For many years, military basketball has been regarded as the pinnacle of Chinese basketball. The Bayi men's basketball team is an outstanding representative of military basketball. Since its official establishment in 1951, the Bayi men's basketball team has always been a team to be reckoned with in the domestic basketball world. With their tenacity, they won a total of eight CBA championships, including a six-game winning streak from 1996-2001, and seven National Games titles, including a five-game winning streak from 1987-2005.
In the long history of the Bayi men's basketball team, the Bayi men's basketball team led by Liu Yudong, Wang Zhizhi, Li Nan, Zhang Jinsong and Fan Bin is undoubtedly the most memorable team. Because these five players are often selected for the national team together, they are also known as the 815 Tigers by many fans.
In the era of the Bayi Five Tigers, the Bayi men's basketball team not only won consecutive championships in China, but also existed with an overwhelming attitude. In many finals, only the Shanghai team led by Yao Ming barely won a game. The combination of the five tigers is both offensive and defensive, both internal and external, and tenacious, which has won the love of countless fans.
Nearly 20 years have passed, and these former Bayi players have all advanced in their respective basketball careers, and although they are all in the field of basketball, their experiences and current situations are different.
01 Liu Yudong, age 53.
In 1993, Liu Yudong participated in the 7th National Games as the youngest player in the team. In the final stage, he faced the Liaoning team led by Li Chunjiang, Wu Qinglong, Li Xiaoyong, Wu Naiqun and other national team players, single-handedly achieved 30+ results, and successfully led the team to win the championship. Since then, he has become famous in the first fight, and people affectionately call him "Tank".
Liu Yudong has excelled in international and domestic competitions, gradually transforming from a reckless tank player to a difficult shooting specialist to defend. He always stands up bravely when it matters most. With the Chinese men's basketball team and the Bayi men's basketball team setting records in a row, people began to think that the title of "tank" was not weighty enough, so they also gave him the title of "God of War".
Yao Ming's evaluation of Liu Yudong is: "Liu Yudong is the only player who makes me feel that no matter how useless I defend. "He's very well-rounded in basketball, especially with a high shooting percentage. The 2001 National Games final was supposed to be a pinnacle duel between Yao Ming and Wang Zhizhi, but Liu Yudong managed to win the game in the last second of the final, and he beat Shanghai with a three-pointer, which made Yao Ming cry on the spot.
The reason why Liu Yudong is known as the "God of War" is partly because of his skills and achievements. But more importantly, his iron-blooded character and indomitable will. Despite the fact that he almost has a handicap in his knee, his heart is always full of competitive spirit and never gives up. As a representative of the will of the soldiers, Liu Yudong was elected as the Olympic flag bearer twice in a row.
At the 2005 National Games, 35-year-old Liu Yudong once again became the focus of Yi Jianlian, Zhu Fangyu and others, and once again led the Bayi team to win the championship of the National Games. When asked by reporters if he should retire, he simply replied: "Whether I should retire or not, completely follow the decision of the organization." ”
After Liu Yudong officially retired, he has been serving as the leader of the Bayi men's basketball team, but as the Bayi men's basketball team gradually withdrew from the historical stage, Liu Yudong could only leave with tears.
After the disbandment of the Bayi men's basketball team, Liu Yudong became the focus of many teams. But he chose to return to his hometown of Fujian to work. At the 2021 National Games, he became the leader of the Fujian men's basketball team and was elected president of the Fujian Basketball Association in 2022. In December of the same year, he was inducted into the Chinese Basketball Hall of Fame and officially inducted in April 2023.
Liu Yudong was born in a happy family, and his wife was a member of the Bayi women's basketball team. After retiring, she chose a medical profession in order to better take care of Liu Yudong. And his son, who is not fit to be an athlete due to asthma, did not choose to enter the basketball industry, but has been focusing on his studies. Now, at the age of 25, he has a firm personality and is not a weak person, which makes Liu Yudong feel very relieved.
Liu Yudong is most worried about the performance of the Chinese men's basketball team, he said frankly: They are all tenacious, and I am not satisfied with any of them.
02 Fan Bin, age 53.
Fan Bin is a basketball player who has risen through the military and has a determined character. At a young age, he developed a deep bond with Liu Yudong and devoted a lot of time to training. As Adijiang gradually entered old age, Fan Bin gradually emerged and became the core point guard of the Bayi men's basketball team. Despite being only 1.78m tall, he is very solid defensively and never relents when it matters most.
