Minnesota Timberwolves forward Kyle Anderson is likely to get naturalized in order to play for China in this year’s FIBA Basketball World Cup, per Mike Chan of South China Morning Post.
Per Chan, Anderson is expected to fly to China this year after the Timberwolves’ playoff run. The club is currently down 3-1 against the top-seed Denver Nuggets for the continuation of their first-round series, and the veteran won’t be able to suit up in Game 5 this Tuesday because of an eye injury.
Sources further told Chan that Anderson’s naturalization process already began last year, as he met the program’s criteria set by former NBA star and current Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) President Yao Ming. His maternal grandmother was born in Jamaica to a Chinese father and Jamaican mother, making him one-eighth Chinese.
Anderson, who averaged 9.4 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.9 assists in his first season in Minnesota, reunited with his remote family in China in 2018, wherein he was given the Chinese name “Li Kaier.”
China sits at 27th in the latest FIBA World Ranking. The nation was placed in pot six alongside Latvia, Mexico, and Georgia for the World Cup draw, which will take place on Apr. 29 in Quezon City, in the Philippines.
The 2023 FIBA World Cup is set to be hosted by the Philippines, Japan, and Indonesia. The grand basketball tourney will commence from Aug. 25 to Sept. 10.
