She walks around with a harmless look that all tall people seem to wear,as if to compensate for their seemingly unstoppable vertical growth. On court,Chen Nan transforms into an uncharacteristically nimble athlete at 65,driving in effortlessly to block and rebound,morphing into a hoopster who can shoot fluidly and aggressively with her left-hand,providing the visual rarity of a southpaw on basketball courts. Her 26-game run with Womens National Basketball Associations (WNBA) Chicago Sky this summer had people talking about the potential for a Girl-Yao Ming phenomenon despite the early stutter which forced the 26-year old to be waived from the Sky roster after a back injury. As one of the most versatile players to come out of the basketball behemoth in Asia,and arguably the continents best centre,the Chinese captain was expected to do for Chicago what Yao Ming did for Houston. Yao Mings move to the NBA went beyond his impact on the sporting court,as the world warmed up to the nation through his adoring persona ahead of the Olympics at Beijing. In her rookie season,Nan averaged only 12.3 minutes,3.7 points and 2.1 rebounds per game at Chicago before returning to national duty. And while she hasnt yet managed to become a global phenomenon like Ming,back home in China she is definitely a star. Olympic star Shes known more for helping China with her exploits at the Olympics,where she led the team to a fourth place finish and at the last world championships, says Pengchong He,a reporter with the sports channel tom.com. Shes one of the two stars who people back home come to watch the other is guard Miao Lijie,a seasoned regular who is the brains of the team. And for the team,she is pretty much indispensible,especially when the stakes are high. Shes very important to us to help us qualify for the next world championships and win the gold,and we are using her judiciously here,only when required against Japan or Korea, says national coach Sun Fengwu. Shes the best centre in Asia,and is considered world-class at home. Shes had injuries and played only once this year with the national team. But the Olympics will remain what made her famous, says Mao Xiaoxiao of Xinhua. Even as she adjusts her massive star-band around the fragile waist surely on instructions from her medics at Chicago Chen Nans duty to the nation comes first. An army officer,who plays for the Bayi (Eight One or August First side) in the Chinese league,the 26-year-old from Shan Dong province,remains the brightest sun rising on their eastern horizon. But with the stakes considerably lower in the WNBA,it remains to be seen if Chen Nan will be more than just a flash of a shooting star spotted on the high-rise Chicago sky.
