GenerAsian at NYU

It almost seems like a cruel, oxymoronic, racist joke. A Chinese athlete playing center in the NBA.

A league in which the average height of its players is six feet and seven inches. A position in which a player under seven feet tall is considered undersized. A race which carries a stereotype of being short.

Is it any wonder then, that a certain fascination has been attached to Wang Zhizhi (pronounced Wong Zhu-zhu), the first Asian-born player to enter the NBA. At 7-foot-1 and 255 pounds, the 23-year-old Wang's path to the NBA has not been an easy one.

An Ocean Grows Smaller
The Dallas Mavericks selected Wang in the second round of the 1999 entry draft, but before he could sign with the NBA team, they had to obtain his release from his Chinese army team, the Bayi Rockets. This was quite a risk for Dallas to take, especially considering that Wang's commitment to the army was literally, for life. Despite several visits by, and meetings with, Mavericks' coaches and personnel, Chinese officials were understandably reluctant to let a young and talented player leave.

In the end, China's desire to host an international competition may have led to the NBA becoming more international. They realized that their bid to host the 2008 Olympics could only be improved by the positive publicity that would follow the success of their athletes abroad. In addition, the seasoning and experience Wang could gain by playing in the NBA, regarded as the preeminent basketball league, might prove invaluable for the national team in international competitions.

However, that is where conflict arose. China wasn't willing to let Wang walk completely away, especially now that he would be training and improving in the NBA. They wanted his presence on their national team for several competitions, even though those might conflict with the NBA season. It was an unprecedented request. The NBA has never allowed a player to shuttle between America and his home nation for competitions, while under contract.

It took special permission from Commissioner David Stern's office to allow Wang to miss the first two months of the 2001-2002 season. This translated into missing the entire preseason and one month of regular season games, so that Wang could compete in the East Asian Games, the Asian Championship, the National Games, and the World University Games.

"No more trips," Donnie Nelson, an assistant coach for Dallas, said after the negotiations concluded.