Zeng was born in
Harbin in the Chinese province of
Heilongjiang. At age eleven, he joined the youth program of the
Beijing Ducks. For his freshman year of high school, Zeng moved to the United States, enrolling at
Windermere Preparatory School in
Windermere, Florida. As a sophomore, he averaged 15.5 points, 7.2 rebounds and 2.6 blocks per game, earning Class 3A All-State first team honors. He returned to China after the season and was unable to rejoin the team in his junior season due to
COVID-19 travel restrictions. He also bypassed his senior year.
Recruiting Zeng was a consensus four-star
recruit and was considered "China's top basketball prospect" by
The Athletic. On November 21, 2020, he committed to playing college basketball for
Gonzaga over offers from
Florida State,
Florida and
Virginia Tech, among others. On April 24, 2021, he decommitted from Gonzaga with the intention of joining the
NBA G League Ignite, in part because of the departure of assistant coach
Tommy Lloyd, who had recruited him to Gonzaga. == Professional career ==