2025-12-24T03:11:08","modified_gmt":"2025-12-24T03:11:08","slug":"hans-solo-impact-the-force-of-xus-takeover","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/366742\/","title":{"rendered":"Han’s solo impact: The force of Xu’s takeover"},"content":{"rendered":"

Han Xu has transformed Perth Lynx overnight, driving a historic two-way swing since her WNBL debut.<\/p>\n

Chinese women’s basketball star Han Xu won’t win the WNBL26 MVP only because she missed the first eight games of the season.<\/p>\n

That honour is tracking toward Bendigo Spirit<\/a> star and Australian Opal Isobel Borlase.<\/p>\n

But the reality is Xu, 26, has turned the WNBL\u00a0inside out and upside down since she first walked onto the floor on November 29, 2025 for the Perth Lynx<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The 2.11m former WNBA\u00a0centre has changed the shape of the game and every WNBL\u00a0scout already. <\/p>\n

The numbers are off the charts. Before Xu arrived the Lynx were -3.6 ppg at 5-3. They are now 5-0 and +22.2 ppg. That is a 25.8 ppg swing.<\/p>\n

Pre-Xu (Rounds 1\u20136)<\/p>\n

Games: 8
Record: 5\u20133<\/p>\n

Points For: 72.5 ppgPoints Against: 76.1 ppgNet Rating (raw): \u20133.6 ppg<\/p>\n

Profile: Competitive. Perth were winning games, but doing it with a negative scoring margin, driven by offensive stagnation and matchup sensitivity.<\/p>\n

This was a good team but with structural limits.<\/p>\n

Xu debut and after (from Nov 29)<\/p>\n

Perth Lynx with Xu<\/p>\n

Sat, Nov 29 (R7): Canberra 67, Perth 91Fri, Dec 5 (R8): Perth 98, Southside 81Sun, Dec 14 (R9): Townsville 81, Perth 97Sun, Dec 21 (R10): Adelaide 82, Perth 109Tue, Dec 23 (R10): Perth 75, Canberra 49<\/p>\n

Record: 5\u20130
Average margin: +22.2
Opponents held \u226470 points: 3 of 5<\/p>\n

Han Xu WNBL26 Season Averages<\/p>\n

GP: 5 \u2502 MIN: 28.3 \u2502 PTS: 17.8 \u2502 REB: 7.0 \u2502 AST: 1.2 \u2502 STL: 1.2 \u2502 BLK: 2.4 \u2502 FG: 36\u201368 (52.9%) \u2502 3PT: 7\u201320 (35.0%) \u2502 FT: 10\u201314 (71.4%) \u2502 TO: 3.0 \u2502 PF: 1.8<\/p>\n

This is not noise. It\u2019s a step-change.<\/p>\n

The box score will show Han hasn’t top scored for the Lynx in the past two wins. Point guard Alex Ciabattoni went off against Adelaide in their 109-82 demolition<\/a>. She dropped a game-high 32 points on 12-from-16 from the field while Amy Atwell had 28 points.<\/p>\n

Atwell backed that up with 28 points against the UC Capitals<\/a> on Tuesday, December 23. Anneli Maley tipped in 16 points and 21 rebounds in the 75-49 route.<\/p>\n

But box scores don’t tell the whole story, even though Xu put up 11 points, eight rebounds, and four blocks against Canberra.<\/p>\n

Perth signed Brianna Turner at the start of the season in preparation for Xu’s arrival. Perth head coach Ryan Petrik said Turner was fitting her role<\/a> into the role they wanted Xu to play. <\/p>\n

The upgrade has been nothing short of elite.<\/p>\n

\"\"\/Where Han Xu sits offensivelyPPP: 1.01 (solid, not inflated)2FG%: 63.0% (elite)3PA\/FGA: 30.3% (outlier for a centre)Pts: 17.8 on controlled usage<\/p>\n

Interpretation: Han Xu isn\u2019t just finishing \u2013 she\u2019s forcing defensive decisions. Few centres in the league combine elite rim efficiency and credible pick-and-pop range.<\/p>\n

