Zhang Zhenlin (; born 28 January 1999), or Kevin Zhang, is a Chinese professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player for the

Liaoning Flying Leopards The Liaoning Flying Leopards (), also known as the Liaoning Shenyang Sansheng Flying Leopard Club or Liaoning Bengang (simplified Chinese: 辽宁本钢), are a Chinese professional basketball team based in Hunnan District, Shenyang, Liaoning, whi ...

of the

Chinese Basketball Association The Chinese Basketball Association (), often abbreviated as the CBA, is the first-tier professional men's basketball league in China. The league is commonly known by fans as the CBA, and this acronym is even used in Chinese on a regular basis ...

(CBA). He played

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

for the

Tulane Green Wave The Tulane Green Wave are the athletic teams that represent Tulane University, located in New Orleans, Louisiana. Tulane competes in NCAA Division I as a member of the American Athletic Conference (The American). There are 14 Green Wave interco ...

Early life and high school career

Born in

Shenyang Shenyang (, ; ; Mandarin pronunciation: ), formerly known as Fengtian () or by its Manchu language, Manchu name Mukden, is a major China, Chinese sub-provincial city and the List of capitals in China#Province capitals, provincial capital of Lia ...

, China, Zhang grew up watching

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United S ...

(NBA) players

Steve Nash Stephen John Nash (born 7 February 1974) is a Canadian professional basketball coach and former player who most recently served as head coach of the Brooklyn Nets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played 18 seasons in the NBA, ...

and

LeBron James LeBron Raymone James Sr. (; born December 30, 1984) is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). Nicknamed "King James", he is widely considered one of the greatest pl ...

and aspired to play basketball in the United States. In 2013, at age 14, he joined the United States Basketball Academy in

Blue River, Oregon Blue River is an unincorporated community in Lane County, Oregon, United States. It is located on Oregon Route 126 along the McKenzie River, between the communities of Finn Rock and Rainbow. It is in the Willamette National Forest, where the B ...

upon the advice of his mother's friend, Bruce O'Neil. Zhang spoke no English at the time. In his first three years of high school, he played for

La Lumiere School La Lumiere School is a college preparatory boarding and day school located on a 190-acre campus in Springfield Township, LaPorte County, Indiana, United States. About La Lumiere School is affiliated with several educational associations: * C ...

LaPorte, Indiana La Porte (French for "The Door") is a city in LaPorte County, Indiana, United States, of which it is the county seat. Its population was estimated to be 21,341 in 2022. It is one of the two principal cities of the Michigan City, Indiana, Michig ...

, where he played with top recruits

Jaren Jackson Jr. Jaren Walter Jackson Jr. (born September 15, 1999) is an American professional basketball player for the Memphis Grizzlies of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Michigan State Spartans. He was select ...

and

Brian Bowen Brian Bowen II (born October 2, 1998) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Iowa Wolves of the NBA G League. He originally committed to play college basketball for the Louisville Cardinals but was suspended by the ...

. Over three seasons at La Lumiere, he helped his team to a combined 82–7 record and the 2017 High School Nationals title. As a senior, Zhang played for

Montverde Academy Montverde Academy is a private PK–12 school in Montverde, Florida, United States. History The school was founded in 1912 as Montgomery Industrial School. The school president was Henry P. Carpenter. It underwent a major expansion in 1921, whe ...

Montverde, Florida Montverde is a town in Lake County, Florida, United States. The population was 1,655 at the 2020 census and an estimated 1,675 in 2018. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford Metropolitan Statistical Area. History Montverde wa ...

, helping his team achieve a 35–0 record and win High School Nationals. At the National Prep Showcase in November 2017, he scored 25 points and had five three-pointers against

New Hampton School New Hampton School is an independent college preparatory high school in New Hampton, New Hampshire, United States. It has 305 students from over 30 states and 22 countries. The average class size is eleven, and the student-faculty ratio is five t ...

. He was friends with Montverde teammate

RJ Barrett Rowan Alexander "RJ" Barrett Jr. (born June 14, 2000) is a Canadian professional basketball player for the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected third overall in the 2019 NBA draft by the New York Knicks ...

, the number one recruit in the 2018 class. On 13 April 2018, Zhang played for Team World at the

Nike Hoop Summit The Nike Hoop Summit is an international men's basketball all-star game sponsored by Nike, held once a year since 1995, except from 2001–2003, which features the USA Basketball Men's Junior Select Team against a World Select Team of internationa ...

. Five days later, he committed to play

for

Tulane Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private university, private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into ...

over offers from

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

BYU Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day S ...

, DePaul and

Kansas State Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant college in 1863 and was the first public instit ...

, among other

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of College athletics, intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major ...

programs. He was rated a three-star

recruit __NOTOC__ Recruit can refer to: Military * Military recruitment * Recruit training, in the military * '' Rekrut'' (English: Recruit), a military recruit or low rank in German-speaking countries * Seaman recruit Books *''Le Réquisitionnaire'' (E ...

by major recruiting services.

College career

On 11 November 2018, Zhang made his freshman season debut for Tulane, leading his team with 24 points and seven rebounds in an 80–69 loss to 15th-ranked

Florida State Florida State University (FSU) is a public university, public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher e ...

. After hyperextending his elbow on 8 December versus

South Alabama South Alabama is the various parts of southern Alabama. Although it is not a strictly defined geographic region, it generally includes all Alabama counties south of the Black Belt. In that view, ''South Alabama'' consists of just the two counties ...

