Trail Blazers Officially Interview Cui Yongxu: Dream-Chasing Journey Will Not Stop Even If NBA Bid Fails

After the draft, Chinese player Cui Yongxu signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the Trail Blazers to participate in the Summer League on behalf of Portland, aiming for a two-way contract to stay in the NBA.

Today, Cui Yongxu spoke in an official interview with the Trail Blazers about various topics.

Q: How do you view and seize this opportunity?

Cui Yongxu: If I seize this opportunity, my dream will be realized. But even if I fail, my journey to chase my dreams won’t stop. I will continue to improve myself and play high-level basketball, keep learning, and strive to get more playing time.

Q: Are you prepared to continue staying here?

Cui Yongxu: I have my own strengths. After joining the team, I will fight for my teammates. My defense is also good; I can guard the weak side, defend the ball handler, and provide a lot of help to my teammates. On offense, I can organize, screen, read the game, push the ball up the court, and if I see an offensive opportunity, I will read the defense and find mismatches.

When discussing the biggest challenge of this dream-chasing journey, Xiao Cui (Cui Yongxu) said,

“During this training camp, there are significant challenges. Mainly, the training intensity and game intensity are very high. I had an Achilles tendon strain two weeks ago, and during the first two days of participating in such intense training, we might practice from around 11 AM to 3 or 4 PM. Continuous strength training, shooting, and physical contact resulted in massive physical exhaustion for me. Specifically, competing against players like DC (Donovan Kling, the No. 7 pick in the first round) or other NBA players, they gave me tremendous defensive pressure. For me, it’s a great opportunity to improve but also a huge challenge.”