Derrick Rose could lead a barnstorming tour of NBA players through China. So could Kobe Bryant. A few agents out there are pitching the idea of a lockout tour of China this fall and it is gaining momentum for the players.
But they better check with the Chinese government first. Because while it sounds like a money-making idea over here, over there things are viewed differently.
Over at niubball.com — the best English blog about what is happening with basketball in China — they interviewed Matt Beyer, who works for North Head, a public affairs consultancy that represents a few NBA athletes in China.
While to us the barnstorming tour seems like a no-brainer, selling it to the Chinese Government requires a very different mindset.“As China’s sports industry is controlled strictly by the government, there are many political and regulatory differences from the United States to be aware of,” explains Beyer. ”While a great idea may sell on its merits in the United States, that may not be the case in China.”
Most of the time, it’s not the case in China. Whereas professional teams and athletes in the U.S. are allowed to operate freely and independently under capitalistic market principles, the Chinese government values sports as a key political interest, and thus keeps the entire system under tight control…. With potentially the biggest market in the world, China remains cautious at the idea of simply opening up the floodgates to foreign businesses who are solely concerned with their own profits. Thus, any ideas involving a “China Basketball Tour” or a “China Contingency League” must be viewed by the government as beneficial towards the development of Chinese basketball….
Thus, if the Chinese government doesn’t feel that an NBA exhibition tour will benefit the development of Chinese basketball — i.e. that it won’t bring China closer to their goal of an Olympic gold medal — then there simply won’t be an NBA exhibition tour – even if it features NBA MVP Derrick Rose.
“The General Sports Administration, the China Basketball Management Center under the General Sports Administration and the Chinese Basketball Association must all be in consensus that an idea like this is good for Chinese basketball. Any agents proposing an idea like this in China should present it to China’s sports authorities from a perspective of a means to enrich local talent and the strength of the Chinese sports industry.”
It’s not to say that a barnstorming tour can’t happen, but one of the ideas was to have Chinese players on each of the teams and it’s going to take things like that to make this idea fly with the Chinese government.
I’m holding out hope that this tour will not be needed because the owners and players are going to come to an agreement on a new Collective Bargaining Agreement in time for the season to start. But if not, this tour could be fascinating. If it happens.