, he sat out his next game against

Texas Southern Texas Southern University (Texas Southern or TSU) is a public historically black university in Houston, Texas. The university is one of the largest and most comprehensive historically black college or universities in the USA with nearly 10,000 ...

and was limited by the injury in many of his following games. On 13 January 2019, Zhang scored a season-high 25 points in an 83–79 loss to

Memphis Memphis most commonly refers to: * Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt * Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city Memphis may also refer to: Places United States * Memphis, Alabama * Memphis, Florida * Memphis, Indiana * Memp ...

. As a freshman, he averaged 6.5 points and 2.4 rebounds in 22.5 minutes per game. Tulane finished with a 4–27 record, losing all 18 of its conference games, and Zhang was one of two players to return for the following season amid a roster and coaching overhaul. On 4 January 2020, as a sophomore, he scored a season-high 15 points, converting on all five of his three-point attempts, in a 76–71 upset win over

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

. Zhang finished the season averaging 5.1 points and 2.1 rebounds in 19.2 minutes per game.

Professional career

On 19 October 2020, Zhang made his professional debut for the

of the

(CBA), recording 13 points and 11 rebounds in a 121–108 win over the

Tianjin Pioneers The Tianjin Ronggang Pioneers () or Tianjin Ronggang or Tianjin Pioneers are a Chinese professional basketball team based in Tianjin, which plays in the Northern Division of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). The Ronggang Import & Export Tr ...

. On 8 March 2021, Zhang scored a career-high 46 points and 9 rebounds in a 124-115 win over

Guangdong Southern Tigers Guangdong Hongyuan Southern Tigers () or Guangdong Southern Tigers, also known as Guangdong Dongguan Bank () for sponsorship reasons, are a Chinese professional basketball team owned by the Guangdong Winnerway (Hongyuan) Group. The team is one o ...

National team career

Zhang joined the

Chinese national basketball team The China men's national basketball team (nickname ''Team Dragon'') represents the People's Republic of China in international basketball tournaments. The national team is governed by the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). Based on the numb ...

for training camp in preparation for the

2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup The 2019 FIBA Basketball World Cup was the 18th tournament of the FIBA Basketball World Cup for men's national basketball teams. The tournament was hosted in China and was rescheduled from 2018 to 2019, becoming the first since 1967 FIBA World Ch ...

but did not make the final roster. Zhang was selected into the final roster of

Chinese National Basketball Team The China men's national basketball team (nickname ''Team Dragon'') represents the People's Republic of China in international basketball tournaments. The national team is governed by the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). Based on the numb ...

competing for the FIBA Asian Cup 2021 Qualifiers. He was included in China's squad for the

2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup qualification The 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup qualification process will determine 30 of the 32 teams that will participate at the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup. As co-hosts, the Philippines men's national basketball team, Philippines and Japan men's nat ...

, and had his debut national match against

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

on 28 November, 2021.

Career statistics

College

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2018–19 , style="text-align:left;",

, 30 , , 16 , , 22.5 , , .354 , , .295 , , .757 , , 2.4 , , .8 , , .4 , , .4 , , 6.5 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2019–20 , style="text-align:left;",

, 30 , , 19 , , 19.2 , , .410 , , .324 , , .696 , , 2.1 , , .5 , , .6 , , .6 , , 5.1 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 60 , , 35 , , 20.8 , , .377 , , .308 , , .733 , , 2.3 , , .6 , , .5 , , .5 , , 5.8

CBA

Regular season

, - , style="text-align:left;",

2020–21 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen b ...

, style="text-align:left;",

Liaoning Liaoning () is a coastal province in Northeast China that is the smallest, southernmost, and most populous province in the region. With its capital at Shenyang, it is located on the northern shore of the Yellow Sea, and is the northernmost ...

, 53 , , 43 , , 32.3 , , .491 , , .385 , , .705 , , 5.6 , , 1.5 , , 1.2 , , .4 , , 14.2 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 53 , , 43 , , 32.3 , , .491 , , .385 , , .705 , , 5.6 , , 1.5 , , 1.2 , , .4 , , 14.2

Playoffs

, - , style="text-align:left;",

, style="text-align:left;",

, 6 , , 4 , , 35.8 , , .424 , , .314 , , .500 , , 6.2 , , 1.2 , , 1.5 , , .2 , , 11.5 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 6 , , 4 , , 35.8 , , .424 , , .314 , , .500 , , 6.2 , , 1.2 , , 1.5 , , .2 , , 11.5

Personal life

Zhang's mother, Wang Fang, played basketball for

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

at the

1992 Summer Olympics The 1992 Summer Olympics ( es, Juegos Olímpicos de Verano de 1992, ca, Jocs Olímpics d'estiu de 1992), officially known as the Games of the XXV Olympiad ( es, Juegos de la XXV Olimpiada, ca, Jocs de la XXV Olimpíada) and commonly known as ...

. She won the

Women's Chinese Basketball Association The Women's Chinese Basketball Association (WCBA) is the first-tier professional women's basketball league in China. It was established in 2002 as the women's counterpart to the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). Current clubs There are cu ...

(WCBA) title in 2009 while the head coach of the Liaoning Flying Eagles. Wang was a coach for the Chinese women's team at the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Na ...

References

External links

Tulane Green Wave bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Zhang, Kevin Living people 1999 births Chinese men's basketball players Basketball players from Shenyang Chinese expatriate basketball people in the United States Tulane Green Wave men's basketball players Power forwards (basketball) La Lumiere School alumni Montverde Academy alumni 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup players Basketball players at the 2022 Asian Games Asian Games bronze medalists for China Asian Games medalists in basketball