Ex-Ute paved way for China hoops

It wasn't as lengthy as, say, the Xia Dynasty, which lasted about 500 years. It wasn't even comparable to the Ming Dynasty, which lasted nearly three centuries.

Even so, former Ute Ma Jian's wait to become a worldwide basketball figure must have seemed an eternity.

In the results-oriented world of big-time basketball, 15 years is a long time.

But at last his dream is being fulfilled.

That's him, commentating on worldwide television during the USA-China Olympic basketball game. There he is on CNN, discussing his role in bringing hoops to China. The Washington Post calls him "an oft-forgotten story in China's basketball history."

Ma Jian, they're saying, is China's basketball pioneer, the first to play for an American college or pro team.

Before Wang Zhizhi, before Yi Jianlian and before Yao Ming, there was Ma.

Now a television commentator in China, he has finally been discovered in other countries, too.

"I'm really proud of myself," he said on CNN, "because, you know — think about it — I am the one. If you say I am making history, well, maybe that's too big, but I did, actually."

Thanks in large part to Ma, a billion people in China really do care.

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When Ryan Hunt, of Holladay, got the call from Utah assistant coach Tommy Connor in 1993, it was clear the Utes wanted him on their team. Yes, he had experience playing at Skyline High and Salt Lake Community College.

"But more important," added Connor, "we understand you speak Mandarin Chinese."

The Utes had signed a promising 6-foot-7 kid from China who didn't speak much English. So they needed Hunt, who served an LDS mission to Taiwan, to translate.

Ma had come to the United States to make his name after starring on the Chinese Olympic team. He was recruited to UCLA by coach Jim Harrick, who advised Ma to first attend Utah Valley State College, where he could upgrade his English and his understanding of American basketball.

But during his stay in Orem, Ma met Utah's coaches and decided to transfer there, instead.

It seemed a good plan at the time. Ma had found a college basketball program where he could learn from a legendary coach, Rick Majerus. In return, the Utes acquired a strong, agile, good-shooting forward.

Ma played fairly well his first year at Utah, starting 27 of 28 games, averaging 8.2 points and 3.7 rebounds. But even then, things didn't go smoothly. They seldom did with the demanding, obsessive Majerus. Ma was a foreign star whose game flourished in a free-flowing attack. Majerus built his teams on meat-grinder defense and exhaustive, screen-heavy offense.