NBA recruit makes encouraging Team China debut in warm-up game, but vows best is yet to come

Not perfect, but certainly encouraging enough for perhaps the biggest transition in the history of Chinese basketball to play out as planned.

Showing glimpses of his NBA prowess, American-born Kyle Anderson made his much anticipated Team China debut in a 79-61 defeat to Italy on Saturday.

Anderson, Chinese basketball's first-ever naturalized player, gave an upbeat assessment of his first appearance in the national team's red jersey, summing it up as a valuable adjustment in time for the all-important FIBA World Cup campaign later this month.

"Of course it could've been better, you don't like losing by that much," Anderson said after scoring 11 points to go with six rebounds in 19 minutes and 31 seconds on the court in the warm-up game, part of the Trentino Cup, in northern Italian city Trento.

"But this is practice to get ready for competition in a tournament in Manila. We just wanted to use it wisely, and fix our mistakes and find out how we can get better," said Anderson, who was officially granted Chinese citizenship on July 23 through his mother's family heritage in South China's Guangdong province.

"I just got to find ways to adjust, find ways to get better and I know I will… You are kind of thankful that you have these games to use them to get better and figure out the European game so I just got to learn to adjust, and we all do."

After finishing runner-up at the four-team Trentino Cup, Team China, which beat Cape Verde 86-66 in its opener without Anderson, will continue training in Italy until traveling to Germany on Wednesday for another tuneup tournament for the World Cup, which tips off on Aug 25 in Manila.

With Anderson on board, Team China, coached by Serbian Aleksandar Djordjevic, has theoretically become a stronger and more balanced contender in Group B at the FIBA flagship tournament, where only the highest-ranked Asian team wins direct qualification for next year's Paris Olympics.

The mission to secure the sole Olympic ticket, though, remains challenging given the wide gap between China and the world's heavyweights, underlined by the lop-sided defeat to two-time Euro-Basket champion Italy.

With Anderson apparently a little rusty from a lack of training in the summer, Team China's homegrown core players didn't deliver either on Saturday, with starting center Zhou Qi finishing with a team-high 12 points to be the only other player to notch a double-digit tally.

Zhao Jiwei, Fang Shuo and Zhao Rui, contributed a paltry total of 10 points, two rebounds and three assists as Team China's backcourt trio struggled against Italy's aggressive, high-intensity defense. Five of the host team's players scored in double digits, while Italy also dominated China in the assist count — 19-8.

Despite displaying some smooth offensive play against Cape Verde on Friday, Team China still needs to dig deeper to score more consistently, especially against abrasive, high-pressure opponents like Italy. Only then will Team China maximize the benefits of Anderson's playmaking and ball movement.

Defensively, better chemistry is required for players to cover for each other on the perimeter rotation, while tighter rim protection from centers Zhou and Wang Zhelin, as well as Anderson, will be key if Team China is to overcome South Sudan and Puerto Rico in the pool stage at the World Cup, where Serbia is the clear-cut favorite to top the group.

Leveling up

Coach Djordjevic called for patience as he attempts to get his players up to speed for the high-stakes tournament.

"Their effort level was exceptional… On the floor there was a lot of desire and will to get better and to do what we have to do," Djordjevic, a former Serbian national team guard, said of Team China's recent European training program. "The games really helped us learn the level that we will face at the World Cup."

Djordjevic reckons more drills can unlock Anderson's value as a facilitator on both ends of the floor — a reputation he has garnered in the NBA.

"The other guys are ahead of Anderson (in terms of fitness) but we still have time before the start of the World Cup to get him in better condition. We need to be careful that we don't overload him," said Djordjevic, who coached Serbia to silver medals at the inaugural edition of the World Cup in 2014 (formerly the world championships), the 2016 Rio Olympics and the 2017 EuroBasket.

"I hope he can really help us but our team has been playing games and practicing more (than him) so he needs a little bit more time to be on the floor as we like. He's still in the process of adapting."

Born in New Jersey and drafted as a first-round pick by the San Antonio Spurs in 2014, Anderson averaged 9.4 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.9 assists in 69 games with 46 starts for the Minnesota Timberwolves in the 2022-23 season — his ninth year in the league — as a playmaking forward.

In 2018, Anderson, now known as Li Kaier in China, and his mother Suzanne visited Xinmu new village in Shenzhen, Guangdong, to explore their family roots. Their long-lost Chinese relatives welcomed them with a firecracker display, traditional cultural experiences and a huge banquet.

Anderson also appears to be enjoying a warm welcome with his new squad.

"Everybody, the staff, my teammates have made me feel really welcome," he said after watching Team China's win against Cape Verde from the bench.

"That does a lot for me, making my transition so much easier. Everybody has been very friendly. We are getting along really well, and that makes me really happy more than anything."