Move over, Stephon Marbury and Shaquille O'Neal: another NBA player has a statue in China.
Of course it's Kobe Bryant. Reports Dan Devine of Yahoo's Ball Don't Lie via Lakers fan Eddie Robles: "there appears to be a sculpture celebrating Bryant in the Chinese province of Guangzhou."
It's difficult -- it really is -- to say Chinese soccer has reached a "new" low, considering its history of match-fixing and utter, abysmal, unmitigated failure on the international stage (its only World Cup appearance coming in the year when two other Asian countries had automatic bids into the tourney). But after losing 5-1 to a mostly junior Thailand team on home turf on Saturday, more than a few fans are saying this is the bottom. "Disband the national team" has become something of a commonplace chant, as meaningless as "black whistle" when refs screw up, but the rallying cry attained something of a feverish tone of urgency on Saturday. Can it get worse? If so, it's only because we're talking about Chinese football here.
The Netherlands were in Beijing yesterday for an international friendly in Workers' Stadium. Less than 10 minutes in, Arjen Robben drew a penalty kick -- a pretty clear foul in which the defender slid into his heel -- and Robin van Persie connected for the game's first goal.
It's the second goal, however, that deserves your attention.
This had me laughing, too. It's unclear whether this video will have any appeal to non-baseball fans out there -- perhaps let us know in the comments -- but if you know Manny, you'll appreciate this.
Yahoo's Big League Stew blog would like to remind us, however:
Brittney Griner, who recently closed out one of the most dominant college careers in women's basketball history, is coming to China.
NiuBBall reports:
Apparently not satisfied enough with their previous 6’8 dunking female center, the Zhejiang Chouzhou Golden Bulls have taken things up a notch, signing not only the world’s greatest women’s dunker, but possibly its most dominant as well.
A bombshell in the CBA: Boss Wang Xingquan of the Shanxi Zhongyu Brave Dragons has sold his team to Beijing Enterprises Group Co. Ltd., for 1.2 billion 120 million yuan (US $194.5 $19.5 million), according to Sina via NiuBBall. The Beijing-based investment group will be moving the team up north, to the nation’s capital, where Marcus Williams... Read more »
I call it the Weibo Rule (though in my head, Kripke from The Big Bang Theory is the narrator, and it’s the “Weibo Wule”). Take any China number widely quoted in Western media and divide by 10. Forbes proved the rule recently, pushing the “Sina Weibo has more than 500 million users” line when, by... Read more »
Chris Tang caught our attention in February 2012, when it looked like he might be the best Chinese high school basketball player on the planet. He has the size (6-foot-3 last we checked, though he's likely still growing), the athletic ability, and the shooting touch. He's also enrolled at Oak Hill Academy in Virginia, a veritable factory for basketball players at elite college programs across the country.
On Friday, the Los Angeles Lakers’ torturous season suffered another calamity when star guard Kobe Bryant tore his Achilles tendon, ending one of his most impressive statistical seasons on a down note. Though the 34-year-old Bryant has his detractors, his work ethic and ability to battle through injuries are legendary, moving opposing fans and Lakers... Read more »
"Golfer from China." "Chinese golfer." "Asian." Hell, just stick with "14-year-old."
"Chinaman"?
"Dude, Chinaman is not the preferred nomenclature," notes Timothy Burke of Deadspin, who pulled the above clip from a newscast in Lafayette, Louisiana.
