Basketball: Not Just an American Sport Anymore

Basketball, a sport that has a reputation of being quintessentially American, has been popular in China for decades. It was first introduced by YMCA missionaries shortly after the game had been invented in 1861. The sport garnered even more popularity when it was adopted by the Communist party. Basketball was favored for its cohesive power by the Red Army. During the Long March, the Red Army’s year-long trek across the country to elude the Nationalists, basketball was particularly important to the soldiers to raise their spirits and foster solidarity. After the Communist party came to power in 1949, it continued to advocate for the sport. Even during the Cultural Revolution basketball persevered. While Mao Zedong launched a campaign against everything culturally Western, from books to music, he never attacked basketball. In fact, the People’s Liberation Army has always encouraged its soldiers to play the sport. The PLA believes that basketball is effective at nurturing camaraderie and tactical teamwork among its soldiers. In the past, the best basketball players were often rewarded with high-ranking positions and other perks. Aside from the military, basketball is also very popular among Chinese university students. Both men and women often form teams based on their specific school in the university and compete against each other. 

The popularity of basketball has only grown since the introduction of the NBA in China. In 1987, the United States gave broadcasting rights of the NBA games to China Central Television for free. Exceptional players in the league, such as Kobe Bryant and Lebron James, are revered as superstars throughout China. Even more Chinese interest was garnered for the sport when Yao Ming was picked up by the Houston Rockets in 2002. His first game against Shaquille O’Neal and the Lakers was viewed by more than 200 million Chinese people. Today it is estimated that about 300 million Chinese people play basketball, which is nearly equivalent to the entire population of the United States. It would be wise of the United States to take advantage of this already piqued interest in basketball and the NBA to diplomatically improve relations with China.

 
It was smart of the United States to freely grant broadcasting rights to CCTV for NBA games. This has helped cultivate the culture of basketball that already existed in China. However, the United States must capitalize on this increased interest in the sport. The U.S. could sponsor diplomatic events, such as having famous NBA players tour China to host basketball workshops at universities. The U.S. could even facilitate a basketball tournament that hosts teams comprised of both American and Chinese players. These types of cooperative events would help foster dialogue between American and Chinese people and bridge the gap of the two different cultures.

Article used: http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/02/from-mao-zedong-to-jeremy-lin-why-basketball-is-chinas-biggest-sport/253427/