The LA Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant has already declared his retirement from the NBA at the end of the season.
However, that does not mean he will no longer play the sport of basketball. There are still many options for Kobe, and China may be the best.
The main reason for Kobe's retirement is that his body can no longer bear the brunt of competing in the NBA anymore. Scout notes that the Chinese Basketball Association has a significantly lower 34 season games.
This is one reason why more NBA players have decided to play here. Greg Oden, the former 1st overall pick in 2007 who was picked ahead of Kevin Durant, could not survive in the NBA due to a multitude of injuries. He had a great debut and is now flourishing in his career here.
Another good reason for Kobe to consider a stint in China is his immense popularity in the country. In a recent Nike tour in 2015, the Chinese reception for Kobe was "god-like" as thousands of Chinese basketball fans came out in droves on all the venues that the Black Mamba visited. With the vast market that China presents, this would be a dream come true for Nike.
That is not at all unusual for Chinese basketball fans. Scout points out that Stephon Marbury actually has a museum dedicated to him, and he also has a bronze statue with no less than Dennis Rodman giving the honorary speech.
Just imagine the popularity that Marbury is getting in China, Kobe Bryant's treatment would be exponentially grander. Even Marbury himself shudders at the idea as he shared with Yahoo Sports.
"They love him here. It is a little bit past love. It would be like the biggest thing ever in basketball here," Marbury told Yahoo over the phone. "It would be beyond huge. Beyond big. I would definitely encourage it. They love basketball here. You can't control the excitement."
There would be some quarters who would argue that playing in China would diminish Bryant's legacy. However, the way his retirement tour is shaping up, the Black Mamba appears to be infallible to his millions of fans around the world-China included.