Bateer's 2 Points Not Enough for Contract
(crienglish.com)
Updated: 2005-10-14 09:19

Chinese basketball player Mengke Bateer and his agent have to keep looking for a NBA franchise that is interested in the 2.11m center.

The Cleveland Cavaliers have waived the ethnic Mongolian after Wednesday's pre-season game against Boston.

Bateer scored two points and grabbed one rebound in eight minutes.

That apparently failed to impress the team's management.

The Cavaliers training camp roster now stands at 19 players.

In 2002, Bateer became the second Chinese player to make the NBA, after Wang Zhizhi (Dallas Mavericks, 2000/01) and before Yao Ming (Houston Rockets, 2002/3), joining Denver Nuggets then transferring to San Antonio Spurs. He luckily won a champion's ring without a single minute in that play-off season, before being sold to Toronto where his NBA season came to an end.

Bateer had to come back to Beijing to play the CBA but has never given up his NBA dream.