Sun Mingming, the 2.36m Chinese giant working his way up into the National Basketball Association, will attempt to wow NBA scouts over the next few months as he plays for a new minor-league team.

The Grand Rapids Flight announced Tuesday the signing of the 23-year-old center, the tallest player in pro basketball history, ahead of the upcoming International Basketball League season.

Last weekend saw Sun end his run with the Maryland Nighthawks in the American Basketball Association. The team finished 16-17 and missed the league playoffs with Sun averaging 5.8 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.9 blocks a game.

The season will begin on March 22 for the Grand Rapids Flight with Sun set to report to his new team this week. The 24-team development league regular season runs from March to June.

Sun, set to star alongside Jackie Chan in Rush Hour III later this year, underwent surgery to remove a pituitary tumor last year and is in intensive training to build up his strength, stamina, speed and skills in hopes of an NBA career.

"We are extremely excited to have Sun playing for us this season," Flight coach David Fox said. "He will be an exciting player to watch as his quest to become an NBA-caliber center continues."

Sun's final game in Rockville saw him team up with 2.31m center Gheorghe Muresan, a former NBA standout with Washington, and two other 7-footers to form the first starting lineup in pro basketball history containing four 7-foot goliaths. No word has come on any potential inferiority complex felt by the team's fifth player.
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(CRI via AFP March 14, 2007)