Could this man be wearing the uniform of a CBA team during the lockout?

With all of the hoopla around former Houston Rockets’ center Yao Ming’s retirement, some may have forgotten that the NBA is still in lockout mode. As players and owners still haggle over an agreement, many of the top NBA stars have had a lot of free time on their hands this summer and it looks like they will still have a lot of down time come September when teams should be heading into training camp getting ready for the new season.

So what does an NBA player do while he is banned from team facilities or contacting anyone remotely affiliated with his team?

Perhaps Kevin Durant will bring his game to China for a brief period?

The Oklahoma Thunder’s star forward, Kevin Durant and Los Angeles Lakers’ guard, Kobe Bryant recently made appearances in China hosting basketball clinics. Bryant’s teammate, Pau Gasol and newly crowned NBA champion, Dirk Nowitzki, are back in Europe with their respective national squads preparing the 2011 European Basketball Championships. Meanwhile, KFC is trying to entice one of their former employees, the Miami Heat’s Dwyane Wade, to comeback and work for them.

Despite all of the tours or international basketball ongoing at the moment, the big question is what will these players do come September if there is still no end to the lockout? Some players are already considering playing basketball elsewhere in the world.

Things started off with New Jersey Nets’ point guard Deron Williams signing with Turkish league team Besiktas. Slovenian national team guard Sasha Vujacic otherwise known as the future Mr. Maria Sharapova, followed in the steps of his Nets teammate by also signing with a Turkish team, Anadolu Efes.

This is only the beginning as more players maybe looking to what options they have overseas in order to stay fit while negotiators try to hammer out a new agreement.

Some serious thinking is needed by CBA teams

One of the options that some players may look at is playing in the Chinese Basketball Association. The Orlando Magic’s Dwight Howard and Durant have been on record as to saying that they are considering the possibility of playing in the Chinese basketball league should the lockout persist.

While many basketball fans in China maybe drooling over the idea of having a few top NBA stars in China’s top league, one needs to take a step back and be totally realistic about this prospect.

First, a CBA team signing a player the likes of Howard, Durant or anyone else would be a huge coup and most likely fill arenas in every CBA city. However, teams are probably considering whether it would be worth the gamble offering a lot of money to a player when the lockout could possibly end at any point. It would definitely be a poor investment on the part of a CBA team to part with so much money. Certainly, many of these teams are also wary of the whole Steve Francis fiasco during the previous season.

If anything, the CBA teams would most likely pursue offering a contract to a host of NBA free agents that are on the market. The likes of Russian Andrei Kirilenko, Tyson Chandler and, yes, Yao Ming’s former teammates in Houston, Tracy McGrady and Shane Battier are in the pool of players possibly looking for new teams. Perhaps a stint over in the ‘Middle Kingdom’ would be useful for them.

Second, if any of the top NBA players are strongly considering to play in China during the lockout, they have to realize that there are only a few big market cities in the country. Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou can certainly provide these players with a rather comfortable life off the court, but would any of them be willing to sign for teams in Liaoning, Jilin or Shanxi?

In addition, how will the players adapt to the lack of luxuries they receive while playing in the American ‘Association’? They have to face the reality of playing in cold gyms, changing in makeshift locker rooms and possibly sharing a room with a teammate while on the road. These are certainly things they haven’t experienced since high school. There is going to be a lot they will have to sacrifice and adapt to if they choose to play in China.

Wukesong Basketball Arena: NBA players won't be seeing the inside of this place

Third, there is no guarantee that fans will see any of the top NBA stars in the league due to the strict rules that are imposed on teams by the CBA. With the number of foreign players allowed on each team limited, the amount of minutes they can play limited and a strict salary cap imposed, this could lead to most players looking to the European leagues or other places to play.

While it may seem like a smashing idea to have the rare opportunity of a star NBA player on a CBA roster during the lockout, fans should not hold their breath on this. It going to be a long time until there is confirmation that the 2011-2012 NBA season will be canceled and a few of the well-known ballers signing contracts with teams here.

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Yiqiyou

A Chinese investment group is trying to sign a deal for a 15 percent minority stake in the Cleveland Cavaliers. Photo from New York Times.

A Russian billionaire is being challenged by an American politician over previous company investments. Is this cause to also go after a Chinese investment group that is finalizing a deal to purchase the Cleveland Cavaliers?

Mikhail Prokhorov, left, is being challenged by a U.S. official over whether one of his companies was funding Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe, right. Photo from the New York Post.

A New Jersey congressman is demanding an official inquiry into Mikhail Prokhorov, the Russian billionaire who is about purchase the New Jersey Nets, for his apparent business dealings in Zimbabwe. The move threatens to crumble the $200 million USD deal and whether the team will ultimately be moving to Brookyln.

According to the New York Post, the congressman is challenging Prokhorov on whether one of his companies violated a federal rule that forbade any United States or U.S.-based subsidiary company from doing business with current Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe.

I bring up the challenge to Prokhorov because an investment group from Asia is still finalizing a deal to purchase a 15 percent minority stake in the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Cleveland Plain Dealer reported in 2009 that the deal is being led by Jianhua “Kenny” Huang, a Chinese businessman who has brokered deals with the New York Yankees and other U.S. sports teams in the past.

In December 2009, China Sports Review wrote an op-ed on the proposed deal to purchase a stake in the Cavaliers franchise, and asked why Albert Hung, another apparent front man connected with Huang to purchase the Cavs, and an individual with strong ties to the Communist Party, had not been subjected to any backlash by the American public in the wake of an influential CCP member investing in a U.S. sports franchise.

It would seem prudent in the wake of a U.S. government official calling out Prokhorov and his dealings in Zimbabwe that both the NBA and the Cleveland Cavaliers organization are absolutely certain there are no ghosts in the closet with the Asian investment group. Then again, maybe Prokhorov was a little too cavalier in the lead-up to finalizing the Nets deal. After all, what billionaire flashes an automatic rifle on CBS’ 60 Minutes interview and admits the reason he’s become so wealthy is by nefarious dealings in Russia?

Recent public spats over Chinese Renminbi currency appreciation have been cause enough for American politicians to cry foul when it comes to China. Huang, who has a history with American sports franchises might not be under the microscope, but there has yet to be a public disclosure of the other Asian partners involved in the deal. One can imagine NBA Commissioner David Stern is hoping his foreign investors’ pasts do not catch up with them when it comes to business in the National Basketball Association.

The New Jersey Nets may not have gotten final approval or the financing for their proposed $800 million arena at the Atlantic Yards project near Downtown Brooklyn, but the team has rounded up another lucrative sponsorship deal, with Haier, the giant appliance manufacturer from China.

The agreement with Haier, which makes theNational Basketball Association’s officialhigh-definition television, is expected to be announced within the next several days, according to an executive who was briefed on the deal. The company will have a store within what would be known as Barclays Center, which is part of a planned 22-acre development near Downtown Brooklyn.

Haier America, the sales and marketing arm of the Qingdao-based white-goods giant, signed on as an associate partner of this year’s NBA Nation last month. The company inked a multi-year promotional deal with NBA in 2006.

Partnershiped with NComputing, a California-based desktop virtualization provider, Haier is also expanding its business into overseas PC market.

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