As former teammates on the Chinese U19 national team, Li Yuezhou has been given ample opportunities with Zhejiang Province this season and has performed well in the playoffs. In contrast, Chen Jiazheng and Wang Hongze, who play for the more high-profile Guangdong Southern Tigers, have largely warmed the bench. Li Yuezhou is undoubtedly the luckier one.
Li Yuezhou, who captained the U19 national team, unfortunately missed last year’s U19 World Cup due to injury. After being promoted to Zhejiang’s first team this season, he struggled to get playing time early on under coach Ding Wei, but once Velickovic took over, Li was given more minutes.
In the regular season, Li played 41 games, averaging 16.7 minutes per game with 5.8 points, 1.2 rebounds, and 1.8 assists. During the latter part of the regular season, he scored in double figures in multiple consecutive games. Against Fujian, he dropped a career-high 23 points, and in the season finale against Sichuan, he recorded a near double-double with 10 points and 9 assists.
Making his playoff debut, Li was instrumental in Zhejiang’s straight sweep of Ningbo in the first round of the 12-team knockout. In the first game, his clutch drive and key three-pointer sealed the win; in the second game, he hit a difficult layup to give his team a near-buzzer-beater victory. Against Shenzhen in the next round, he played 20 minutes in Game 1 but took only one shot. He quickly adjusted in Game 2, playing 25 minutes and recording 15 points, 2 rebounds, and 4 assists, proving he could carry the backcourt load.
Over four playoff games, Li averaged 21.3 minutes, 8.3 points, 1.5 rebounds, and 1.8 assists. With Wu Qian likely retiring next season (even if he returns, he probably won’t start), Li has a solid chance to secure the team’s starting backcourt role, potentially making the All-Star team and competing for the Most Improved Player award.
In contrast, Guangdong’s young players Chen Jiazheng and Wang Hongze haven’t been as fortunate. Both performed well in the preseason club cup competition—Wang Hongze, in particular, showed signs of being a “successor to Ren Junfei” with his shooting, rebounding, and playmaking. Yet once the regular season started, coach Du Feng preferred to rely on veterans like Du Runwang and Zhang Haojia, who have neither potential nor youth on their side, rather than give the youngsters more minutes.
Despite the lack of trust, Chen and Wang have occasionally made strong statements in limited time. Chen scored a career-high 20 points in just 14 minutes against Sichuan, and Wang posted his best game with 22 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, 1 steal, and 2 blocks against Qingdao. Chen also shot a blistering 51.7% from three-point range during the regular season.
In the playoffs, Chen was only activated for Game 2 against Beijing but did not play—zero seconds on the court. Wang played just 2 minutes and 24 seconds in Game 1 of the first round against Guangzhou, scoring 3 points and grabbing 3 rebounds. The disparity between their opportunities and Li Yuezhou’s is stark. Given Du Feng’s approach to young players, both prospects may struggle to get significant minutes even next season.
