Name Mu Tiezhu | Role Basketball Player | |
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Died September 14, 2008, Beijing, China | ||
Mu "Iron Pole" Tiezhu (simplified Chinese: 穆铁柱; traditional Chinese: 穆鐵柱; literally meaning "Mu Iron Pole"; June 1, 1949 – September 14, 2008) was a prominent Chinese basketball player and coach. At a height of 228 cm (7 feet 5.75 inches) and a weight of 160 kg, he was one of the largest and tallest players in China (Yao Ming and Sun Mingming both being similar or taller).
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Biography
Mu was born in Dongming County, Heze, Shandong in 1949.
Mu was one of the first Chinese giants who appeared in the China men's national basketball team. He played for the national basketball team for 14 years. As a member of Bayi Basketball Team, Mu still held the highest score of 81 points in a game, and beat the 1978 NBA champion Washington Bullets twice in April, 1979. Mu retired as a player in 1987, and as a coach in 2000.
He was often compared with Sun Mingming, because both of them have acromegaly, and could slam dunk without their feet leaving the ground.
Mu Tiezhu died of myocardial infarction on September 14, 2008 in Beijing. Two days after his death, The Draft Review named Mu as an "Honorable Draftee", saying he would have been a very high pick in the 1972 NBA draft had China been a more open society at the time.