The Indiana Pacers Orlando Johnson exchanges high-fives with Filipino fans as he arrives for an audience with a Non-Government Organization fighting for the eradication of Diabetes and its complications Monday Oct. 7, 2013 in Manila, Philippines. The Houston Rockets and the Indiana Pacers flew in Monday for the first NBA game in this basketball-crazy Southeast Asian nation Thursday evening. The game is part of the NBA’s global schedule that will have eight teams play in six countries this month.(AP Photo/Bullit Marquez)
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Houston Rockets’ Jeremy Lin waves to Filipino fans upon arrival at Manila’s International Airport on October 7, 2013. US teams, the Indiana Pacers and the Houston Rockets arrived in the basketball-mad Philippines on October 7 for the southeast Asian nation’s first hosting of an NBA game. AFP PHOTO / Jay DIRECTO (Photo credit should read JAY DIRECTO/AFP/Getty Images)
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Basketball and the NBA are huge in the Philippines — remember the games over there during the lockout? It was wild.
But the NBA had never taken a game there — until Thursday, when the Rockets and Pacers will face off over there. The two teams will play in Manila then travel for a second game in Taipei, Taiwan. Things are going to get crazy for Jeremy Lin there.
But things are already pretty crazy in the Philippines, check out the photos on this page. The teams have been greeted like rock stars with crowds everywhere. You can bet the coaches just love this distraction during training camp, it’s not like both of these teams enter the season with huge expectations on their shoulders. (Read that last sentence again in a sarcastic voice.)
We’ll have more from this game and this trip down the line, but for now enjoy the images.
The Houston Rockets’ James Harden greets Filipino fans upon arrival Monday Oct.7, 2013 at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport at suburban Pasay city south of Manila, Philippines. The Houston Rockets and the Indiana Pacers flew in Monday for the first NBA game in this basketball-crazy Southeast Asian nation Thursday evening. (AP Photo/Bullit Marquez)
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