There are some 300 million people playing basketball in China, but "for the second consecutive Olympics the Chinese men's squad could not win a single game," according to Steve Keating of REUTERS. The situation is "not much better in the women's bracket where China also made an early exit from the Rio Games." The NBA and sportswear companies have "invested millions of dollars to develop a culture that is flourishing at the grassroots but it continues to produce few dividends at elite level." China men's coach Gong Luming said, "We need to upgrade our individual skills. Just look at three-point field goals. Why can all the top players perform it reliably, but our players behave like they're eating dumplings at Chinese New Year? One day we can and the next day we can't." Not since Yao Ming, who played nine seasons in the NBA and was "considered responsible for jump-starting China's passion for basketball, has the country of 1.37 billion produced an elite level player." The Chinese Basketball Association has said that 300 million people "now play the game there, creating a huge talent pool from which to draw, but there are no guarantees of greatness" (REUTERS, 8/16).
