FIBA – Taller than Victor Wembanyama, China’s Zhang Ziyu (2m26) is driving the internet crazy!

Par Joël Pütz | Journaliste sportif

If Victor Wembanyama’s extraterrestrial profile is arousing fascination in the NBA, we could soon see the same phenomenon in the WNBA. Young Chinese player Zhang Ziyu is turning heads despite being… taller than the Spurs center.

Things have changed a bit, especially since the 2010s and the democratization of the three-point shot. However, basketball remains primarily a sport for big men, as evidenced by the fact that the MVP title systematically went to a big man between 2019 and 2024. And while Shai Gilgeous-Alexander finally broke that cycle this season, Nikola Jokic came close to retaining his crown…

More generally, this fascination with court giants is still present, particularly in the United States. Victor Wembanyama is perfect proof of this: measuring 2m24 with a wingspan of 2m44 (NBA record), the Frenchman is considered an alien and has even been given this nickname by LeBron James himself.

Is Chinese Zhang Ziyu a worthy heir to Yao Ming?

Currently, no NBA player can surpass Wemby in height. But what if we told you that in women’s basketball, there are even taller players? Enter Zhang Ziyu, barely 18 years old but making a huge hit on social media, having just made her debut for the Chinese national team. Measuring no less than 2.26m (!), she towers over the Spurs star… and visually, it’s impressive.

Zhang Ziyu is now 18 and just made her senior national team debut for China

She’s up to 7’5”pic.twitter.com/4MiGADUkml

— New York Basketball (@NBA_NewYork) June 16, 2025

Mobility isn’t exactly her strongsuit, which isn’t surprising for such a size, but Ziyu literally looks like she’s playing with children. No one knows if she’ll ever make it to the WNBA, but she’s already captured the attention of American fans. They already imagine her battling with the stars of the women’s league:

@NY_sports_fan_: Imagine Angel Reese trying to defend her lol

@DaeKnowSumn: WNBA in so much trouble. She’s breaking every scoring record first year

@NYboilertech: Angel Reese won’t be able to get her Mebounds anymore