Mu Tie-Zhu was crowned a basketball "giant" because of his height of nearly 230 centimeters. He joined China's national basketball team in 1977 and as a centre forward helped secure a number of titles for himself and his team. Mu was the main force behind the Chinese basketball team in the 1970s. He led his team to victory in the 1977 Asian Basketball Championship and to a gold medal at the 1978 Asian Games. In 1999, Mu was named "China's Outstanding Basketball Player" for his consistent high level performances. Mu left the Bayi team in 2000 due to heart problems.