Will the NBA spread to China?
August 19, 2008 by James Edwards
Filed under Olympics, Team USA
NBA Obsessed takes you into the hit and run game of NBA Basketball.
Kobe Bryant speaks Spanish. Will he learn Chinese?
Will the NBA be looking to set up shop in China? Yes.
Will the NBA be looking to set up another NBA in China? Not according to David Stern, but he does see some potential.
Stern said NBA China is in an “ongoing dialogue” with Chinese authorities about installing 800,000 baskets in villages across this sprawling country. The NBA also hopes to be involved with a Chinese professional league. But Stern balked at comparisons with the NBA’s Development League.
“That would be a separate league that would be NBA-affiliated or NBA-sponsored, but it would be independent,” Stern said. “And it would just sign players. For a very long time to come it would be at a lower scale than the NBA. But as the sport develops in China, and as more players around the world recognize the opportunities of playing in China, we see that league growing and strengthening.”
For now, the NBA will maintain its on-court presence in China with exhibition games, with games planned for Guangzhou and Beijing this fall. The teams have not been announced.
“I think that that is likely to become a regular thing,” Stern said.
This US Team, nicknamed the Redeem Team, is more likeable than any Olympic basketball team since the Dream Team took the court in Barcelona. Chinese fans are loving LeBron James and Kobe Bryant and the dynamic style of NBA play.
David Stern has another winning hand and he knows how to play it.
As always, any NBA Basketball related comments are welcome.
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