Shanxi Loongs

Shanxi Loongs
League	CBA
Founded	2001
History	Henan Dragons (2001–2006) Shanxi Dragons (2006–2007) Shanxi Brave Dragons (2007–2018) Shanxi Loongs (2018–present)
Arena	Shanxi Sports Centre Gymnasium Taiyuan Riverside Sports Centre Gymnasium
Capacity	8,000
Location	Taiyuan, Shanxi, China
Team colors	White, Burgundy, Orange
Head coach	Yang Xuezeng
Ownership	Shanxi Guotou
Championships	None
Home Away Third

The Shanxi Loongs, also known as Shanxi SDIC Raptors Club or Shanxi Fenjiu Shares are a Chinese professional basketball team based in Taiyuan, Shanxi, which plays in the Northern Division of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). The Shanxi Fenjiu Company is the club's corporate sponsor, while its mascot is a dragon.

The team was known in English as the Shanxi Brave Dragons from the Summer of 2007 until September 2018, when a rebranding ceremony was held, unveiling a new logo and nickname. Loong is the Chinese word for dragon, in both Mandarin and Cantonese.

History

Originally known as the Henan Renhe Dragons (河南仁和) due to corporate sponsorship by the Henan Renhe Group (河南仁和集团), the team rebranded as a result of an agreement signed with the Henan Jiyuan Iron & Steel Group (河南济源钢铁集团) in early November, just before the CBA's 2004–05 regular season began (jigang is an abbreviation for jiyuan gangtie or Jiyuan Iron & Steel).

In conjunction with this change—the club moved from its original home city of Zhengzhou to Jiyuan—in the middle of its first season. From 2004 to 2006 they were known as the Henan Jigang Dragons (河南济钢猛龙) or Henan Jigang or Henan Dragons, and were based in both Jiyuan and Luoyang, Henan.

During the 2004–05 CBA season, the team's first in the league, the Henan Dragons finished in seventh and last place in the CBA's North Division and out of the playoffs. In the 2005–06 CBA season they suffered the same fate yet again.

Before the 2006–07 CBA season, the team headed to Taiyuan, and changed its name to the Shanxi Yujun Dragons or Shanxi Yujun or Shanxi Dragons. They signed with a new sponsor the following year, and became known as the Shanxi Zhongyu Brave Dragons, but the club has fared little better on the court since its relocation.

In January 2010, the Brave Dragons signed former NBA All-Star Stephon Marbury. He only stayed with Shanxi through the end of the 2009–10 CBA season, before leaving for Foshan, and eventually Beijing.

In August 2011, the Brave Dragons played an exhibition game against the Georgetown University Hoyas during the Washington, D.C. squad's two-week summer trip to China, but lost by a final score of 98–81.

Playing in the IBL

The Shanxi Zhongyu Brave Dragons participated in the 2008 season of the International Basketball League (IBL). The IBL is a spring/summer league based in Portland, Oregon. They were housed at the United States Basketball Academy.

Roster

Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility at FIBA-sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationalities not displayed.

Shanxi Loongs roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. No. Nat. Name Ht. Wt. SF 0 Jia Hao 1.97 m (6 ft 6 in) 90 kg (198 lb) PG 1 Chen Peng Yudi 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in) 75 kg (165 lb) SG 2 Luan Licheng 1.97 m (6 ft 6 in) 86 kg (190 lb) G 3 Li Bairun 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) 90 kg (198 lb) SF 5 He Jiachen 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in) 75 kg (165 lb) SG 7 Yuan Shuai 1.94 m (6 ft 4 in) 90 kg (198 lb) G/F 8 Zhang Ning 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) 97 kg (214 lb) G 10 Aleksey Shved 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) 85 kg (187 lb) PF 12 Xing Zhiqiang 2.05 m (6 ft 9 in) 109 kg (240 lb) F/C 13 Lu Jiahui 2.10 m (6 ft 11 in) 104 kg (229 lb) G 17 Frank Jackson 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) 93 kg (205 lb) PF 18 Han Peiyu 2.05 m (6 ft 9 in) 109 kg (240 lb) PG 21 Wang Zhe 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in) 90 kg (198 lb) PG 24 Wang Ruheng 1.92 m (6 ft 4 in) 94 kg (207 lb) SF 28 Qin Zilong 1.97 m (6 ft 6 in) 85 kg (187 lb) G 31 Zhou Zhandong 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in) 87 kg (192 lb) PF 34 Zhang Chunjun 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in) 98 kg (216 lb) C 35 Ge Zhaobao 2.12 m (6 ft 11 in) 116 kg (256 lb) PF/C 45 Chang Lin 2.06 m (6 ft 9 in) 122 kg (269 lb)	Head coach Yang Xuezeng Assistant coach(es) Pan Jianping Legend (C) Team captain Injured Roster Updated: November 2, 2023

Notable players

Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility at FIBA-sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationalities not displayed.

Criteria
To appear in this section a player must have either: Set a club record or won an individual award while at the club Played at least one official international match for their national team at any time Played at least one official NBA match at any time.

Current International players

• Jamaal Franklin (2019–present)
• Eric Moreland (2019–present)

Former Chinese players

• Shan Tao (2007–08)
• Shang Ping (2010–12)
• Wang Lei (2005–07)
• Wu Tai-hao (2015–2018)

Former International players

• Zaid Abbas (2014–15)
• Yancy Gates (2015)
• Alexander Johnson (2011)
• Dominique Jones (2015)
• Stephon Marbury (2010)
• Olumide Oyedeji (2008–09)
• Tim Pickett (2009)
• Leon Rodgers (2010–11)
• Donta Smith (2008–10)
• Shawn Taggart (2011)
• Maurice Taylor (2009–10)
• Jeremy Tyler (2014–15)
• Von Wafer (2014–15)
• Bonzi Wells (2008–09)
• Marcus Williams (2011–14)
• Samuel Dalembert (2015–17)
• Jamaal Franklin (2015–17)
• Henry Sims (2016–17)
• Brandon Jennings (2017–18)
• Luis Scola (2017–18)

Trivia

The team and their former coach Bob Weiss are subject of the book Brave Dragons, A Chinese Basketball Team, an American Coach and Two Cultures Clashing which is about the experience of Weiss while he was coaching the team during the 2008–2009 season.

External links

• United States Basketball Academy official website
• Shanxi Zhongyu at Asia-Basket.com website
• Shanxi Zhongyu at Sina.com.cn website (in Chinese)
• Shanxi Loongs on Weibo.com (in Chinese)