Former Louisville Cardinals star point guard Russ Smith is currently plying his trade in China, where he seems to be nearing God-like status in basketball. Apparently, Smith has played so well in China this year that he has come to the point where he felt it’s justifiable for him to compare himself to Hall of Famer Allen Iverson.

During an appearance on The HoopsHype Podcast with Alex Kennedy, Smith said that he felt as though he was the China Basketball Association’s version of the Answer primarily because of his dedication to the game. Based on Smith’s numbers in the CBA this year, it seems that he has enough justification to equate himself to Allen Iverson at least from the perspective of him playing in a sub-level competition like the CBA.

According to asia-basket.com, Smith has averaged 33.6 points, 6.9 rebounds, and 6.9 assists in 32 games for the Fujian Sturgeons in the 2017-18 CBA season. That scoring average, however, would pale in comparison to the one he put up when he played in the second-tier National Basketball League in China last year. In five games played for the Luoyang Zhonghe in the NBL, Russ Smith mustered a Wilt Chamberlain-esque average of 61.0 points per game.

American players tearing it up in China is, of course, nothing new. J.R. Smith and Jimmer Fredette are just among the other US-born players who went to the far east and played like emperors on the hard court.

Russ Smith is getting attention with his play in China, but whether his dominance there will lead him back to the NBA is something that remains to be seen.

Smith was selected by the Philadelphia 76ers n the second round of the 2014 NBA Draft before being traded to the New Orleans Pelicans. He has played a total of 27 NBA games with the Pelicans and the Grizzlies with career averages of only 2.0 points, 0.6 rebounds, and 0.7 assists in 4.9 minutes.