The Chinese men's national basketball team finished their journey at the NBA Summer League on Friday with one win and four losses, the same record as 2007 when they participated for the first time. As head coach Li Nan had said previously, participating in the Summer League was for players to get familiar with and used to the more intense competition overseas and to see which players are able to make the final 12-man list for the 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup.

Perhaps it's still too early to make decisions, but Li might have a clearer idea about who should make the team's backcourt combination. Zhao Jiwei and Guo Ailun could rank high on the list.

Zhao is still the best orchestrator of the Chinese national team. In the five games, he dropped an average of 4.6 points, 3.6 assists and two assists. The numbers could not tell how important he is to the team.

As a classical point-guard, Zhao's biggest feature is his firmness. When China were almost smashed by the Miami Heat in their first game, Zhao stood out and used his orchestration to help his teammates calm down and try to fight back as much as possible. By the way, his six assists were the highest among all players of the two sides.

China's victory over the Charlotte Hornets in the third game led to the biggest contribution of Zhao. His nine points, three assists and five steals contributed greatly to the team's only win – he buried a 3-pointer assisted by Guo, kept launching fast breaks to help his teammates take the momentum and made the last two game-winning free throws.

Reading the game, making the right decisions on the court, never panicking no matter what, creating opportunities for teammates and making key shots, Zhao did everything an old-school PG needs to do and he should be the perfect choice to be China's commander.

If we see Zhao as the brain of the Chinese national team, Guo is the engine of the unit. Having averaged 15.7 points, 2.3 rebounds and four assists in the three games he has played, Guo proved he is the sharpest blade in China's offense.

Guo did not play in the first game because of injury and, instead sat on the bench, watching his teammates being walked over by the Heat. When he appeared on the court in China's second game against the Sacramento Kings, Guo became the game-changer. In the 28 minutes he played, he put down 20 points, two rebounds and five assists, becoming the only Chinese player who had a 20+point game in the Summer League. More importantly, he showed both the world and his teammates they were not that vulnerable, even in front of NBA opponents.

Guo has probably the best combination of athleticism and skills of the Chinese national team and his contributions are bigger than individual offense. When the opponents cannot take care of Guo with one-on-one defense, they will need to increase the attention on him, which means their defense will be changed by Guo, making it easier for other Chinese players to find opportunities. It's safe to assume that China will find it difficult to score thanks to the tough defenses at the World Cup and that's when the team will need a breaker like Guo.