China’s economy has taken great steps toward liberalization since 1979. However, its athletics are still an odd remnant of the communist (little ‘c’) system. Whereas in countries like the US young people pick up sports on their own, and excel based on ability and personal drive (or the drive of their parents), in China many players emerge through government selection.

The most famous case in point is Yao Ming. Sure he’s 7’ 6”, but the odds of that become much more likely when your parents are both former national team players measuring 6’ 3” and 6’10” respectively. It is safe to assert that the government encouraged the union.

The planning for greatness begins before birth, but continues into adulthood. In Yao’s case, the Shanghai Sharks helped pay for his training, and he eventually blossomed for them before heading to the NBA. Similarly Yi Jianlian’s recently troubles are rooted in the fact that the Guangdong Provincial government did not want him to go to the small market of Milwaukee (okay, maybe he didn’t want to go much either).

In return for the training that these players receive, the government instituted the ‘Yao Rule,’ which essentially means that athletes playing abroad are required to give more than half of their salaries, including endorsements, to various government agencies that ‘helped them’ become who they are. Yao wasn’t the first to go abroad: two journeymen landed in the NBA before him, and Sun Jihai (pictured above) ended up at Manchester City of the English Premiere League (for a 2.2 million Pound transfer fee). However, as a singular bona-fied star, the drafting of Yao became a turning point, and a bit of a revelation, for the government. It was the first time they realized just how much they could cash in on the successes of their famous sons.

China also has complete control over whether their athletes can play abroad, and it has frequently imposed restrictions. The most notable requirement is play on national teams. Yao has steadfastly lived up to his obligations, abusing his body in the process. On the other hand, Wang Zhi Zhi (pictured below with Yao Ming), China’s first NBA player, once chose to skip a national team obligation in favor of training camp and was roundly criticized, and even ostracized, for his actions. A year ago he returned to China after years of ‘self-imposed’ exile (here is the Chinese press’s reaction).

Other countries also control the ability of players to go abroad. Japan seriously restricts its baseball players, only granting free agency after seven years of service. They invented a posting system that allows teams to bid on players’ services, if the Japanese club agrees. Unfortunately this means that the highest bidder wins the rights and the player has no say, unless they decide to return to their hometown team (all posting money goes to the Japanese team).

However, even with all of these control issues elsewhere, China seems particularly draconian. Players have no control over when teams will allow them to enter the draft (and certainly no control over whether they will be released from their team obligations). Furthermore the systematic planning of who will become stars has resulted in an odd imbalance: in sports where size is particularly important, like basketball, only tall kids have been given encouragement. That explains why all four NBA players from China have been at least 6’11” in a country where there should be a huge potential for smaller, quicker guards. After all, soccer players tend to make excellent point guards (see Steve Nash).

The peculiarities of China’s planned economy are still highly visible in a few unique cases. Mapping out the life of an athlete takes more time than switching the course of an industry. In a few years industrial planning can change dramatically, while it takes about twenty to engineer a child from conception to stardom. Eventually there will probably be a change, meaning that players will simply develop on their own, based on their own drive and natural born ability. However, even when we reach the day that players can determine their own success, it is unlikely that they yet rule their own checkbooks.