Han Xu defensivelyPPP allowed: 0.79 (excellent)Score% allowed: 33.3%2FG% allowed: 42.9%Defensive rank: lower due to the amount of games, not effect<\/p>\n

Interpretation: Han Xu is not switching everything \u2013 but in drops and at the rim, opponents are significantly less efficient.<\/p>\n

Han Xu\u2019s combined valuePositive PPP differential on both endsCreates spacing without sacrificing rim defenceForces opponents to choose between:Staying home on shootersLeaving her in dropSwitching smaller defenders (bad outcome)<\/p>\n

She sits in the rarest archetype in the league. And this is why Atwell, Ciabattoni and Maley are destroying box scores.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Perth fired a pretty significant warning shot, beating the Townsville\u00a0Fire 97-81 in Townsville in Xu’s third game. The Lynx face last-placed Geelong (3-11)\u00a0at home on December 28 and then (4-9) Adelaide Lightning on January 2, 2026 before getting Canberra again on January 4, 2026.<\/p>\n

It’s highly likely, Perth will be 13-3 in no time. How Bendigo handles Xu will be on full display on January 15, 2026 and Townsville on January 20, 2026.<\/p>\n

In the meantime, Xu and the Lynx are top of Hayley Wildes WNBL Power Rankings<\/a> and the rest of the league are on notice.<\/p>\n

Xu is the real deal.<\/p>\n

Han Xu WNBL26 Box Scores<\/p>\n

vs Canberra Capitals \u2014 Dec 23, 2025<\/p>\n

MIN: 25 \u2502 PTS: 11 \u2502 REB: 8 \u2502 AST: 1 \u2502 STL: 0 \u2502 BLK: 4 \u2502 FG: 5\u201311 (45.5%) \u2502 3PT: 1\u20135 (20.0%) \u2502 FT: 0\u20130 \u2502 TO: 4 \u2502 PF: 2<\/p>\n

vs Adelaide Lightning \u2014 Dec 21, 2025<\/p>\n

MIN: 29 \u2502 PTS: 9 \u2502 REB: 7 \u2502 AST: 2 \u2502 STL: 1 \u2502 BLK: 1 \u2502 FG: 4\u201311 (36.4%) \u2502 3PT: 1\u20133 (33.3%) \u2502 FT: 0\u20130 \u2502 TO: 3 \u2502 PF: 3<\/p>\n

vs Townsville Fire \u2014 Dec 14, 2025<\/p>\n

MIN: 32 \u2502 PTS: 28 \u2502 REB: 13 \u2502 AST: 1 \u2502 STL: 2 \u2502 BLK: 4 \u2502 FG: 11\u201321 (52.4%) \u2502 3PT: 2\u20135 (40.0%) \u2502 FT: 4\u20136 (66.7%) \u2502 TO: 3 \u2502 PF: 1<\/p>\n

vs Southside Flyers \u2014 Dec 5, 2025<\/p>\n

MIN: 25 \u2502 PTS: 19 \u2502 REB: 3 \u2502 AST: 1 \u2502 STL: 2 \u2502 BLK: 1 \u2502 FG: 6\u201313 (46.2%) \u2502 3PT: 2\u20134 (50.0%) \u2502 FT: 5\u20136 (83.3%) \u2502 TO: 2 \u2502 PF: 2<\/p>\n

vs Canberra Capitals \u2014 Nov 29, 2025<\/p>\n

MIN: 28 \u2502 PTS: 22 \u2502 REB: 4 \u2502 AST: 1 \u2502 STL: 1 \u2502 BLK: 2 \u2502 FG: 10\u201312 (83.3%) \u2502 3PT: 1\u20133 (33.3%) \u2502 FT: 1\u20132 (50.0%) \u2502 TO: 3 \u2502 PF: 1<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Han Xu has transformed Perth Lynx overnight, driving a historic two-way swing since her WNBL debut. Chinese women’s…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":366743,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[73],"tags":[99,434],"class_list":{"0":"post-366742","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-wnba","8":"tag-sports","9":"tag-wnba"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/366742","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=366742"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/366742\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/366743"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=366742"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=366742"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=366742"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}