Chen provides rare ray of light in China's dull programme

For the US men's senior basketball team, a visit to Guangzhou this past week was perhaps the perfect way to begin their trek back to international basketball respectability.

After two weeks of training camp, the US team boarded a plane in Las Vegas and were welcomed to Asia by the palpable haze and malodorous stench hanging over the industrial belt of south China, which should have reinforced the notion that success will only come with work for these young millionaires from the NBA.

They played two games, one against the China and the other against Brazil.

A three-day stop in Hong Kong to schmooze, shop, sell some sneakers and generally detox from Guangzhou was added on as well. And just like that the American team left China, bound for South Korea and their ultimate destination of Japan for the World Championships.

China, meanwhile, went back to work to prepare for a warm-up tournament in Nanjing before their Japan campaign. And, judging by their performance against the US, there is much work to do.

While this is a very talented US team, featuring a number of top NBA players like LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Carmelo Anthony, they are a young group in search of cohesion. Yet they demolished China 119-73, a scoreline which flattered the hosts. Granted, not having their best player, the towering Yao Ming, as well as the rehabilitated Wang Zhizhi in the line-up hurt China's chances.