Jul 24, 2023 1:41 pm ET
Minnesota Timberwolves forward Kyle Anderson will represent China at the FIBA World Cup, the player said Monday after the China Basketball Federation announced the American had obtained Chinese citizenship through naturalization.
The 29-year-old forward from New York is the youngest top athlete to acquire Chinese citizenship through naturalization and the first basketball player to do so.
“[Anderson] “I obtained Chinese citizenship this morning and met Yao Ming, chairman of the China Basketball Association,” the CBA said in a post on its official Weibo account.
Not long after, Anderson confirmed he would be playing for China at the FIBA World Championship, which is being held on August 25 in the Philippines, Japan and Indonesia.
“I am very pleased to announce that I will be representing China at the World Cup,” Anderson said in a video posted to his Weibo account. “Really proud and honored to wear the Team China jersey.”
The citizenship could also allow Anderson to represent China at the Paris Olympics next year. FIBA allows teams to have one naturalized player on their roster. Chinese media reported that Anderson’s maternal grandmother was born in Jamaica to a Chinese father and a Jamaican mother.
China had previously announced an 18-man squad for the World Cup, but FIBA said final squads would only be confirmed after a technical meeting to be held before the tournament begins.
Other athletes who have been naturalized include several Brazilians who relocated to China hoping to play international football there. In 2019, former Arsenal and Brentford midfielder Nico Yennaris became the first foreign-born player to be called up to the China national team. At the time, the Chinese Super League was also the go-to place for soccer players looking for lucrative contracts.
It’s unclear if Anderson and the others gave up their original nationalities. China has strict rules that usually prevent its citizens from acquiring dual citizenship.