Even though it takes more time, money and faith, college coaches are starting to tap into China's vast talent pool.
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The Calipari influenceMemphis coach John Calipari has been a leader in China-U.S. basketball relations, starting a five-year coaching exchange program with China's government and the Chinese Basketball Association. It offers valuable learning opportunities for China's coaches, and gives Calipari and Memphis the exposure it might not normally receive. "I wanted to be the first American university to legitimately get one of their players the right way -- not the back way," Calipari says.
What are the obstacles?Finding out about talented Chinese players is the easy part, but actually getting them on a roster is difficult:
* The language barrier: Being able to communicate with a player is essential.
* Test scores: Foreign athletes must pass the SAT or ACT and must meet a school's eligibility requirements.
* Other opportunities: Talented Chinese teenagers may play for pro teams and get paid -- a violation of NCAA rules.
* Costs: Going overseas for recruiting visits is expensive and time-consuming.
In coming seasons, college basketball fans in Fresno and elsewhere could be hearing that pregame introduction and others like it as NCAA coaches increase recruitment in China.
"It's going to be the most rapidly improving recruiting ground," said former Hawaii coach Bruce O'Neil, founder and president of the U.S. Basketball Academy, which holds a number of camps in Blue River, Ore., each year that bring in Chinese players. "The number of young players coming out are rapidly improving and ready to play at the highest level."
NBA scouts for years have gone to China in search of impact players. College coaches now are copying the practice. They might not land any major Chinese players this signing period, which lasts until May 21, but they're laying the groundwork that's expected to pay off in the next five years.
"There are a lot of very good players [in China]," Fresno State associate head coach Jeff Reinert said. "People are looking for players that they can't get in the U.S.
"China is a market some people can get into -- people that work at it, people that want to establish relationships."
Large pool of talentIn a country with more than 1.3 billion people, China calls basketball its most popular sport. The NBA's Yao Ming and Yi Jianlian are two of the country's most popular athletes, and excitement continues to grow as the country and its national team prepare to host this summer's Olympic Games.
Only a handful of players, though, have made the leap from China to Division I basketball.
The first player believed to have done so was Ma Jian, who played under Rick Majerus at Utah from 1993-95.
Ma said UCLA recruited him while then-coach Jim Harrick was visiting China for a coaching clinic.
"Language was an issue," Ma said.
So Ma went to a junior college in Utah to improve his English, and Majerus scooped him up.
Few Chinese players have jumped across the Pacific since.
Asians and Pacific Islanders as a whole are rare to the Division I men's basketball scene. They made up only 0.5% of men's Division I basketball players in the 2005-06 season, the last season statistics were available from the NCAA. That was an increase from 0.2% in the 2000-01 season. It's believed that only three Chinese nationals were on Division I rosters this past season:
* Shang Ping, a 6-foot-10 reserve forward at Nebraska. Shang began his American basketball career at Illinois Central, a junior college.
* Zhang Zhaoxu (also known as Max Zhang), a 7-2, 220-pounder who redshirted his freshman season at Cal.
* Ji Xiang, a 6-10 forward from Guangdong, who landed a scholarship at Hawaii.
The 19-year-old Ji, whom Fresno State recruited, trained at O'Neil's academy. He hurt his knee in the first day of practice last fall and, like Zhang, redshirted.
Oregon State -- and then-assistant Reinert -- also had its eye on Ji. During Ji's time at O'Neil's academy, he went to the Oregon State campus and played against some Beavers.
"They thought he was out of shape but had potential," Reinert said.
Ji drew interest from several colleges while he was at the academy and playing in AAU tournaments in Houston.
"He's a very good player that would [have helped] Hawaii if he hadn't blown out his knee," Reinert said. "He's bouncy and has good ball skills, shoots 3s, drives it.
"He would have been an impact player here. I was disappointed when we didn't get him."
Going global
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What a spectacular postseason for Fresno State baseball. Though a total team effort, which Bulldog would get your vote for CWS MVP?
The MVP goes to the whole darn team. They wouldn't have won if they all didn't work together.
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