China
New-look CBA to tip off
By Tang Yue (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-12-18 10:55
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The temperature fell well below freezing this week in Shanghai but that didn't stop the city from heating up as the curtain is set to rise on a new season of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) in Shenyuan Stadium tomorrow evening.
NBA All-Star center Yao Ming will return to his hometown for the opening ceremony; only this time not as a player but as the owner of the Shanghai Sharks.
Kungfu star Jackie Chan is ready to perform before the opening game against Zhejiang Guangsha. Even China's most famous snooker player, Ding Junhui, who just claimed his second UK Championship title last week, will be at the game.
Started in 1995, the 14-year-old league is seeking a stellar opening to what it hopes will be the best season yet.
Having already produced several NBA caliber players, including the Houston Rockets' Yao Ming, New Jersey Nets' Yi Jianlian and Wang Zhizhi, Mengke Bateer and Sun Yue, the CBA has turned its sights to discovering more local talent this season to help expand the league's influence and strengthen the national squad.
"In the new season we will focus on looking for more good young players. They are the future of the league and Chinese basketball," Zhang Xiong, director of the league office, said.
According to Zhang, 34 new faces will debut this season. The average age of the 235 players in the league will be about 22.9 while the Jilin Northeast Tigers will have the youngest squad with an average age of 19.
With seven national team members and the addition of two former NBA players, "Smush" Parker and David Harrison, defending champions Guangdong Hongyuan are tipped to win the title again in the 17-team league.
"Guandong are a great, great team ... they have tradition, excellent players and are very well coached ... until someone knocks them out, Guandong are the team to beat this season," Jason Rabedeaux, manager of the Jiangsu Nanjing Dragons, told China Daily yesterday.
"However, it is not always the team with the best players that triumphs but rather the team that plays the best - teamwork, toughness, intelligence, hustle, heart, fighting spirit, energy, emotion and enthusiasm.
"Every night in the CBA will be a great battle ... this is great for the fans and the CBA overall," Rabedaux said.
While fans expect Guangdong, Jiangsu, last year's third-place team, and runners-up Xinjiang to fight it out for the crown, the Shanghai Sharks are also expected to draw a lot of attention due to Yao's "comeback".
Since he bought the club in July, the team, which finished second from bottom last season, has been frequently in the headlines. The 2001-02 champions are expected to improve dramatically this season with the re-signing of point guard Liu Wei, ex-captain of the national team, and the addition of three foreign players.
Interest in the team is booming. While the Sharks struggled to draw any fans last season - even when the tickets were free, this Saturday's curtainraiser between Shanghai and Zhejiang is already sold out.
According to figures from the CBA office, last year's TV audience amounted to 0.59 billion, 62% more than the season before. That total is expected to rise even more this year.
With such a booming market, Yao is not alone in investing in the most popular professional league in China.
Chinese financier Huang Jianhua, who bought a stake in the Cleveland Cavaliers in May, purchased the Jilin Northeast Tigers last month.
While the league appears to be on an upswing, organizers are concerned about match fixing.
The gambling scandals which have rocked the nation's premier soccer league have also set off alarm bells in the basketball community.
"We will pay close attention to any suspicious conduct. We will even introduce judicial organs to investigate and will have no mercy on those found guilty," director Zhang said.
"Clean matches are the basis of the league; we are ready to do all we can to ensure fair play. "
