RYNSA: WORDS

I just love the game of basketball. It’s exciting, elegant, and always fun to watch. Even a bad basketball game has a certain chess-informed, dance-like quality to it that makes it hard to avert one’s gaze. Unfortunately, however, I don’t always have the technical access necessary to keep up with both the NBA and NCAA regular seasons, at least to the degree that I would prefer via traditional media outlets (ie, cable television). But, like a good point guard, I do what I gotta do to be where I need to be. So I try my best to stay abreast of all things b-ball through personal and commercial blogs, online video, a variety of print publications, and often simply by word-of-mouth interaction with my fellow ballers. It’s not ideal but it works for me.

So, being that we have just entered 2010, I think it’s only prudent to look back at the year-that-was and consider the game from a fresh perspective. A lot of compelling things happened in 2009 — Kobe won his first ring without Shaq, Calipari left Memphis (and an ass-load of troubles) for Kentucky, Hansbrough finally won a national championship in his senior year with North Carolina, owner Mark Cuban got fined for criticizing refs on his Twitter feed, top draftee Greg Oden went down again and thus substantiated the “Trail Blazer Curse,” AI returned to Philly, kissed the logo at center court, and renewed his relationship with the fans, Jazz-man and hall-of-famer Wayman Tisdale died of cancer, and much more. Once again, it was a remarkable year both on an off the court.

That said, for me the basketball story of the year is actually none of those described above. Unless you’re a fan of the political theater behind the game, in fact, you’ve probably never heard this story because it’s still unfolding even as I write these words. I am talking, of course, about the 2010 NBA All-Star Game, Tracy McGrady, and the specter of the league’s international online voting system.

In case you weren’t aware, as of Thursday, January 7th, Houston Rocket’s renowned shooting forward, Tracy McGrady, was second in line among all candidates to win a starting position on the Western conference All-Star squad — a somewhat prestigious accolade that is determined solely by NBA fans via an online, winner-take-all ballot system. That McGrady would be in the running for a starting position is not, in and of itself, all that unusual as he is a wonderful talent who has already played in the All-Star game on seven prior occasions. What makes 2010 special, however, is that the raw numbers just don’t add up, and McGrady doesn’t deserve the recognition. Due to injuries and the politics of back-room wheeling and dealing, etc., so far this season McGrady has only played a grand total of 47 minutes — that’s not even a full regulation game! Subsequently, as you might expect, his statistics are nothing near what a reasonable person would describe as “star-like.” In other words, Tracy McGrady really doesn’t belong. He just hasn’t earned it.

So what’s going on here? Why, you may ask, has McGrady been rewarded for his poor performance? What could explain such a obvious discrepancy between his admittedly pedestrian output as a player and the honor prize that is a spot in the All-Star game?

The answer is simple: China.

That’s right, the People’s Republic of China, an enigmatic and rapidly-developing nation of 1.4 billion people, really, really loves basketball, especially the NBA. China’s most well-known and successful player on the global stage is the 29-year old, 7ft 6in Yao Ming, now a kind of de facto cultural representative (e.g., he carried the Chinese flag during the opening ceremonies of the 2008 Beijing Olympics). Unfortunately for the Chinese, however, the powerful center has been sidelined all season long with yet another foot injury, making him ineligible for the All-Star game. In response, Chinese “netizens” have come out in large numbers to throw their support behind the next best thing, namely Yao’s Houston Rocket teammate, Tracy McGrady. With over 300 million regular internet users, this massive Chinese voting block is proving to be quite the boon for an otherwise unworthy candidate, and a tremendous disadvantage for truly stellar guards like Steve Nash, Chris Paul or Deron Williams. It seems, to the average Chinese basketball fan, that little details like shooting percentage, assist ratios, and rebound totals are totally inconsequential. Apparently, they’re just eager to see a friendly and familiar faces on the television screen (or computer monitor) come February 14th.

In the press, this phenomenon has been dubbed simply the “China effect,” a well-worn phrase that first came to being in 2003 when Yao (17.5 ppg, 9 rpg) was inexplicably voted into the Western Conference All-Star starting lineup ahead of Shaquille O’Neal (21.5 ppg, 11.5 rpg). The phrase reemerged in 2008 when another up-and-coming Chinese player, Yi Jianlian, received a surprisingly high number of All-Star votes despite his mediocre showing as a rookie. Put simply, when it comes to All-Star voting, everyone knows that Chinese players have their thumbs on the scale upon entering the league. And now even Tracy McGrady has slyly acknowledged the great influence of Chinese voters. Without directly mentioning the influence of Yao, McGrady recently hinted at the reasons behind his ballot-box successes:

“We have a great relationship. That started when I was in Orlando. I used to go over there [China] every summer. Those are great fans. I enjoy my time over there, and I’ve gotten to know them throughout the years. It’s been great. They’ve been very supportive through the good, the bad and the ugly. I appreciate them still sticking with me.”