Although Fan Bin and Liu Yudong are the same age, their basketball road is full of ups and downs. Fan Bin joined the Bayi youth team at the age of 21 and officially entered the CBA league at the age of 27. At the beginning of his career, he was a substitute for Adijan and therefore failed to make it to the national team. Although he rose to prominence and won multiple Asian titles with the team, his performances were not well received before the Olympics.
At the 2000 Sydney Olympics, Jiang Xingquan chose not to take him to the competition. And at the 2004 Athens Olympics, Harris did not take him to the competition, which made Fan Bin feel very regretful. Before the men's basketball team was about to go to Athens to play, Fan Bin told Yao Ming: "Big brother, I can't go to Athens anymore, I hope you don't make me lose face." ”
Fan Bin provided great help to Yao Ming, and he was the person Yao Ming respected the most. Yao Ming has always regretted this great senior, and he said: He deeply regrets not being able to participate in the World Championships and the Olympic Games with Fan Bin, who has helped him.
The same is true for Yi Jianlian, who had a profound impact on his image in his youth. Before the Athens Olympics, Yi Jianlian said: "As long as you have the courage to challenge, you will be able to succeed".
When Yi Jianlian recalled what Fan Bin said, his eyes filled with tears, and he described: "When I heard Fan Bin talking to me, my eyes felt a little moist".
While Fan Bin showed his ferocity and harsh rebuke, well-known players like Yao Ming and Yi Jianlian were reprimanded by him, but he still had a deep respect for him. However, when Fan Bin later became the coach of the national youth team, it was really sad that he was infamous for his strict standards and strict attitude towards the players, and was created by those young "big names".
Perhaps this is one of the factors that has led to the decline of Chinese basketball, as Liu Yudong points out: the current players can neither verbally express nor verbally reprimand.
Frankly speaking, Fan Bin's performance as a head coach was not outstanding. After retiring, he coached top teams such as Bayi Women's Basketball, Fujian Men's Basketball Team, and Qingdao Men's Basketball Team, but his performance was not satisfactory. None of the strategies he used as a player seemed to be very practical, and perhaps he was not suited to the role of head coach.
Perhaps Fan Bin has recognized this fact, since he was expelled from the Qingdao men's basketball team in 2018, he no longer tried to coach the first team, but chose to devote himself to the youth training industry, committed to cultivating a new generation of talents for Chinese basketball.
Fan Bin is also a member of a happy family, his wife is a graduate of the military medical university, after graduation, she was arranged to work in the military hospital, the two have two daughters, both are now adults, and the family lives a happy life.
03 Zhang Jinsong, age 50 years old.
Zhang Jinsong is known as the "Desperate Saburo" and is known for his accurate three-point shooting and iron-blooded defense. He is the last 3D player in the history of the Chinese men's basketball team, and no one can beat him. In the Bayi men's basketball team, he has Wang Zhizhi and Liu Yudong, as well as Fan Bin and Li Nan. Although Zhang Jinsong doesn't have many balls, he can always find an open spot with his excellent anticipation ability. His defensive prediction is also very good, whether it is in the Bayi men's basketball team or the Chinese men's basketball team, Zhang Jinsong is the first gate on the outside.
During his playing career, Zhang Jinsong and Bayi men's basketball team won 8 championships, was selected for the Chinese men's basketball team many times, won 6 Asian Championships and 3 Asian Games championships, and they also participated in two Olympic Games in Sydney and Athens with the team, playing a vital role.
Zhang Jinsong chose a career as a coach after retiring from the army and has been supporting his eldest brother Adijiang since 2007. Soon after, he was appointed head coach of the Bayi men's basketball team. However, with the development of the basketball market, the opportunities for the Bayi men's basketball team to obtain players have gradually decreased, and many young players have chosen to join the gradually privatized professional basketball clubs, which is also one of the reasons why the Bayi men's basketball team has gradually withdrawn from the historical stage.
In 2017, Zhang Jinsong was appointed as the head coach of the men's U18 youth team and successfully led the national youth team to a third place in the U18 Asian Championships. Subsequently, he was promoted to head coach of the U19 youth team and participated in the U19 men's basketball World Cup. Although he was placed in the same group as Serbia and other strong teams, he managed to reach the qualifying round, but unfortunately he failed to reach the quarterfinals due to a defeat to Russia in qualifying.
In the 2021-22 season, Zhang Jinsong was appointed as an assistant coach of the Xinjiang men's basketball team. Due to his outstanding performance, in 2022 he was selected to join the Beijing Enterprises men's basketball team and served as the assistant general manager and head of the coaching staff. In January 2023, the former head coach of Beijing Holdings, Marbury, left for personal reasons, and Zhang Jinsong was elected as the first head coach and led the team to a 2-6 record. After Marbury's departure, he continued to support Min Lulei.
