Ding Yanyuhang (Brooklyn Nets) will play in 2018 NBA Summer League Along with Zhou Qi (Houston Rockets) and Abudushalamu Abudurexiti (Golden State Warriors), Yuta Watanabe (Brooklyn Nets)

Chinese basketball player Ding Yanyuhang has confirmed that he will play for the Brooklyn Nets during the 2018 NBA Summer League in Las Vegas in July, reported Tencent Sports on Sunday.

Ding arrived in the US in May for medical treatment and training. Though there were reports about him playing for the Dallas Mavericks like he did in the 2017 Summer League, Ding’s team denied the rumor and said he made no promise about which team he would be playing for.

According to Shen Yang from Tencent Sports, Ding was waiting until the end of the 2018 NBA Draft to make his decision. It’s true that he had planned to play for the Mavericks but while he was training in New York, the Brooklyn Nets invited him for a workout.

Zhou Qi from the Houston Rockets /VCG Photo

The Nets coaching staff were satisfied with the workout and invited Ding to return for several more. Considering that Dallas selected four rookie players, including 19-year-old Luka Doncic from Slovenia, in the draft, Ding’s playing time may have been limited. Therefore, he opted to join the Nets this time. He may be joined in Las Vegas by Asian-American player and Nets guard Jeremy Lin, who is returning from an injury.

Shen also mentioned that playing for Brooklyn does not indicate they, or any other NBA team, will sign Ding for the 2018-2019 season.

Abudushalamu Abudurexiti from China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region /VCG Photo

Ding will not be the only Chinese player in the 2018 NBA Summer League. Abudushalamu Abudurexiti from China’s Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region will play for the Golden State Warriors, while Zhou Qi will also show up for the Houston Rockets.

On July 8, the Warriors will play against the Rockets, bringing a Chinese derby game between Abudushalamu and Zhou. The Nets will face the Orlando Magic on July 6, giving Ding the chance to play against 6th overall pick Mo Bamba, who is well-known for his shocking wingspan of about 2.38 meters.

Yuta Watanabe, considered among the top 30 or so players who were not selected in Thursday’s NBA Draft, will play for the Brooklyn Nets next month in the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas, he announced on Twitter on Friday.

The former George Washington University guard, who earned the Atlantic 10 Conference Defensive Player of the Year award this past season, has impressed NBA talent evaluators with his versatility and defensive tenacity. He’s greatly improved his outside shooing over the past year as well.

The 206-cm Watanabe, who was born and raised in Kagawa Prefecture, acknowledged fans are disappointed that he wasn’t among the 60 players drafted. But “I will do my best” in the Summer League, he wrote in a Twitter message that was retweeted more than 1,400 times in the hour after it was posted online.

The Summer League begins on July 6.

Source: China’s Ding Yanyuhang will play in 2018 NBA Summer League for Brooklyn Nets – CGTN