MJ’s back in town

Chinese star Ma Jian confessed the other day he’s not the same high-flying and high-scoring ninja who played for the Los Angeles Clippers in two National Basketball Association (NBA) preseasons in 1995 and 1996.

"I’m sort of retired now," said Ma, in town to play for the Jilin Northeast Tigers in the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) Samsung Invitational Championships. "This is my fifth trip to the Philippines. I love your country. Sun Jun invited me to join the team even if I’ve never practiced with the players. I just wanted to visit Manila again."

Ma, 33, estimated he’ll play "three to five minutes" a game. "I basically sat on the bench for the Shanghai Sharks in the CBA (Chinese Basketball Association) last season," he continued. "For the Tigers, I’ll try to do what I can in limited minutes. Enough to do some showtime."

Ma described the PBA as "Asia’s No. 1 professional organization" and remembered fondly jousting with the likes of Chito Loyzaga and Robert Jaworski in international competitions. In 1990, he saw action for the Chinese squad that trounced the Philippines twice, 125-60 and 90-76, at the Beijing Asian Games. In 1992, he suited up for China at the Barcelona Olympics. In 1996, he played as an import in the Philippine Basketball League (PBL) and led Hapee Toothpaste to the reinforced conference championship, in the process claiming MVP honors.

Ma, one of two children born to 6-3 basketball coach Ma Deichai and 5-4 housewife Zhang Yumin in Tianjin, attempted to enroll at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) after the 1992 Olympics but was rejected because of his poor English. Instead, he went to Utah Valley State, a junior college, and averaged 17.9 points for the varsity. In 1993-94, Ma transferred to the University of Utah and started 27 of 28 games for coach Rick Majerus, averaging 8.2 points.

"I love him and the players love him," said Majerus. "They see the almost insurmountable obstacles he has to overcome and feel they have a share in his success."

Not only did Ma’s game improve but also his English. He played two years for Utah then tried his luck at the Clippers camp as an undrafted free agent. Twice, he came close to making it to the regular season lineup but fell short. Ma lost out to Brent Barry, Terry Dehere and Malik Sealy for a roster spot. Clippers coach Bill Fitch advised Ma to polish his skills in the Continental league but the Chinese star decided to go back to the Mainland because there was too little money in the minors.

In 1996-97, Ma was back in China and played for the Hebei club. He later saw action for Beijing and Shanghai.

Today, Ma is hampered by a weak right knee–ironically, "Jian" means healthy in English. He no longer plays like a dervish. He plays to keep in shape and to have fun. A US green card holder, he commutes between Beijing and a home in Henderson, outside Las Vegas, where his Japanese-American wife Sumiko and their two sons live. Older son Nathan is six and the younger is two.

Incidentally, Ma’s only brother Ming played briefly for Ateneo here several years ago but discontinued his classes because of academic difficulties. Ming now works for Nike as a marketing executive in Beijing.

As for his future plans, Ma said he’s not cut out for coaching. His hope is to contribute to the development of Chinese basketball by teaching fundamentals to kids at the grassroots level.

Ma said he was offered a 10-day contract to play for the Dallas Mavericks in 1998 but turned it down. He would’ve been the first Chinese to see action in the NBA. Ma jokingly said he didn’t want to rob Wang Zhizhi of that distinction.

"The reason I came back to China was to help my country’s basketball program," said Ma, quoted by John Stanmeyer in Time. "I’ve talked to the education and sports ministries about training kids in the fundamentals so they can one day be NBA stars."

The problem that faces Ma is the Chinese government may not enlist his services. Ma incurred the government’s ire when he turned his back on the national team for the chance to play in the NBA. When he tried to regain his spot after failing in two NBA tryouts, the government closed the door on Ma.

"I’m one of the best Chinese players," Ma told Stanmeyer. "If China wants to do better in basketball, it should listen to what I have to say. By allowing the best players to go overseas, you’re training people who can then come back and use that knowledge to help develop younger players. Maybe, they (government) can keep others down but not me."

Stanmeyer described Ma as "poised, slick and totally unrepentant for having had the nerve to try out for the NBA without Beijing’s approval."

Ma will make his PBA debut with the Tigers against Alaska at the Cuneta Astrodome tonight.