Ni chi fan le ma? “Have you eaten yet?”

To a Westerner, greeting somebody by inquiring about the fullness of their belly may seem odd.  But in China, where food rules over all else, the question serves as all an all encompassing day/night salutation which can be directed from anyone to your dear grandmother to the dude who sells corn on the cob next to the bus station.

You see, because before China’s historic industrial and commercial rise into the world’s second biggest economy, food was a scarce commodity.  Instead of three televisions, having three square meals a day was seen as a sign of relative prosperity.  The logic is quite easy to see (and feel) — life is much easier when you’re not hungry.  However, in an era where many were not prosperous, and thus not full, asking “have you eaten yet?” was a way to express caring and concern towards your friends and neighbors.  Even to this day, a reply of “no, I haven’t eaten” will illicit concern from everyone in earshot and even an invitation to come into somebody’s home for a quick bite.

As such is the case, I’m normally asked this question whenever I arrive on the Chinese scene.

But, as most of my… no, actually all of my Chinese (and non-Chinese) friends know, I am 24/7 with this basketball stuff. So the last few days, it’s been:

“Hey, Steve Francis is coming to Beijing!”

The Franchise’s image has been all over the news in Beijing in the last few days, his arrival to the capital city being reported in the future tense, as in “Francis will be signed by Beijing” or “Francis to play in the CBA.”

Confirming NiuBBall’s sources from Friday, Beijing TV Sports is reporting that Beijing head coach, Min Lulei will be flying out to the States to watch Francis work out for two days on Wednesday and Thursday.  If Francis, who has not played professional basketball since knee surgery in 2008, can show to Min that his body will be able to hold up to a full season in China, then the two sides will formally “discuss a contract,” as quoted by the team’s general manager, Yuan Chao.

Despite every major media outlet in China reporting that Francis’ workout is merely a formality, however, Yuan seems a little concerned over Francis’ physical condition.

“We’re not sure about it, so we’re sending somebody over to look at him.  We’ve been in off-and-on contact with Francis from before.  We’ve met him, we’ve talked to him and he really wants to come here.  I hear that his recovery is going OK, that he’s gotten skinner and that he’s been continually working out recently… We haven’t signed him yet, we’re first sending out Coach Min to take a look at him.”

Francis underwent surgery on his right knee to repair a torn quadriceps muscle in February 2008 after being traded from the Houston Rockets to the Memphis Grizzlies for a 2011 conditional draft pick.  Francis was later waived in January 2009 after failing to appear in one game.

“He hasn’t played since January 2009,” stated Yuan.  ”So his conditioning definitely isn’t as good as it was before, otherwise he’d be in the NBA.”

As for the contract, Francis and Beijing are rumored to have a two-year deal already in place worth an estimated $4 million dollars, according to a Sina Sports article posted on Friday.  The two sides have come to some sort of mutual agreement after Francis has come down on his initial salary demands, which were deemed too high for a team wary about over-investing in one player.  An anonymous source has told NiuBBall that the per-year numbers are closer to $1.4 million.  Similar to what Shanxi Zhongyu set up with Stephon Marbury, Beijing management has found other ways to financially entice the 33 year-old guard, which include business cooperations and partnerships to help him market himself in China.

Whatever the final amount ends up being, Yuan is optimistic.

“Negotiations have changed a lot from when we first started.  He won’t be the highest paid player in China, so we think we’ll be a be able to handle it.”

Beijing already has former Atlanta Hawk and New York Knick center, Randolph Morris, under contract for the upcoming season.  Beijing finished last year with a disappointing 8-24 record, which put them 15th out of 17 teams.

Yuan said that a decision will be made shortly after Thursday, and that an official announcement will be made in the middle of the month.

You can be sure, however, that I’ll be hearing “Francis is coming to Beijing!” well into December, though.