Clap!
Clap!
Clap!
“Alright, that’s enough for today’s practice session.
Bring it in, everyone,” Head Coach Fan Bin called out, gathering the roster around center court at Zuchang Gymnasium.
“I’m announcing our starting lineup for the opening night.” The Fujian Quanzhou Bank Sturgeons had registered twelve players for the 2011–12 CBA season.
Looking across the huddle, Fan Bin listed off the five starters: Point Guard: Xie Yacai Shooting Guard: Fan Songlin (Captain) Small Forward: Zhao Tailong Power Forward: Zaid Abbas Center: Wang Zhelin (King) It was a carefully constructed starting unit.
Positions one through four all possessed reliable perimeter shooting and off-ball movement, creating maximum floor spacing.
If opposing defenses attempted to collapse inside with hard double-teams on King, Fujian’s perimeter threats would immediately make them pay from beyond the arc.
The secondary unit was anchored by high-octane American import guard Anthony Robertson.
Under the 2011 CBA foreign player rules, teams could register two foreign imports under a “four-quarter, six-man-slot” system (or “four-quarter, five-man-slot” when playing against the non-import Bayi Rockets).
Most CBA franchises preferred stacking both imports together in the third and fourth quarters to blow games open.
By starting captain Fan Songlin alongside King, Fan Bin kept a veteran vocal leader on the floor while saving Robertson as a explosive spark off the bench.
“Get two days of solid rest, recharge your batteries, and stay focused,” Fan Bin instructed before dismissing the squad.
“Our opening round against Shanxi is on the evening of the twentieth.
Let’s start the season right.” On November 20, 2011, at 7:15 PM Beijing Time, the 2011–12 CBA regular season officially kicked off.
Inside the Jinjiang Zuchang Gymnasium, the Fujian Quanzhou Bank Sturgeons prepared to host the Shanxi Fenjiu Group Brave Dragons.
Historically, the two franchises had met ten times, with Fujian holding a slight 6–4 head-to-head advantage.
Both teams were entering the season with fresh motivation.
Last year, Fujian suffered a string of severe injuries, plummeting to a dismal 8–24 record and breaking a four-year streak of playoff appearances.
Shanxi, meanwhile, finished ninth at 15–17, narrowly missing the postseason before undergoing an offseason roster overhaul aimed at making a serious playoff run.
With fifteen minutes remaining before tip-off, both rosters took the floor for pre-game warmups.
Although this matchup wasn’t a blue-blood marquee battle like Guangdong versus Xinjiang, basketball fandom in Fujian Province was famously passionate.
The 4,000-seat Zuchang Gymnasium was packed to the rafters, reverberating with thunderous chants, beating drums, and flashing stadium lights.
Sitting on the home bench, seventeen-year-old Wang Zhelin looked around the arena, taking in the roaring crowd.
Is this what a real professional game feels like?
King thought, feeling a thrill ripple down his spine.
If a CBA home opener feels this electric, what will it be like standing under the bright lights of an NBA arena across the ocean?
“Zelin, why are you sitting there in a daze?” Captain Fan Songlin nudged him, chuckling.
“Get out there and warm up!” “Right!” King smiled, standing up from the bench.
The moment he stepped onto the hardwood, he drew every eye in the building.
Standing 213 cm barefoot and nearly 217 cm (~7’1.5″) in sneakers, King was comfortably the tallest player on the court.
Combined with his broad 115 kg frame and a signature blue headband wrapped around his forehead, his presence was impossible to ignore.
“Dad, look at him!” a young fan in the front row squeaked, pointing.
“He’s huge!” “That’s our new starting center, son,” the father replied proudly.
On the opposite side of the court, the Shanxi players couldn’t help but steal glances at Fujian’s new teenage giant.
King shot a few routine mid-range jumpers, but quickly found the standard shootaround a bit bland.
He caught the eye of Anthony Robertson on the wing.
“Hey, Brother Gua!
Come over here.” Robertson ran over, grinning.
“What’s up, King?” “Don’t you feel like the crowd needs a proper spark?” King asked, gesturing toward the stands.
Robertson’s eyes lit up as he caught the drift.
“Oh?
Want to put on a show?” “Let’s give them something to cheer about.” Recognizing what was coming, the Fujian players laughed and cleared out to the sidelines, leaving the paint wide open for Robertson and King.
Robertson dribbled slowly toward the top of the key, accelerated toward the three-point line, and threw a high, soaring pass off the backboard.
King timed his run perfectly from the free-throw line, took two explosive strides, and launched his 250-pound frame into the air.
Catching the basketball off the glass with both hands at the apex of his jump, he cocked his arms back and slammed it down with violent force!
BOOM!
A thunderous crack echoed through the gym as the basketball rim groaned under the violent impact.
The crowd let out a collective gasp before erupting into loud cheers.
King landed smoothly, his eyes flashing with intense competitive drive.
It wasn’t just a warmup highlight—it was a direct warning shot to Shanxi’s interior defense: The paint belongs to King.
Over the next five minutes, King threw down three more heavy dunks, flexing his upper-body power and setting an intimidating tone for the entire arena.
Opposite him, Shanxi’s starting center, Shang Ping—a bald 205 cm (~6’8.5″) veteran—subconsciously rubbed his shaved head, gulping nervously.
If I have to battle that wild beast in the post for forty minutes, Shang Ping thought to himself, I might not walk out of this gym in one piece.
“Hey, Monk!
Stop staring,” Shanxi captain Duan Jiangpeng said, poking Shang Ping in the ribs.
“Warmups are over.
Time for pre-game handshakes.” “Right, right,” Shang Ping stammered, walking toward the center circle.
Standing face-to-face with King, Shang Ping had to tilt his head all the way back to look him in the eye.
The seventeen-year-old towered nearly a full head over him.
“Hello, I’m Wang Zhelin,” King said, extending a massive hand with a deep, magnetic voice.
“Uh…
hi!
I’m Shang Ping,” the bald center replied, shaking his hand.
“Nice to meet you.
My friends usually call me—” Before Shang Ping could finish his sentence, King had already withdrawn his hand, turned on his heel, and walked away toward the Fujian bench, leaving the Shanxi center staring awkwardly at the back of his massive head.
Shang Ping stood frozen in place, twitching an eyebrow.
Damn…
this kid is arrogant!
PLAYER PROFILE & SYSTEM METRICS Name: Wang Zhelin (King) Team: Fujian Quanzhou Bank First Team Age: 17 | Position: Center Height: 213 cm barefoot (~7’0″) / 217 cm in shoes (~7’1.5″) Weight: 115 kg (~253 lbs) | Wingspan: 228 cm (~7’5.8″) HIDDEN PHYSICAL ATTRIBUTES Lower Body Strength: 81 | Upper Body Strength: 77 Speed: 43 | Power: 52 | Agility: 52 | Vertical: 45 OFFENSIVE RATING Close Range: 65 | Layups: 72 | Mid-Range: 50 | Three-Point: 54 Dunking: 62 | Passing: 35 | Free Throw: 55 OVERALL RATING: 61 (Solid NBA Rotation / CBA Elite Dominance)