The Golden State Warriors had a rockstar's welcome upon arriving in Shenzhen, China, slated to play the Minnesota Timberwolves in two games last week as part of an international exhibition and as part of their preseason schedule.
As the team got off the bus, the players heard their last names being called by a sea of fans waiting outside of their hotel, tour bus, and entering the arena on gamedays.
“They arrived [in China] at 3, 4 o'clock in the morning and there was one, two thousand people waiting for them at the airport and at their hotel,” Miller said during TNT's start-of-season conference call Wednesday. “It reminds me a lot of like when Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls used to travel. It was like the Beatles were coming, and the Warriors have that effect.”
Much like Jordan and the Bulls were during their era of dominance, Golden State has become infectiously popular in the far East thanks to their recent success and their players often visiting the country.
From Kevin Durant developing a following during the Beijing Olympics in 2008 to Klay Thompson and his constant trips thanks to Chinese sneaker company Anta, to Stephen Curry visiting the country in the last six of his eight years in the league, recently surpassing Kobe Bryant for the best-selling jersey in China.
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