NBA Clears Three Players to Play in Asian Games

The NBA has made a U-Turn regarding it’s policy on allowing NBA players to participate in the Asian Games. The news come via Brian Windhorst of ESPN.

Previously, the NBA ruled that players couldn’t take part in the Asian Games. However, on Tuesday the league announced a one time exception for three players to take part.

The players are Cleveland Cavaliers guard Jordan Clarkson, Houston Rockets center Zhou Qi and Dallas Mavericks forward Ding Yanyuhang.

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Jordan Clarkson will play for the Philippines. Zhou Qi and Ding Yanyuhang are expected to play for China. The tournament kicks off this Saturday in Indonesia.

Clarkson expressed his joy at being allowed to represent the Philippines in a post on his Facebook page.

“My heart is full of gratitude for everyone who helped make this happen,” he wrote. “See you all very soon.”

It appears as though the issue was a lack of diplomatic links between the NBA and the Asian Games.

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The league has agreements with FIBA, an international organization that allows players to play in the Olympics. They also organize the FIBA World Cup and FIBA Continental Cup and the qualifiers for those tournaments. However, they do not regulate the Asian Games.

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Due to this, there was a lack of communication between the NBA and the Chinese and Philippine basketball federations.

Clarkson, Zhou and Ding have Hall-of-Famer Yao Ming to thank for helping to negotiate with the NBA.

Yao Ming is now president of the Chinese national team. He played a key role in helping to get clearance for the NBA players to play in the tournament.

Under Yao, the Chinese national team has undergone a revolution. It is all part of an initiative to get China ready for hosting the FIBA World Cup next summer. It will be the first time that China has hosted the FIBA World Cup.