China may not have a top basketball league, but the Chinese NBA market is a big one.
Klay Thompson is one of the more interesting players in the NBA, and one of everybody’s favorite Klay running jokes is China Klay. Klay Thompson does weird stuff in China sometimes. It is a pretty funny running joke, honestly.
What is not a joke is how serious Chinese fans are about the NBA. According to ESPN, some 750 million people in China consumed NBA content in a season, and that was back during the 2015-16 campaign. It’s safe to assume the number has risen since.
In addition to major viewing numbers–and major deals to NBA game rights in China–Chinese apparel companies are making some pretty big moves at the moment. Dwyane Wade, Klay Thompson, CJ McCollum, Rajon Rondo, and Shaquille O’Neal all have one thing in common: at one point, they were signed to a Chinese brand, either Li-Ning or Anta.
Thompson’s Anta deal is well-known, but Wade’s Li-Ning agreement seems to fly somewhat under the radar. Wade was an endorser for Jordan Brand and Converse, but he abandoned those deals when Li-Ning came calling in 2012. Earlier this month, Li-Ning inked him to a lifetime contract.
It’s a safe bet that China will become more and more involved with the NBA as time goes on. No sport is bigger in the world’s biggest country (by population), and ESPN’s Brian Windhorst has already reported there will be competition from the NBA’s top players to get on Team USA for the World Cup of Basketball in 2019, which will take place in China.
Becoming popular in China clearly has benefits. Just ask Thompson and Wade, a pair of shooting guards who get primo treatment from their brands when they would be just another star were they signed to Jordan Brand or Nike.
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