Team China’s imposing young center Zhang shows vast potential — and work to be done

A sizable asset in the making or a liability in transition? China’s towering phenom Zhang Ziyu has turned heads at her home Asia Cup, leaving the basketball world wondering how such a unique talent could fit into the fast-paced modern game.

Standing 2.26 meters tall (7-foot-5), with her giant presence a spectacle to behold, China’s 18-year-old center Zhang, dubbed “Baby-face Shaq” by fans, could not hide from the attention at the FIBA Asia Cup in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, where her insurmountable advantage under the rim, as apparent as her weakness in mobility, agility, and conditioning, was put on full display.

Limited by head coach Gong Luming to 14 minutes of court time per game, Zhang finished her international debut at the senior level with a team-high 15.6 points on average across five games, ranking second overall after Lebanon’s Rebecca Akl (16.5).

Despite being triple-teamed whenever she played, Zhang proved almost unstoppable near the basket, easily posting defenders up with her bulk to score free points as long as she settled deep enough in the paint.

Her slow legs and lack of athleticism, however, took a heavy toll on her game, significantly limiting her defensive coverage and threat in offensive transition.

Currently the world’s tallest professional female player, Zhang only contributed 0.4 blocks and 5.6 rebounds per game in Shenzhen, ranking 18th and 14th, respectively, in two key statistics that measure a post player’s impact.

A raw talent playing the game, literally, on a level of her own, Zhang’s emergence is sure to pose a huge challenge for opponents as Team China looks to build its future around her.

“She’s an extraordinary talent with an untapped potential, and could be a huge asset for Chinese women’s basketball if developed in the right way,” Gong said of Zhang’s performance after Team China beat South Korea 101-66 in July 20’s bronze-medal playoff to finish third on the podium.

“She obviously lacks experience at this level, and has so much catching-up to do to get used to the physicality and pace of the senior game.

“Defensively, she has to improve her movement and rebounding, while offensively, we hope she can develop a more versatile skill set and get more involved in making plays for teammates.

“She has a long career ahead of her and a vast room for improvement. This was just her first test at the senior level, and I feel like we put way too much expectation on her, which didn’t help,” said Gong, who returned to the team three months ago for a second stint after guiding the women’s squad to the 2001 Asia championship and 2002 Asian Games titles.

Zhang’s current incompatibility with the fast-paced, high-intensity game was exposed in Team China’s disappointing 90-81 semifinal loss to Japan, where the host’s strength in the paint was neutralized by Japan’s run-and-gun game, which featured sharp shooting, spacing, and quick transition.

China’s slow-rotating zone defense, with Zhang settled deep down-court whenever she is in the game, allowed Japan’s teen star Kokoro Tanaka too many uncontested shots on the perimeter, where Japan hit 16 three-pointers, 10 more than China, to upset the host in front of its home fans.

Corey Gaines, Japan’s head coach, attributed the critical win to his team’s perfect execution of a game plan tailored against the host’s “too obvious” advantage, following two warm-up losses to Team China last month.

Still, Zhang’s rise to stardom as a potential game-changer on the international stage is inevitable, according to Australian legend Lauren Jackson.

The five-time Olympic medalist said she has been following Zhang’s game as a fan, and feels excited for her future as a star in the making, following her performance in the NBA Rising Stars tournament in Singapore in June.

“She’s starting to learn the women’s game after graduating from age-grade basketball, and I just hope she’s enjoying every minute, because, before too long, she is going to be the center of everybody’s attention and dominating the FIBA game,” Jackson told ESPN earlier this month.

“Obviously she’s super tall, but the way she plays, she certainly has the ability to completely dominate, purely because of her height,” said the 44-year-old former WNBA star.

“In saying that, she’s got great touch around the ring, she can catch, and she’s got a big, strong body, and has the ability to finish under pressure with three or four people hanging off her.

“It’s exciting to think about where she’s going to go in the game, and what she’s going to do,” said Jackson, a dominant 1.98-meter center in her prime, who retired after helping Australia qualify for the Paris 2024 Olympics.

Playing in a major home tournament as a teenager was a perfect start for Zhang, and the next big experience is something Jackson has lived and breathed herself — a potential call from the WNBA.

The high expectations, though, could be a burden that Zhang will need some extra help and support to overcome, said Jackson, who made her major international debut for the Opals at the 1998 world championships and became a big name at the Sydney Olympics.

“The Australian team, our coach, and the team manager made an effort of trying to protect me from the media and the external pressures. In our lead-in games to Sydney, they made sure I wasn’t doing much media and things like that,” she recalled.

“It was a very strange, surreal time, and I was ignorant to how much pressure was probably on me. I hope she has the same support as I had, to help her out.”

Contact the writer at sunxiaochen@chinadaily.com.cn