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Wu's fans skip Chinese New Year for NBA All Star celebrity game
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US player Terrence Jenkins (4) drives past Canada's Kris Wu (10) during the all-star celebrity basketball game at Ricoh Coliseum in 2016. Wu has played at the celebrity game three times. (AFP/file)
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any fans of Chinese Canadian actor-singer-songwriter Kris Wu decided against going to Los Angeles for the NBA All Star Celebrity Game on Friday, because they had a more important event to celebrate: Chinese New Year.
“Unfortunately, I can’t make it, since it’s Chinese New Year,” said Katie Li, who lives in San Francisco.
As people of Chinese descent, Li’s family required her presence at the family celebration.
Li usually supports Wu whenever the actor-singer has an event in Los Angeles.
Others, meanwhile, opted to skip family celebrations - with their parents’ consent, of course.
One of them is Karen Ma, who travelled all the way from China. She said she had only bought the ticket last week and had since then arranged some fan support by printing red banners bearing the name of Kris Wu, next to a dragon symbol.
“My parents did not mind [me skipping the Chinese New Year celebration]. I am on vacation, so I just bought a ticket and came here to support Kris. My parents even supported my decision,” she said, adding that she had watched the match with her two friends and was waiting for other fans to join in.
She added that her parents saw Wu as a powerful role model for the younger generation.
During the match, Wu’s fans – who are dubbed Meigenis – cheered on the star whenever he got the ball, waving the red banners and attracting the attention from other spectators.
Wu has been playing at the NBA All Star celebrity game for three years in a row. This year, he teamed up with Grammy award winner Justin Bieber, among others, in Team Lakers. They faced Team Clippers, backboned by Jamie Foxx, who won the Academy Awards for “Ray” as Ray Charles.
Team Clippers won the game 75-66. Wu scored two points, seven rebounds and one assist.
Prior to playing in Friday’s match, Wu, who is named the NFL Ambassador for China, performed in a concert preceding the Super Bowl match in Minnesota.
