# Guangdong Southern Tigers

Guangdong Hongyuan Southern Tigers (Chinese: 广东宏远华南虎) or Guangdong Southern Tigers, also known as Guangdong Dongguan Bank (Chinese: 广东东莞银行) for sponsorship reasons, are a Chinese professional basketball team owned by the Guangdong Winnerway (Hongyuan) Group. The team is one of the best-performing teams in the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). The Tigers have won eleven CBA titles, more than any other team in the league. They are also the only team to have qualified for the CBA playoffs in every season since the league launched in 1995. The team plays its home games in Dongguan, Guangdong. Occasionally, for marketing purposes, the team plays some of its home games in Zhongshan, Zhuhai, and other cities in the Pearl River Delta.
Their arch-rivals in the CBA have traditionally been the Beijing Ducks.

## History

Established in 1993, the Tigers are the main team (Team 1) of the Guangdong Southern Tigers Basketball Club which is the first privately (non-government) owned professional basketball club in China. Besides Team 1, the club has three reserve teams (youth teams): Team 2 (Guangzhou based), Team 3A (Guangzhou based), and Team 3B (Dongguan based). These reserve teams are jointly administered by the club and by the Guangdong Provincial Sports Bureau.
The Southern Tigers have been CBA members since its inception and are the most successful team in the league. In the 1995–96 season, the Tigers qualified for the finals but lost to Bayi Rockets. After a seven-year wait, they made it to the finals again in 2002–03, and in 2003–04, the team claimed its first ever CBA title. Between 2002–03 and 2012–13, the team played in the finals eleven times in a row, winning eight CBA championships and losing three times.
The team has also participated in the National Games of China, on behalf of the Guangdong Province. In 2009, they won the first National Games gold medal in basketball for their province. They defended the title in 2013.

## Players
### Current roster

Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility at FIBA-sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationalities not displayed.

### Retired numbers

Guangdong Southern Tigers retired numbers :
| N° | Player | Position | Tenure | Ceremony date |
| 15 | Jason Dixon | C | 1998–2001, 2002–2009 | 23 September 2009 |
| 4 | Du Feng | PF | 1997–2012 | No ceremony |
| 8 | Zhu Fangyu | SF | 1999–2017 | 29 October 2017 |

