Wow! Zhao Rui is likely to team up with Zhou Qi! The CBA trade market is about to explode again.

A well-known domestic basketball platform revealed,the Beijing team hopes to complete a trade for Zhao Rui before the new season registration deadline.

The CBA new season registration deadline is August 31st, but per rules, the transfer deadline is 48 hours before that date, and no late applications will be accepted. This means clubs must submit transfer requests to the league by August 29th at the latest.

In the summer of 2023, the CBA completed its most significant trade ever: Guangdong sent Zhao Rui to Xinjiang in exchange for Zhou Qi. However, Guangdong only holds Zhou Qi’s rights for one year. Last summer, Zhou Qi moved to the Beijing team and helped his new club secure the runner-up position last season.

Xinjiang has worked with Zhao Rui for two seasons so far, but the results have been below expectations. After changing teams, Zhao Rui seemed to struggle with adaptation and suffered frequent injuries. Over the 2023-25 seasons, he played only 35 regular-season games and just 6 playoff games, leading to heavy criticism and even being mockingly called a “scammer” and “capitalist’s nightmare.”

After leading the Chinese men’s basketball team to the Asian Cup runner-up this summer, with an average of 13.5 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 4.5 assists per game, shooting 42.4% from the field and 35.5% from three-point range, Zhao Rui’s market value is currently at its peak. If Xinjiang really wants to trade him, they could get a very generous return from Beijing, such as a young talent plus a large sum of cash.

It should be noted that when Zhao Rui was traded to Xinjiang, although he accepted it, his attitude was not very positive... Now, if he has the chance to play for his originally preferred destination, the Beijing team, it is believed this will help him perform better and improve his physical condition.

One issue is,Beijing has already used all three of its maximum salary slots, held by Fan Ziming, Zhou Qi, and Chen Yingjun. They must first trade away one of these three players before completing a deal with Xinjiang for Zhao Rui, who also has a max salary contract.

If they successfully form a lineup with Zhao Rui, Chen Yingjun, Raymond, Zeng Fanbo (whose status for the new season is still undecided), and Zhou Qi, Beijing will have the league’s most luxurious domestic roster. As long as their foreign players perform well, they will undoubtedly be the top championship contenders next season.