Sat next to a man visiting from China at the Laker game last night. He was wearing a LeBron James jersey. He told me he loved LeBron and he followed him since his days in Cleveland. I asked him who the most popular player is in China. “Kobe! Kobe! Kobe!” I asked, what about MJ? “No, no, MJ is not even above LeBron. He is too old.” I then asked why everyone loves Kobe so much. He said (with limited english), because he played for the same team his whole career and the Lakers have a huge fanbase in China. The man was extremely knowledgable about the culture of the game. It was really impressive to see, first hand, how global the NBA has become. Kobe Bryant. I will keep saying this - will take take the throne soon. For everything collectible related. His reach and connection to fans is unlike anything we have ever seen.
@goatcollect I went to China last year and I’m dead set they’re all Celtics fans haha