Kai Sotto will have his hands full in the National Basketball League-Australia.
Besides banging bodies with the giants down south, Kai Sotto will face a couple of Chinese big men in Australia as a couple of teams have added centers Liu Chuanxing and Zhou Qi to their lineup.
Seven-foot-five Liu Chuanxing has been signed by Brisbane as a special restricted player — same as Sotto. The announcement was made Tuesday morning (Manila time).
A lifer for Chinese Basketball Association team Qingdao, Liu made his Team Dragon debut during the Clark window of the FIBA Asia Cup Qualifiers, averaging 5.3 points and 3.0 rebounds in three games played.
The 22-year-old also played in the Victoria Olympic Qualifying Tournament.
Photo by FIBA Asia Cup
On the other hand, 7-foot-1 Zhou, who played for Houston from 2017-18, has been signed by South East Melbourne, according to a report by Mark Stein.
Zhou previously played for Xinjiang from 2019 until last season. However, a contract dispute resulted in his exit from the team.
“I announce I am quitting the whole season. I will persist in safeguarding the legitimate rights of players because that’s my responsibility as a player,” Qi said in a social media post.
“Meanwhile, I will submit supplementary materials to the Chinese Basketball Association as soon as possible. I expect the association to conduct a fair and just arbitration over the matter.”
He is a three-time CBA champion, three-time Defensive Player of the Year, and three-time All-Star.
Sotto is already with Adelaide, preparing for the upcoming season.
