BIO: Zhou Qi grew up in Xinxiang, China and attended Fuxin Basketball School from 2005 in Fuxin, Liaoning.

Zhou first began appearing on scouting reports when he guided China to a unlikely youth team title in Turkey at the TBF International Under-16 Tournament in 2011. At age fifteen, Zhou put up 41 points, 28 rebounds, and 15 blocks in China’s semi final win over Germany, and then went for 30 points, 17 rebounds, and 8 blocks in the final against the host nation. A year later at the 2012 Albert Schweitzer Tournament, a traditional testing ground for the best teenage players in international basketball, Zhou reinforced his reputation as one to watch by averaging 16.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, and 4.2 blocks in 28.2 minutes per game.

In January 2014, Zhou left his boyhood team, the Liaoning Jaguars, to join the Xinjiang Flying Tigers. However, he was unable to play for Xinjiang until the 2014/15 season due to being underaged.

Although there were rumors that several U.S. college team’s were courting him, the teenager decided to stay in China, and his move to the cash-flush Xinjiang team caused a firestorm of speculation within the local media. Initially, it was claimed Zhou had accepted a three-year, $744,000 deal that would have made him better paid than most of the Tigers’ roster at the time, and the club was forced to publicly deny those stories.

In 2015/16, Xinjiang lost in the semifinals of the CBA playoffs. Zhou led the CBA in blocked shots in each of his first two seasons at 3.3 and 3.2 per game, respectively, while shooting 65 percent from two-point range in 73 total games.

In June 2016, Zhou reached a agreement with Xinjiang that would allow him to buy out his contract and join the NBA in 2017. After much back and forth, Zhou’s representation in China and the U.S. secured a buyout that would allow him out of his contract at the conclusion of the 2016/17 season for the maximum league mandated amount permitted, which is $675,000.

In 2016/17, Zhou averaged 16.0 points and 10.0 rebounds while shooting 58.6% from the floor. He also ranked second in the CBA in blocks (2.3 bpg) and was named Defensive Player of the Year. Zhou hit 20 3-pointers in 2016/17 after having 10 his first two seasons combined. He also helped Xinjiang win its first championship in 2016/17.

After his second season with Xinjiang, Zhou QI declared for the 2016 NBA draft. He had the longest wingspan during the 2016 NBA Draft Combine at 7’7¾” (2.33 m). On June 23, 2016, he was selected with the 43rd overall pick by the Houston Rockets.

NBL EXPERIENCE

Zhou Qi made his NBL debut with the South East Melbourne Phoenix at 25 years of age. He scored eight points in his first game.

After making their maiden Finals appearance the year prior, South East Melbourne looked to go one step further. The Phoenix’s first move was re-signing coach Simon Mitchell (one year deal), who then went about retaining the majority of the team’s local core, locking in Kyle Adnam, Ryan Broekhoff, Izayah Le’Afa and Mitch Creek re-signing.

Although both Keifer Sykes (to NBA) and Yanni Wetzell (to New Zealand) would exit the club, they would be replaced by Tohi Smith-Milner (via Melbourne), Zhou Qi, a member of the Chinese national team and imports Zach Hankins and Xavier Munford.

South East Melbourne started the season on fire, winning three of its first four games, with Qi (11.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 1.9 blocks) making it extremely difficult for opposing team’s to score inside and Munford (16.6 points, 4.1 rebounds, 4.2 assists, and 1.3 steals) proving to be a more than adequate replacement for Sykes.

The combination of a short-term injury to Qi and Hankins yet to play a game due to a knee cartilage injury resulted in coach Simon Mitchell bringing in import Brandon Ashley (8.9 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 0.7 assists) as a replacement for Hankins.

The Phoenix had no problems scoring this year, with Mitch Creek (20.4 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 1.1 steals) leading the team in scoring and South East Melbourne finishing in the top three highest-scoring teams in the league (87.7 points per game).

Then, due to COVID interruptions, several of their games had to be postponed, forcing the team into a 28 day hiatus where they were unable to play a single game, leaving them a little bit rusty, to say the least, and they were blown out by Brisbane (84-100) in their first game back.

It wouldn’t take long for South East Melbourne to return to their previous form however, winning eight of their next eleven games to sit second on the ladder (11-5) around the halfway mark of the season.

