Asian University Basketball League Aims for Growth with NCAA-Style Tournament

If years working for the NBA in the United States and as Yao Ming’s right-hand man in China have taught Jay Li Jintian anything, it is that basketball in Asia is ripe for growth and fans, players, coaches and officials are desperate to make it happen.

Growth has been a significant part of Li’s own journey: from interning at the NBA league office in Secaucus, New Jersey, working on the international business development side of the organisation, to helping Yao with special projects and managing the Joe Tsai Basketball Scholarship Programme. The next step is the Asian University Basketball League.

Based in Hangzhou and in its second year of existence, it brings in 12 teams from around the region to compete in an NCAA-style tournament. There are ambitious expansion plans in the works too – beyond the home-and-away system scheduled to come in November – with more teams, from more countries and territories, and the inclusion of a women’s edition.

“What we saw last year was that, as a first-year event, the potential was very, very real, and the reception was incredibly positive,” Li, the AUBL’s co-founder and CEO, said. “My experience working in basketball in the US and China for 15 years helped me see the opportunity for college basketball in Asia, where it has the biggest fan base in the world. Almost a billion people are avidly following the NBA, and basketball is the most [popular participation] sport in China.