Why China?

It’s a question we immediately tackled when we first started this China/basketball blog back in September 2010. The really short version: Because China matters. Like, really matters.

We believe it because everywhere you go in this country, you see people playing basketball. We believe it because Yao Ming was being nominated for a spot in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame a mere month after retiring. We believe it because random outdoor games between foreigners and Chinese can draw the occasional 100 or so passerbys who are down to watch some free hoops. We believe it so much in fact, that we are in a small minority that believes LeBron James’ “Decision” to take his talents to South Beach was made in part to appeal to what is potentially the largest market in the world, China. As time has gone on, we believe it more and more.

Nike’s newest Jordan Brand commercial reminds us — again — why China is such an important spot on the basketball map.

Featuring the trio of Dwyane Wade, Chris Paul and Carmelo Anthony, the commercial, dubbed “Love the Game,” aims to show everyone that despite their status perennial NBA All-Stars, these guys are just like the many people around the world who go out and play for the love of basketball. Not for endorsements, not for paychecks, not for fame — for love. Noting more, nothing less.

The commercial is interesting for a number of reasons, but what makes it so effective is its depiction of basketball as a game without sexual, racial, religious or even geographical boundries. Wade is seen in southern Florida hooping in seperate games with teams from the Miami Kiwanis Club League, the Flamingo Senior Rec Center League and the Dade County Municipal League. Paul balls in New Orleans and North Carolina, playing in the NOLA Inter-Parish League and the Bayou Women’s League. Melo does his thing in the northeast, playing in a Williamsburg pick-up run, a Five-Star Basketball Camp and a Jewish Under-40 League in Brooklyn, New York.

The message of the commercial is clear: If you love the game, the game has a spot for you somewhere. As big fans of basketball bringing people together — and as fiendish pick-up basketball junkies — we think that’s pretty cool.

But not surprisingly, it’s the commercial’s last scene that ultimately wins us over for good. After playing separately in their own areas in the U.S., the three meet up in NiuBBall’s home base of Beijing, China for some good old-fashioned nighttime run at the Drum and Bell Tower. And though cool in and of itself, the real reason we love this spot is because it is in harmony with our stomachs.  Keep a close eye on the screen at the 1:41 mark. Look familiar?

As people who live in China, we find the three’s decision to hoop in the Middle Kingdom quite interesting. With Nike’s gigantic travel budget backed by their own large bank accounts, CP3, DWade and Melo could have picked anywhere in the world to play. Yet, they picked China. Why?

Do you really need me to answer?

The NBA is a superstar’s league, which means that it is likely going to be the Miami Heat’s league, possibly as early as this June.

While a lot of people back in the States are hoping that ‘Bron ‘Bron and the SuperFriends remain ringless for a long time, the people at Nike are most definitely not.  According to an article in Bloomberg posted online on Thursday, if/when the Heat win a title, the swoosh will stand to make an estimated $4 billion in revenue in the most important and hotly contested hoops market in the world, China.

How they came up with $4 billion, I don’t know.  I just know that it’s a crapton of money — more than the annual GDP of Rhianna’s home country, Barbados and as Henry Abbott on TrueHoop points out, about as much as the NBA’s entire revenue as a global business.

There are other crazy numbers that are flown around in the article.  China-hand, Terry Rhoads, says its “easy to see” Nike’s China revenue reaching the $6 billion mark by the year 2020.  Riding James and Kobe Bryant as their marketing strategy, Nike made $1.96 in revenue last year.

Though not as popular as Bryant, whose distinct low-top shoes can be seen on Chinese feet everywhere in Beijing, James is still the favorite player of many of the country’s hundreds of millions of basketball fans.  Unlike in the U.S., where James is openly reviled by some for airing his free-agency decision on national television, James’ image has still largely remained intact inside the PRC.  Though NBA diehards know about “The Decision” and all of the controversy that surrounded it, most feel unattached to it.

As a friend once said to me, “Why should I care about LeBron’s relationship with Cleveland?  I live in China.  I don’t even know where Cleveland is.”

James said he “doesn’t care what [winning] does marketing-wise.”  As we remain more convinced than ever that The Decisionwas based around conquering the Chinese market one day, we respectfully disagree.

In April, LeBron has put himself in an even better position to command China and the rest of the Asian market by buying a share in Liverpool FC, one of Europe’s biggest and most distinguished soccer clubs.  For an athlete who has admitted his main goal is to become a “global icon,” the Liverpool move makes a ton of sense in realizing that ambition.

None of these billions can happen, however, without the Heat winning first.  Chinese fans are all about winning and being the best, which is why they remain obsessed with Michael Phelps, Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant and China’s gold medal count in the Olympics.  Without a title, James will still remain quite popular here.  But, if he and Nike has any ambitions of taking over this important and lucrative market, the Heat will have to be throwing a championship parade — not a “Yes. We. Did.” — in downtown Miami sometime around the middle of June.