The NBA in China

On one of my first days at work, one of the Chinese teachers asked me “Where are you from?” I told her Miami. To this, she replied “I really love Dwayne Wade.” It surprised me that this young, Chinese woman knew who Dwayne Wade was; especially since I wasn’t entirely sure who he was. (I knew he played in the NBA, I just had to check which team.) Later, a man trying to scam me into buying some of his art also asked me where I was from. When I told him Miami, he started telling me how much he loves the Heat.

It turns out that Chinese people really like the NBA. I expected soccer to be the Chinese national sport but, it seems to be basketball. China has their own basketball league and NBA games play on TV here. I also see a lot of people wearing t-shirts and jerseys from various basketball teams. I read that an estimated 300 million people in China play basketball.

If you ever need to make small talk with a Chinese person, ask them about their favorite basketball team. This will surely break the ice. 

I went to a very nice shopping mall. They had screens on the ceiling displaying messages people texted in. My co-teacher translated the top message for me. It says something like "Fight On Heat. LeBron James MVP. Go Heat." 

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