Brisbane Bullets will field the NBL's tallest ever player after signing Chinese international Chuanxing Liu for the 2022 season.
The 228cm centre, known as "Big Liu", has been brought in under the NBL's Special Restricted Player provision, as the league looks to foster a stronger relationship with the FIBA Asia region.
"We are excited to have Big Liu as part of the Brisbane Bullets," Sam Mackinnon, the team's General Manager of Basketball, said.
"Securing 7'5 Big Liu gives us a player like no other in the NBL and the ability to play a variety of different styles which we know will be difficult for other teams to play against.
"Having a player from the Chinese National program brings added depth to our squad and additionally opens up a whole new fan base for the Bullets as the NBL's global audience continues to grow."
Liu was a member of the Chinese national team that played in this year's Olympic Qualifying Tournament and Asia Cup Qualifying Tournament.
The 24-year-old is coming off a season for the Qingdao Eagles in the Chinese Basketball Association, where he averaged 9.7 points, 8.3 rebounds and 1.1 blocks per game, while also shooting 66% from the field.
"I am extremely happy to join the Brisbane Bullets and have the chance to play in one of the highest level leagues in the world," Liu said.
"I know this will be a challenge for me, but I will give it 100% effort starting with every practice and earn my chance to help the team win games.
"I know that I'm lacking many things in my game to play at a higher level and want to use this season and every practice to get better and ultimately be able to help my national team China win games in FIBA competition."