In 2002, Zhang Jinsong and his girlfriend Zhu Xiaoye, who had been in love with him for ten years, held a wedding in his hometown of Taiyuan. Although they kept a low profile before and after their marriage, they only welcomed their children in 2012 due to professional reasons. Zhang Jinsong has a son named Xiaohao. Since he was a child, Zhang Jinsong has taken him around to play games to cultivate his love for basketball. Today, his child is 11 years old, and although he doesn't plan to go down the basketball path, he is still a basketball enthusiast.
04 Li Nan, age 49 years old.
Li Nan's basketball style is similar to the "Little Li Flying Knife" described by Gu Long. With his accurate three-point shot, excellent defense, and tenacious character, he is a key player in the Bayi men's basketball team and the national men's basketball team. He has participated in four Olympic Games and reached the quarterfinals three times, and is regarded as the lucky star of the Chinese men's basketball team.
Li Nan is always surprisingly successful on the court, not only can he attack unexpectedly from the outside, but he can also play back with Yao Ming on the inside. This made Li Qiuping, the head coach of the Shanghai team, feel very headache. He sighed year after year: "The most troublesome person in the Bayi team is him, because Li Nan is like a shadow killer, you don't know when he will appear, and you don't know when he will appear in **." Overall, it's a big headache for you, but in the end you can't prevent it. ”
Everyone knows that Yao Ming was undoubtedly a key figure in the men's basketball team at the peak of his career, but in reality, he was more of a tactical centerpiece. The real leader of the men's basketball team is Li Nan, because he is not only resolute, but also very righteous. Battle also expressed great respect for Li Nan and established a deep brotherhood with him.
Li Nan shows a suave temperament, but when he stands up to defend his brother, his actions are always unambiguous. In 2001, when the players of the Chinese men's basketball team were bullied by Lebanese players when they grew up, Li Nan sat on the bench, and in order to protect his wounds, he quickly rushed to the Lebanese players and attacked him violently, causing the Lebanese players to be covered in injuries.
In 2005, Yi Jianlian, who is usually mild-tempered, was bullied by Puerto Rican players. Li Nan, as the leader of the team, did not hesitate to hold his subordinate Moko, and the two strong men rushed forward without hesitation and launched a fierce attack on the opposing player, catching the opponent off guard.
During that period, Li Nan served as the captain of the national team, and was publicly criticized for causing trouble in the first place, and was severely punished. Therefore, he had to apologize to the other party and emphasized: "Dare to resist does not mean dare to fight, and you need to constantly improve your personal cultivation in the future!."”
Li Nan has been dedicated to coaching since 2010, and since 2010, he has served as an assistant coach in the Chinese men's basketball team. Although the men's basketball team has changed head coaches many times, whether it is Deng Huade, Yannakis or Gong Luming, Li Nan has always remained in the ranks of assistant coaches.
In April 2017, the men's basketball team underwent a series of reforms and began to adopt the strategy of the red and blue teams. Li Nan was named captain of the red team and led half of the Chinese men's basketball team to win the Asian Games in 2018, and his coaching skills have been widely praised.
In the 2019 World Cup, the men's basketball team always maintained its lead in the matchup with Poland. In order to ensure the stability of the game, he arranged for the tall player Zhou Qi to serve the sideline ball. But unfortunately, there was a mistake on the serve this time, which caused the men's basketball team to be chased to a draw by Poland and pulled into overtime. Facing Poland, the morale of the men's basketball team was greatly damaged. In the subsequent competition, even if the veteran Yi Jianlian tried his best, he failed to win, so he failed to participate in the Tokyo Olympics.
In the midst of many doubts, Li Nan ended his career as head coach of the men's basketball team, and Du Feng took his place. However, the reality shows that the declining decline of the men's basketball team may not be the fault of the head coach, but because of the lack of talent and difficulty in cooking.
After Li Nan left the position of head coach of the national team, he did not face a shortage of work. In 2020, he was appointed head coach of Jiangsu Kendia. When Li Nan started as head coach, Kendia was a relatively weak team. However, after two years of unremitting efforts and polishing by Li Nan, he successfully qualified for 12-8 in the 2022-23 season. However, it is regrettable that in the playoff matchup with the Shanghai men's basketball team, Li Nan and Li Chunjiang were successively deprived of coaching qualifications for "negative games", resulting in Li Nan being banned for three years, which made his coaching career face a serious crisis.
