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Reuters

While Kobe Bryant will be sorely missed by Los Angeles Lakers fans after he ended his stellar 20-year career in the NBA, his departure will leave a gaping hole for his legions of supporters in China.
According to the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA), 300 million people play the sport in China and for the majority of them, five-time NBA champion Bryant is a hero.
For Zhang Weiping, a former basketball player and coach in China who now works as a television analyst, Bryant’s extraordinary popularity in his homeland comes as no surprise.
“Lots of people around the world love Kobe and some people hate him but in China most of the people, the fans, love him,” Weiping, 65, said after watching the 37-year-old Bryant play his final NBA game, against the Utah Jazz in Los Angeles.
“They love him because of his character, his personality, his basketball skill and also because no matter how difficult things were, he always met the challenge.

“Michael Jordan is top in China for the older generation but for the younger generation Kobe is number one. They love Kobe much more than LeBron [James] in China.”
Asked where he would rank in popularity compared with China’s best-known player, eight-time NBA All-Star Yao Ming, the ever-smiling Weiping replied: “Kobe first, then Yao Ming second.”
Hollywood ending as Kobe Bryant bows out with a mammoth 60 points
Weiping, who was the second-highest scorer at the 1978 FIBA World Championship as a slashing-dunking forward on the Chinese national team, also pointed to Bryant’s excellent marketing skills.
“He has learned a few words in Mandarin but it’s much more than that, he uses social media networking very well,” said Weiping, who has worked as a basketball commentator for China Central Television for more then two decades.

“And even before social media, he was very popular in China because of TV. We broadcast a lot of Lakers games and also Nike promoted him so that helped make him the most popular NBA player in China.”
Bryant, an 18-time All-Star who scored a season-high 60 points in his final NBA game against the Jazz on Tuesday, has held several training camps in China and also embarked on ‘fan engagement’ tours.
He signed a deal with online shopping giant Alibaba to sell his merchandise in China and when he announced last November his decision to retire from the NBA, he shared that post with his 4 million followers on the Chinese social media platform Weibo.

Bryant’s final NBA game was streamed live in China by Tencent, the Asian nation’s largest digital platform, with Weiping calling the play-by-play.
Tencent says it was the company’s most-viewed game of all time with 38.9 million video streams and 11 million live viewers. On Chinese social media, the #ThankYouKobe and #Kobe hashtags generated 370 million impressions.
With Bryant finally ending a storied career that included scoring titles, the third-most points in NBA history and a league MVP award in 2008, Weiping will remember most the shooting guard’s mental strength and ‘never-quit’ attitude.

“As a player, you always want to meet the challenge, you want to beat everybody and sometimes you have difficult times but Kobe never gave up, even through injuries,” Weiping said.
“Kobe also said when he was young that he wanted to be one of the greatest players in the world and win several NBA championships. But when he got older, he said he started to understand that there is no destination, it’s a journey.
“And it’s a journey which continues from one generation to another so, as a retired player, he wants to pass on his lessons to the next generation, not just on basketball but life lessons. That is what has impressed me most about Kobe.”


How Kobe Bryant’s retirement has hit his China fans hard 

Students work on a big portrait of Kobe Bryant at Shenyang Sport University in Lianing Province. Photo: Xinhua

LOS ANGELES, CA - APRIL 13: Fans from China pose outside Staples Center before Kobe Bryant plays in his final game on April 13, 2016 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images/AFP == FOR NEWSPAPERS, INTERNET, TELCOS & TELEVISION USE ONLY ==

epa05257829 Fans from China hold a sign as thousands of fans gather outside Staples Center for Los Angeles Lakers Kobe Bryant's last game in Los Angeles, California, USA, 13 April 2016. This is Kobe Bryant's last game after a 20 year career with the Lakers. EPA/MIKE NELSON

(160414) -- SHENYANG, April. 14, 2016 (Xinhua) -- Students work on a big portrait of Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers on the ground of Shenyang Sport University in Shenyang, capital of northeast China's Lianing Province, April 14, 2016. Students watched the live broadcast of Kobe Bryant's last NBA basketball game against the Utah Jazz at school and painted a big portrait to show their respects to the NBA legend. (Xinhua/Pan Yulong) 

TOPSHOT - This photo taken on April 14, 2016 shows a student kissing a big portrait of Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers at Shenyang Sport University in Shenyang, northeast China's Liaoning Province. Tributes to Kobe Bryant went viral on the internet in China on April 14 after the basketball star scored 60 points in his final game, ending 20 years in the NBA. / AFP PHOTO / STR / China OUT

Hollywood ending as Kobe Bryant bows out with a mammoth 60 points

Kobe Bryant gestures to fans. Photo: AFP

The Los Angeles Lakers' Kobe Bryant drives the ball in the third quarter against the Utah Jazz on Wednesday, April 13, 2016, at Staples Center in Los Angeles. Bryant scored 60 points in a 101-96 victory. (Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times/TNS)

Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers vies for the ball with Shelvin Mack of the Utah Jazz during his final game as a Laker in their season-ending NBA western division matchup aainst the Utah Jazz in Los Angeles, California on April 13, 2016. / AFP PHOTO / FREDERIC J. BROWN

Shaquille O'Neal, right, talks with Los Angeles Lakers forward Kobe Bryant during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Utah Jazz, Wednesday, April 13, 2016, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Magic Johnson speaks about Los Angeles Lakers forward Kobe Bryant during a ceremony before Bryant's last NBA basketball game, against the Utah Jazz, Wednesday, April 13, 2016, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Actor Jack Nicholson, middle, claps as Los Angeles Lakers forward Kobe Bryant walks by during the first half of Bryant's last NBA basketball game, against the Utah Jazz, Wednesday, April 13, 2016, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

Hong Kong fans give Kobe a day to remember

It’s #MambaDay – fans flock to pay tribute to Kobe Bryant as he prepares for emotional send-off  

Fans gather outside Staples Centre. Photo :AP

LOS ANGELES, CA - APRIL 13: Two cranes are seen leaving the exterior of Staples Center before Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers play's in his final NBA game on April 13, 2016 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images/AFP == FOR NEWSPAPERS, INTERNET, TELCOS & TELEVISION USE ONLY ==

A fan watches as Los Angeles Lakers players warm up for an NBA basketball game against the Utah Jazz, Wednesday, April 13, 2016, in Los Angeles. Bryant plays the final game of his 20-year NBA career. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)

LOS ANGELES, CA - APRIL 13: Fans gather outside Staples Center before Kobe Bryant of the Los Angeles Lakers play's in his final NBA game on April 13, 2016 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images/AFP == FOR NEWSPAPERS, INTERNET, TELCOS & TELEVISION USE ONLY ==

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For 300 million basketball fans, former Lakers star is a hero


How Kobe Bryant’s retirement has hit his China fans hard

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}For 300 million basketball fans, former Lakers star is a hero

For 300 million basketball fans, former Lakers star is a hero