UCLA Basketball: Bruins Alum Becomes Naturalized Citizen Of Another Nation To Compete In FIBA World Cup
Now entering his 10th season in the NBA, this UCLA alum is becoming a citizen of a different country in order to compete on the national stage.
Former Bruins forward, Kyle Anderson, has gained citizenship in China with the intention of playing for the Chinese National Team in the FIBA World Cup.
Anderson earned his Chinese citizenship through the process of naturalization. The 29-year-old's great-grandfather was Chinese.
This is not the first time an athlete has gained citizenship in China to compete in a worldwide competition. In soccer, the process happens a lot.
In 2019, Nico Yennaris, who was born in England, gained Chinese citizenship in order to play for the Chinese team. He would not have been able to play internationally in England so he made the switch.
The same happened to Anderson. The USA FIBA roster was announced a couple of weeks with Anderson nowhere to be seen.
Since he hasn't made an international roster in his career before, it seems like this was Anderson's last opportunity to play for a country.
By making this move Anderson not only can play in China's first game on August 26th against the Philippines, but he also has a chance to play in next year's Olympics.
In 10 seasons, Anderson has averaged seven points and 4.5 rebounds per game.
