Former NBA star trying to broker deal to ship masks to New York

With the knowledge and resources he obtained in China, which he calls his second home, former NBA star Stephon Marbury is pulling out all the stops to support the fight against the COVID-19 outbreak in the United States.

Marbury, who now coaches the Beijing Royal Fighters in the Chinese Basketball Association, confirmed with China Daily on Monday that he is helping negotiate a deal between a Chinese manufacturer and New York City to deliver 10 million face masks at a fair price to facilitate the battle against the virus outbreak in his native country, which is facing a critical shortage of protective gear for medical workers.

The 43-year-old native of Brooklyn, New York said he is working with Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, an old acquaintance, to help facilitate the purchase, which is close to being done.

"Right now I am just waiting for the Brooklyn borough president to say when he wants to do it. I am ready with my connections on the Chinese side. They are going to be able to produce and have everything ready for them. It's up to him (Adams) right now," Marbury told China Daily on telephone on Monday morning.

Marbury returned from the States to Beijing on March 11 to prepare for the pending restart of the CBA's suspended 2019-20 regular season. After finishing a 14-day quarantine last Wednesday and retesting negative, he is now back at the Royal Fighters' training facility in east Beijing to oversee team practice on a regular basis.

The initial plan was to deliver 2 million masks per week on a five-week deal but it was delayed due to a miscommunication issue between the two sides, according to a New York Post report on Sunday.

Marbury, who has been working and living in China for 10 years since joining the CBA as a player in 2010 after 13 seasons in the NBA, said he understands and respects all the measures taken by the Chinese government, including the shutdown of an entire city, to curb the spread of the coronavirus, which have been proven effective by the significant drop in the number of domestic positive cases.

However, it will take more time and perhaps some heavy cost for the Americans to be on the same page with China in the virus crisis because of the differences between the two countries, he said.

"I've been here for 10 years and I understand the culture here," said Marbury, who became a city hero after leading the capital's other CBA team, the Beijing Ducks, to three league championships from 2012-15.

"But people in the States didn't know about the virus seriousness and now they know. People weren't taking this serious until they saw people who got infected or if they got the virus they took it differently."

"I am trying to create a balance (between the two cultures) so people in America understand how important measures, such as the 14-day quarantine, are to identify potential infections. That's where they have to come into place.

"I am taking full measures to try to help as much as I can being here in China and having access to be able to help," he said.