Highs and lows in an athlete’s career are standard and expected. However, sometimes the lows turn out to be graver than one is prepared for. In the case of Stephon Marbury, all he wanted was to play basketball but with everything that was going around towards the end of his NBA career, he had to take a drastic step to continue living his dream. On the recent episode of 7PM in Brooklyn, the former NBA star talked about his departure from the NBA and his time in China.
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Foreign basketball leagues have become a life saver for so many ex-NBA athletes. While it’s often seen as a retirement league, many players have managed to revive their careers after spending a few years in a foreign land, playing basketball. For Marbury, his move to the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) became his primary objective since he left the NBA on bad terms. On the podcast, he said that all he wanted was an opportunity to hoop and while he was in the NBA, he also used to get a lot of money to do what he loved.
He said, “I went all the way down to zero when I left to play in China. When you go from $20 million to zero dollars, it’s a big difference. It’s not the same.” Despite receiving little to no money while playing in the CBA, Marbury said that the freedom to hoop allowed him to remain stable throughout that tenure. He said, “I would rather be free in my spirit than to be in a space where I committed myself towards doing something that I wasn’t going to be happy about within myself.”
Another thing that helped Marbury during the entire transition process was his deep spiritual personality. He said that while he was struggling to come to terms with the major change, God helped him stay on course and let things flow in whatever way they were supposed to. His decision turned out to be brilliant for him because Marbury spent eight years playing in the CBA and won three championships. After retiring as a player, he also coached the Beijing Royal Fighters for four years.
Stephon Marbury is pleased with his impact on the CBA
An athlete fit enough to play in the best league in the world is going to be an instant hit anywhere else. Marbury’s time in the NBA helped him gain a reputation from the jump when he landed in China. However, soon he was able to make it his league and went on to be recognized as one of the biggest contributors to the growth of the CBA. During a conversation with Andscape in 2018, he talked about his impact on the Chinese league.
Marbury said, “I helped them see change and how they can see things better. They trust me. I want to help. I want to continue to put them in a situation where they can be better. Being a bridge in sports, not just basketball, sports. I think that is the most amazing thing about doing all of the things that have been done.” People might not have seen it as a good idea in the beginning for Marbury, but with his dedication, he helped elevate the standard of the sport in a foreign land.