Naturally, McGrady’s unwarranted awards have inspired much discussion on the internet from both professional sports writers and everyday basketball fans. As for the voting system, some really don’t care about results; the All-Star Game is primarily a show for the fans, they claim, and it has no real impact on either the remainder of the regular season or the all-important championship playoffs. But others see a travesty of justice (Denver Post, EndScore, Sporting News, NBA Noise, Valley of the Suns, News OK) wherein much more-deserving NBA players are relegated to the sidelines simply because they have not developed a relationship with the massive Chinese fanbase. Wherever they may position themselves in this debate, it appears that everyone seems to have an opinion on the matter. A few have started casting nationalistic aspersions at their opponents. What may have started as a quirky eccentricity from the world of basketball is quickly devolving into a referendum on cultural supremacy.

It’s interesting to note, also, that though there are a number of media scholars who are actively researching Chinese internet usage few have specifically addressed this “China effect” on the NBA. They have chosen instead to critique the overall relationship between the Chinese government and the internet. While there are a variety of opinions on the matter, the academy basically falls into two opposing camps: those who feel the internet is virtually unstoppable as a force for information exchange, social progress and political transformation; and those who feel the internet is increasingly less and less open as the Chinese authorities continue to clamp down on access in an effort to maintain control.

(See the writing and commentary of professors Rebecca MacKinnon and Xiao Qiang. More links below.)

That said, and putting both heated rhetoric and academic considerations aside, it’s fairly clear that China has come to play in the NBA in much the same way they have emerged as an agent in the Frankenstein project of neoliberal globalization. The same psycho-social aspects of gamesmanship that we see in the realm of international economics and political discourse also apply to the much less important areas of our shared cultural life, like voting to determine who will play in a simple game of basketball. The details of the “China effect” are, therefore, largely insignificant; it’s the big picture that matters. So, for instance, while I’m definitely irked that my favorite player, Phoenix Suns’ point guard Steve Nash, probably won’t make it into the starting lineup — despite putting up yet more MVP-like numbers this season (18.7 ppg, 3 rpg, 11 apg) — I must admit that I’m thrilled to see so many Chinese participating in the NBA’s online voting system. I may not agree with their choices, but this is perhaps the closest thing to direct democracy that the Chinese have experienced on either a national or international scale (possible exception being shows like “Super Voice Girls,” a hugely popular singing competition on Chinese television). Now that’s certainly nothing to scoff at!

Basketball has become (like many sports before it) a potent vehicle for positive cultural diplomacy. It’s a game that often transcends the harsh pettiness of international politics and gets right to the root of our common human values for joy, camaraderie and achievement. For example, when President Obama ventured to China this past November, among the many pointed and state-approved questions asked of him by the students in the mock town-hall meeting space in Shanghai was this playful request:

“Can you have a word with the NBA to let Yao Ming and the Houston Rockets win one championship?”

Clearly, the Chinese like our style, and I for one welcome them to the court. We must accept and celebrate a greater Chinese presence in the game even if that means our ideal of a meritocracy (inconsistent at best) is somewhat compromised. Online voting for the NBA All-Star game is, in my opinion, a large Petri dish for how we engage with the Chinese. It’s important to maintain the appearance of a transparent selection process, vis-à-vis the NBA’s online voting system, lest we risk undermining the image of democracy and alienating a huge population of Chinese “netizens.” We in the Western, so-called “developed” world would be wise to use such international athletic competitions NOT as an opportunity for regurgitating cultural stereotypes and aggravating old resentments, but as a resource for bridging the diverse perspectives of the world’s people.

Let’s start first with the ballers!

LINKS:
HoopsWorld
RConversation (Rebecca MacKinnon’s blog)
Council on Foreign Relations: Xiao Qiang (MP3)
Wall Street Journal
China Digital Times
NY Times
Talking Points Memo

*For my picks for the 2010 NBA All-Star Game, go to my media blog.