Ex All-Star Marbury Gets a Shot In China

Beijing. Two-time NBA All-Star point guard Stephon Marbury will become the highest-profile American to play in the Chinese Basketball Association after he agreed to join Shanxi Zhongyu.

The 32-year-old, a free agent since leaving the Boston Celtics last season, has agreed to a deal with the northern club and will arrive in Shanxi next week, the team announced on its Web site.

“The aim of signing Marbury is to pay back our fans and try to win more games through the rest of the season,” Shanxi boss Wang Xingjiang said.

The 2001 and 2003 NBA All-Star is expected to help boost Shanxi’s ticket sales as well as its chances of making the playoffs. Shanxi is currently 15th in the 17-team league with a 3-9 record.

Wang said that Marbury’s salary would not be too high because the former New York Knicks, New Jersey Nets and Phoenix Suns player wanted to promote his personal brand of shoes in China.

Marbury averaged 18.3 points and 7.6 assists per game in a 13-year NBA career that was tarnished by his unpopularity with fans and an image of selfishness. During the 2007-08 season, he refused to play for the Knicks after being benched by his coach, Isaiah Thomas, in a public spat that lasted for much of the season.

Former Houston Rockets forward Maurice Taylor and high-scoring American Lee Benson are currently the two foreign players on Shanxi’s roster, and one will be cut if Marbury is signed, general manager Zhang Beihai said.

Basketball

Reuters