To Li Nan's comfort, he has built a happy family. He and his wife, Dai Min, have known each other since their teenage years and have known and accompanied each other ever since. In 1999, they officially received their marriage certificate when the Bayi men's basketball team was separated, and entered the palace of marriage in 2001.
Li Nan and Dai Min brought their son ** Yu to the Jiangsu Kenya team in 2002. Today, the height of ** Yu has broken through the 2.1 meter mark. She has shown great performances over the past few seasons, but sadly, she has played relatively little time this season.
It is worth mentioning that Li Nan welcomed their second child with his wife in 2019, they have a daughter, and the whole family lives a happy life.
Li Nan is only 49 years old now, which should have been the first stage of his coaching career, but it is a bit regrettable to be banned for three years.
05 Wang Zhizhi, only 46 years old.
It wasn't until the end of the article that I realized that Wang Zhizhi, the youngest of the Bayi Five Tigers, has reached the age of 46, and this time is really precious, I don't know how old you are in front of the screen?I think he's pretty young. I'm guessing you're probably over 40 too, so you're so lucky with the stars you've been chasing.
Back to the topic, whenever Wang Zhizhi is mentioned, many fans will first feel sorry. As the first player of the Chinese men's basketball team to officially join the NBA, Wang Zhizhi's experience has always made senior fans unhappy.
Before Wang Zhizhi went abroad, his talent and popularity surpassed Yao Ming. But after going abroad, he was instigated by foreign **, and there were problems with his communication with the Chinese Basketball Association. This caused Wang Zhizhi to feel frustrated during the ** period of his career and lost contact with the best player, Wang Zhizhi.
The things of the past have become a thing of the past, and arguments about right and wrong have become irrelevant. But it is gratifying that Wang Zhizhi has once again shown his strength after a series of ups and downs. At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, he was so impressed that he even helped his team win against world runners-up Spain.
At the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou, Wang Zhizhi, a 33-year-old man, was unable to compete due to injury. But he still maintained his youthful enthusiasm and the courage to take responsibility, and successfully led the Chinese men's basketball team to win the Asian Games at home. At the award ceremony, the whole team hung the Asian Games gold medal around Wang Zhizhi's neck to pay tribute to him and fully demonstrate his popularity and attractiveness.
Wang Zhizhi took over as the final head coach of the Bayi men's basketball team in 2018, but at that time, the Bayi men's basketball team was exhausted and on the verge of decline. After two years of unremitting efforts, the Bayi men's basketball team finally withdrew from the historical stage, and Wang Zhizhi also bid farewell to the CBA competition venue.
After the disbandment of the Bayi men's basketball team, Wang Zhizhi chose to continue to serve in the army, and he is now the vice captain of the Air Force pentathlon team at the Military Sports Training Center, and has been awarded the rank of colonel.
Wang Zhizhi has experienced two married lives. His first marriage was to Song Yang, the daughter of a high-ranking military cadre, and the two spent a difficult time in the United States together, but neither of them escaped seven years of marriage. Around 2010, Wang Zhizhi chose a low-key divorce and lived with his son Wang Xifeng.
Wang Zhizhi didn't plan to let Wang Xifeng participate in basketball games at first, but as Wang Xifeng's status gradually improved, he also had to participate in basketball. Despite this, Wang Xifeng did not choose to take the route of professional basketball youth training, but chose to enter the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China for further study. Currently, he is also a member of the basketball team of the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China and participates in cuba's games, but his performance is not great and he lacks the spirituality of his father.
After the divorce, Wang Zhizhi experienced many years of silence in terms of feelings. Later, he met Zhou Lei, the director of Guangxi TV. The two have similar interests, officially entered the palace of marriage in 2019, and ushered in the crystallization of their love at the end of 2022. Although Wang Zhizhi surpassed Zhou Lei in height and age, the relationship between them was still harmonious and deep.
Although the 815 Tigers are now distributed in all corners of the country, they still maintain an active presence in the basketball world. After retiring, they both experienced the highs and lows of their lives. However, life is not always smooth, and they cannot be as invincible as the Bayi team.
The dissolution of the Bayi men's basketball team is undoubtedly a huge regret in the hearts of Chinese football fans. However, if one day in the future, the once glorious 815 Tigers can reunite, then it will become an unforgettable sight.
Thank you for reading, I'm not sure which one you are more inclined to like among the 815 Tigers?In this issue, we will choose the best hero for you. Please share your views and discussions in the comments section below!