Making a big impression

Still, Zhang's rise to stardom as a potential game-changer on the international stage will be inevitable, according to Australian legend Lauren Jackson.

The five-time Olympic medalist said she's been following Zhang's game as a fan, and feels excited for her future as a star in the making following the NBA Rising Star tournament in Singapore earlier this month.

"She's starting to learn the women's game after graduating from age-grade basketball, and I just hope she's enjoying every minute, because, before too long, she is going to be the center of everybody's attention and dominating the FIBA game," Jackson told ESPN.

"Obviously she's super tall, but the way she plays, she certainly has the ability to completely dominate, purely because of her height," said the 44-year-old former WNBA star.

"In saying that, she's got great touch around the ring, she can catch and she's got a big, strong body, and has the ability to finish under pressure with three or four people hanging off her.

"It's exciting to think about where she's going to go in the game, and what she's going to do," said Jackson, a dominant 1.98-meter center in her prime, who retired after helping Australia qualify for the Paris 2024 Olympics.

Playing in a major home tournament as a teenager was a perfect start for Zhang, and the next big experience is something Jackson has lived and breathed herself — a potential call from the WNBA.

The high expectations, though, could be a burden that Zhang will need some extra help and support to overcome, said Jackson, who made her major international debut for the Opals at the 1998 world championships and became a big name at the Sydney Olympics.

"The Australian team, our coach and the team manager made an effort of trying to protect me from the media and the external pressures. In our lead-in games to Sydney, they made sure I wasn't doing much media and things like that," she recalls.

"It was a very strange, surreal time, and I was ignorant to how much pressure was probably on me. I hope she has the same support as I had to help her out."