South East Melbourne saw their season backflip from here on, going on a four-game losing streak, losing to the Hawks twice, the Kings and United. The downfall of South East Melbourne coincided with the season-ending shoulder injury of Ryan Broekhoff (11.1 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 1.6 steals), but even with a favourable schedule across the last month of the season, the Phoenix still struggled to get wins, suffering defeats by Adelaide, Cairns, and Melbourne which ended South East Melbourne’s chances of reaching the playoffs.

It was a disappointing second half of the season for the Phoenix, as they managed to win only six out of their last 14 games, the only high point being a overtime win over Perth (102-100) that ended the Wildcat’s 35-year playoff streak.

2022/23
The Phoenix entered NBL23 hoping to put the memories of an injury-plagued season behind them. The team’s core group of Ryan Broekhoff, Izaya Mauriohooho-Le’Afa, Cameron Gliddon, Reuben Te Rangi, and co-Captains Mitch Creek and Kyle Adnam all returned, imports Trey Kell III and Gary Browne were added to bolster the backcourt, and big man Alan Williams signed to replace Zhou Qi.

Qi, who was initially thought to be returning to China before a last-minute change, saw him re-sign and creating a ‘twin towers’ situation with Williams that many wondered how it would work.

The Phoenix’s opening game saw them take the court without Broekhoff, Kell and Browne, all unavailable due to pre-season injuries, and Qi’s arrival still two weeks away. As a result, Adnam was inserted into the Phoenix’s starting five and had a career-high scoring night against Tasmania. The efforts of Adnam (30 points, 4 rebounds, and 4 assists), Mitch Creek (23 points and 6 rebounds) and Alan Williams (12 points and 7 rebounds) saw South East Melbourne defeat Tasmania (84-79) and had fans excited about the season to come.

In the games where South East Melbourne fielded all five of their starters, they were one of the most well-balanced, impressive units in the competition. The problem is that it rarely happened, with Qi (6.2 points, 4.4 rebounds, 0.2 assists) playing just nine games before returning home for family reasons, Kell (12.5 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 2.8 assists) missing five games due to broken ribs, and Broekhoff (10.3 points, 4.1 rebounds, and 0.9 assists) missing a third of the season due to a persistent hamstring issue.

Mitch Creek (23.4 points, 7.0 rebounds, and 2.9 assists), who was the only starter to appear in every game, reached a new level as he attempted to cover the numerous gaps across the team, becoming an MVP candidate in the process.

Qi’s early exit from the season led to increased burn for the likes of first-year players Grant Anticevich (2.1 points and 1.6 rebounds) and Anzac Rissetto (1.2 points and 0.4 rebounds), whilst perimeter players Broekhoff, Kell and Browne (12.2 points, 3.6 rebounds, 6.5 assists, and 1.5 steals) all playing just 61 of a possible 84 regular season games opened the door for Adnam (8.4 points, 1.4 rebounds, and 2.6 assists) and Te Rangi (5.1 points and 3.0 rebounds) to step into the starting line-up.

The glut of injuries also saw big minutes for relative unknowns Junior Madut (4.0 points and 2.3 rebounds) and Owen Foxwell (3.8 points, 1.7 rebounds, and 1.2 steals), who both delivered big games when called upon.

South East Melbourne was able to reach the second spot on the ladder after a shaky start, but almost as soon as they arrived, they saw injuries derail the team, falling to fifth place (15-13) and having to face Perth in the Play-In Tournament.

Although the Phoenix were without sharpshooter Broekhoff, they entered their Play-In Qualifier against the Wildcats as favourites. Explosive games from Perth import duo Bryce Cotton (26 points, 8 rebounds and 4 steals) and Brady Manek (24 points) halted South East Melbourne’s playoff run (106-99) and left Phoenix fans lamenting yet another ‘almost’ season.

Zhou Qi played two seasons the South East Melbourne Phoenix. He averaged 10.1 points, 6 rebounds, and 0.4 assists in 33 NBL games.

CAREER RANKINGS:
– 49th in blocks per game.

HIGHLIGHTS:

Dan Boyce (811 Posts)

Dan Boyce is a die-hard Sydney Kings fan who grew up in Melbourne during the roaring 90's of Australian Basketball and spent far too much time collecting Futera NBL Basketball cards.