## Season-by-season record

| Season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Final playoffs standing |
| Season | Wins | Losses | Win% | Standing | Playoffs | Final playoffs standing |
| 1995–96 | 18 | 4 | .818 | 2nd | Won semifinals vs. Liaoning Dinosaurs (2–0) Lost CBA finals vs. Bayi Rockets (0–2) | 2nd |
| 1996–97 | 13 | 9 | .591 | 4th | Won quarterfinals vs. Shanghai Sharks (2–0) Lost semifinals vs. Bayi Rockets (0–2) | 3rd |
| 1997–98 | 10 | 12 | .478 | 7th | Lost quarterfinals vs. Liaoning Dinosaurs (1–2) | 6th |
| 1998–99 | 13 | 9 | .591 | 3rd | Won quarterfinals vs. Shanghai Sharks (2–1) Lost semifinals vs. Liaoning Dinosaurs (0–3) | 3rd |
| 1999–00 | 15 | 7 | .682 | 2nd | Won quarterfinals vs. Liaoning Dinosaurs (2–1) Lost semifinals vs. Shanghai Sharks (1–3) | 3rd |
| 2000–01 | 12 | 10 | .545 | 6th | Lost quarterfinals vs. Beijing Ducks (0–2) | 6th |
| 2001–02 | 12 | 12 | .500 | 7th | Lost quarterfinals vs. Shanghai Sharks (0–3) | 7th |
| 2002–03 | 23 | 3 | .885 | 1st | Won quarterfinals vs. Shandong Lions (3–0) Won semifinals vs. Beijing Ducks (3–0) Lost CBA finals vs. Bayi Rockets (1–3) | 2nd |
| 2003–04 | 19 | 3 | .864 | 1st | Won quarterfinals vs. Shaanxi Kylins (2–0) Won semifinals vs. Jilin Northeast Tigers (2–1) Won CBA finals vs. Bayi Rockets (3–1) | 1st |
| 2004–05 | 30 | 8 | .789 | 2nd | Won South Division semifinals vs. Bayi Rockets (2–0) Won South Division finals vs. Jiangsu Dragons (2–0) Won quarterfinals vs. Jilin Northeast Tigers (2–0) Won semifinals vs. Bayi Rockets (3–0) Won CBA finals vs. Jiangsu Dragons (3–2) | 1st |
| 2005–06 | 37 | 5 | .881 | 1st | Won quarterfinals vs. Jilin Northeast Tigers (3–0) Won semifinals vs. Jiangsu Dragons (3–0) Won CBA finals vs. Bayi Rockets (4–1) | 1st |
| 2006–07 | 26 | 4 | .867 | 1st | Won quarterfinals vs. Shanghai Sharks (3–0) Won semifinals vs. Jiangsu Dragons (3–0) Lost CBA finals vs. Bayi Rockets (1–4) | 2nd |
| 2007–08 | 26 | 4 | .867 | 1st | Won quarterfinals vs. Zhejiang Lions (3–0) Won semifinals vs. Dongguan Leopards (3–0) Won CBA finals vs. Liaoning Dinosaurs (4–1) | 1st |
| 2008–09 | 45 | 5 | .900 | 1st | Won quarterfinals vs. Shandong Lions (3–0) Won semifinals vs. Dongguan Leopards (3–0) Won CBA finals vs. Xinjiang Flying Tigers (4–1) | 1st |
| 2009–10 | 32 | 2 | .941 | 1st | Won quarterfinals vs. Bayi Rockets (3–0) Won semifinals vs. Shanghai Sharks (3–1) Won CBA finals vs. Xinjiang Flying Tigers (4–1) | 1st |
| 2010–11 | 25 | 7 | .781 | 2nd | Won quarterfinals vs. Bayi Rockets (3–0) Won semifinals vs. Dongguan Leopards (3–0) Won CBA finals vs. Xinjiang Flying Tigers (4–2) | 1st |
| 2011–12 | 27 | 5 | .844 | 1st | Won quarterfinals vs. Fujian Xunxing (3–0) Won semifinals vs. Xinjiang Flying Tigers (3–0) Lost CBA finals vs. Beijing Ducks (1–4) | 2nd |
| 2012–13 | 28 | 4 | .875 | 1st | Won quarterfinals vs. Zhejiang Golden Bulls (3–0) Won semifinals vs. Xinjiang Flying Tigers (3–0) Won CBA finals vs. Shandong Lions (4–0) | 1st |
| 2013–14 | 30 | 4 | .882 | 1st | Won quarterfinals vs. Shanghai Sharks (3–0) Lost semifinals vs. Beijing Ducks (2–3) | 3rd |
| 2014–15 | 34 | 4 | .895 | 1st | Won quarterfinals vs. Shenzhen Leopards (3–1) Lost semifinals vs. Beijing Ducks (1–3) | 3rd |
| 2015–16 | 28 | 10 | .737 | 4th | Won quarterfinals vs. Shandong Golden Stars (3–0) Lost semifinals vs. Liaoning Flying Leopards (1–3) | 4th |
| 2016–17 | 30 | 8 | .789 | 2nd | Won quarterfinals vs. Sichuan Blue Whales (3–0) Won semifinals vs. Shenzhen Leopards (4–1) Lost CBA finals vs. Xinjiang Flying Tigers (0–4) | 2nd |
| 2017–18 | 28 | 10 | .737 | 3rd | Won quarterfinals vs. Xinjiang Flying Tigers (3–1) Lost semifinals vs. Liaoning Flying Leopards (1–4) | 3rd |
| 2018–19 | 42 | 4 | .913 | 1st | Won quarterfinals vs. Jiangsu Dragons (3–0) Won semifinals vs. Shenzhen Leopards (4–0) Won CBA finals vs. Xinjiang Flying Tigers (4–0) | 1st |
| 2019–20 | 44 | 2 | .957 | 1st | Won quarterfinals vs. Qingdao Eagles (one match only) Won semifinals vs. Beijing Ducks (2–1) Won CBA finals vs. Liaoning Flying Leopards (2–1) | 1st |
| 2020–21 | 46 | 6 | .885 | 1st | Won quarterfinals vs. Beijing Ducks (one match only) Won semifinals vs. Shandong Heroes (2–0) Won CBA finals vs. Liaoning Flying Leopards (2–1) | 1st |
| 2021–22 | 26 | 12 | .684 | 5th | Won first round vs. Tianjin Pioneers (2–0) Won quarterfinals vs. Zhejiang Golden Bulls (2–0) Lost semifinals vs. Liaoning Flying Leopards (0–3) | 4th |
| 2022–23 | 33 | 9 | .786 | 2nd | Lost quarterfinals vs. Zhejiang Lions (1–2) | 5th |
| 2023–24 | 37 | 15 | .712 | 4th | Won quarterfinals vs. Zhejiang Lions (3–1) Lost semifinals vs. Liaoning Flying Leopards (2–3) | 4th |

## Honours

* Chinese Basketball Association
** Playoffs champions (11): 2003–04, 2004–05, 2005–06, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2012–13, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21
** Playoffs runners-up (5): 1995–96, 2002–03, 2006–07, 2011–12, 2016–17
** Regular season champions (14): 2002–03, 2003–04, 2005–06 (South Division), 2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2011–12, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21
** Regular season runners-up (6): 1995–96, 1999–2000, 2004–05 (South Division), 2010–11, 2016–17, 2022–23
* FIBA Asia Champions Cup
** Third place: 1996
* National Club Championship
** Winners: 1998
* Asian Club Championship
** Winners: 2012
* National Men's Basketball Group B League
** Winners: 1995