Two NBA East Conference sides have said they are preparing to offer Chinese centre Wang Zhizhi re-entry into the world's most popular basketball league.

Website Sina.com reports that the plans came about after Wang's super performance at a Las Vegas tournament which pitted the Chinese national team against several NBA sides.

Wang's broker is to come to China for negotiations with the Chinese Basketball Association and Bayi Basketball Club, Wang's owner, over the deal, the report said.

However, it declined to reveal which two teams have tendered the offers.

Wang was applauded as one of the few Chinese players who performed smoothly at the tournament in Las Vegas, one that was also attended by the Memphis Grizzlies, Sacremento Kings, Cleveland Cavaliers, New York Knicks and Boston Celtics.

He topped three in-house statistic ladders: for scoring, rebounds and three-pointers.

Wang was picked by the Dallas Mavericks back in 2001 to become the first Asian player to be successful drafted into the NBA. He then played successively for the Los Angles Clippers and Miami Heat up until 2005.

But the player was kicked out of the Chinese national team in 2002 after refusing to compete in the world championships and the Pusan Asian Games.

Wang was allowed to return to the national team in April of 2006 after exerting considerable efforts and offering an unfeigned apology. 

(CRI.cn July 17, 2007)