Rockets’ Zhou Qi released after failure to launch

Zhou Qi #9 of the Houston Rockets poses for a portrait during the Houston Rockets Media Day at The Post Oak Hotel at Uptown Houston on September 24, 2018 in Houston, Texas. Tom Pennington/Getty Images/AFP

Chinese forward Zhou Qi’s bid for NBA glory with the Houston Rockets came to an abrupt end on Monday after he was released by the club.

A brief statement on the Rockets website said the 22-year-old center had been waived by general manager Daryl Morey.

Zhou was chosen by Houston with the 43rd overall pick in the 2016 draft.

However, he failed to establish himself in Houston, playing just a handful of games from the bench in 2017-2018 with no starts.

The towering seven-foot (2.17m) player spent most of the past two seasons playing for the Rockets’ junior affiliate Rio Grande Valley in the G-League.

Zhou averaged 1.2 points and 1.2 rebounds a game last season for the Rockets in his 18 appearances.

Zhou spent three seasons in China with the Xinjiang Flying Tigers, helping them capture the Chinese crown in 2017.

Zhou has also represented China, and was a member of the country’s 2016 Olympic team. He was also a part of the China squad which won gold at the Asian Games in Jakarta in September.