
»Terry Rhoads, who worked with Nike Asia for eight years and Bruce O'Neil, a former coach at the University of Hawaii, desribe 14-year-old Chen Juanghua as a point guard who could one day excel for China. O'Neil spent a month with Chen at his academy in the summer of 2002 and believes that, with the proper tutoring, the young guard could be a significant contributor for the 2008 Olympic team in the Beijing Games.
''He's very skilled,'' O'Neil says. ''I had a bunch of high school coaches come and look at him, and they all say he'd be first-team All-State. (Note: Chen was still 13 at the time) He's got the shooting ability and the instincts, and he wants desperately to come to the US to train, but I don't know if they will let him. Chen would benefit greatly from the first-rate coaching --and competition -- he would find in America.''«
NBA Comparison: Allen Iverson
Strengths: A tremendously gifted athlete with exceptional creativity and flair for the game... His crossover is Iverson-like, also like Iverson makes the game look very easy ... Pushes the ball up the court tremendously well ... Has a great handle of the basketball ... His quickness is his greatest asset, and gives him incredible potential ... Has very good leaping ability as witnessed by his Slam Dunk title at the adidas Superstar Asia Camp ... Shoots the ball exceptionally well, and has 3 point range ... Passes the ball with very good timing and court vision ... A unique talent from China, previously no guards have even been close to this level of athlete ...If he is truly just 16 years of age, the sky is the limit for him ... He wants to improve and is coachable ...
Weaknesses: Still very weak physically, he will need to improve his diet and workout regimen to enhance his potential in the NBA ... Tends to go for the spectacular sometimes when the easy play will do... Defensively he must learn to play with more intensity ... Added strength will help him a lot ... His passing can catch players off guard if they aren't prepared ... His release is a little unorthodox, but not too bad, just takes a little time to get rid of the ball ... His attitude rubs some the wrong way ... Has a reputation for being lazy .. His real age is in question, some feel he could be as old as 18, and if that's the case his physical development has less potential... Must get better with his ability to create shots for himself but with his quickness it should improve ...
Notes: Gained a considerable amount of fame and recognition being featured in a New York Times article on Hoops in China.
-Aran Smith