Hu Weidong

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is a Chinese name; the family name is Hu.

Hu Weidong born on January 3, 1970, in Jiangsu is a Chinese basketball player. He is 6 ft. 6 in. (1.98 cm), and wore number 8.

[edit] Basketball career

In 1985 he joined the Jiangsu junior team, in 1987 he joined the national junior team, and he played on the senior national team from 1987 to 2002. He was a two-time MVP in the Chinese Basketball Association, and led the league in scoring three times. He made a halfcourt shot in the 1994 Goodwill Games, which won China the bronze medal, their only medal in international play. Considered to be China's answer to NBA megastar Michael Jordan, Hu Weidong was offered the chance to play for the National Basketball Association in 1998. But he was injured when the Dallas Mavericks offered him a contract. This prevented him from taking up the offer that would have made him the first Chinese to play in the NBA. He was then offered a short term 10-day contract with the Orlando Magic in 2000, but he was injured shortly after and was unable to take up the offer. In 2005, he accepted a job as the head coach of the Jiangsu Dragons.