New game plan for busy Zhou

Zhou Qi has some tall responsibilities－on and off the court.

The 7-foot forward helped Team China win basketball gold at the Asian Games in Jakarta last month, and on Monday a photo of him and Wang Xinyi posing with their marriage certificate went viral on Chinese social media.

The source of the photo is unknown, and the 22-year-old Zhou has not made any announcement himself. But Wang, who is said to work as an airline stewardess, on Sunday posted a photo of herself wearing a diamond ring.

The photos suggest Zhou, who as a member of the Houston Rockets was the only Chinese player in the NBA last season, is now a married man. The photos and related content had been viewed about 30 million times on Weibo by Monday morning.

Zhou is considered China's best hope of finding a successor to legendary eight-time NBA All-Star and Naismith Hall of Famer Yao Ming, who retired in 2011.

In leading the championship drive in Jakarta, Zhou averaged 15.6 points, 9.8 rebounds and four blocks, with 58.3 percent success on three-pointers. He also won a personal duel with Jordan Clarkson of the Cleveland Cavaliers in China's opener against the Philippines by draining 25 points to go along with 12 rebounds and seven blocks in an 82-80 victory.

"The memory of the Asian Games will last my entire life, and the sight of our national flag being raised and the national anthem being played after we won repeats over and over in my mind like a movie," Zhou said before heading back to the US to rejoin the Rockets.

"Now I have to face the new NBA season, and I will try my best to keep pushing and improving."

Zhou faced many doubts during his rookie campaign, particularly compared to Yao's dominance in his first year with the Rockets. But after playing alongside the likes of James Harden and further honing his skills with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers in the NBA G League, he's ready to take the next step.

"After a year in the NBA, I'm getting used to it," said Zhou. "Of course, there are changes in my mentality. I'm more mature in terms of skills and understanding the tactics."

Because of the Asian Games, Zhou missed Houston's training camp in the Bahamas, but he's confident the Asiad more than made up for it.

"Zhou is still raw and there's a lot of work for him to do," former Rockets star and Hall of Famer Tracy McGrady said in Shanghai on the weekend.

"Obviously the talent is there, or he wouldn't be on the roster. He just has to continue to work and get better and better.

"Hopefully, he'll have more minutes this year and get the opportunity to become a vital part of what the Rockets are going to do."