Former NBA guard finds career, homelike feeling in CBA

Former NBA guard Marcus Williams has gotten himself rooted in the soil of China's top-flight basketball league as he finds his career and home at Shanxi Zhongyu.

The 26-year-old American, considered one of the best outsider players in the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) league, averages 30.9 points, 6.2 rebounds and 5.2 assists for Shanxi this season, and is now the second-placed scorer of the league.

Williams, however, sang high praise for his Chinese teammates in Shanxi Zhongyu, saying in an exclusive interview with Xinhua that CBA is a stage not only for foreign players.

"The native players are growing quickly, as there are more talents in the league now. They are the key in winning," said Williams, who had formerly played for NBA's San Antonio Spurs and Los Angeles Clippers before joining the CBA in 2009.

After a moderate season with Zhejiang Golden Bulls in 2010, he signed with Shanxi and helped the Zhongyu team finish the 2011 season in the third place among overall 17 teams.

The 1.98-meter Williams, however, warned his teammates that the rivalship in this year's CBA league will be even bitter that they could not just lay on the past success.

"Last season, there were two or three teams competing for the championship, but now I think the number is five or six. If you don't have energy, you will lose," he said.

Asked who's the best foreign player in CBA, Williams spoke of his teammate Charles Gaines without hesitation.

"I have known Charles even before I came here. He has energy, he can score in the paint, he is a rebound monster and he is getting better," he said.

Gaines, so called "Paint Beast", averaged 29.2 points and 14.3 rebounds. The foreign duo scored almost two thirds of the whole team.

But in Williams' mind, his local teammates, like Lu Xiaoming, the local assists king, were also the integral parts of Shanxi's impressive season.