NBA`s Lakers, Rockets to tour Asia in October

New York: Kobe Bryant and Jeremy Lin are set to visit Asia in October with Los Angeles Lakers and Houston Rockets for a series of exhibition games, the National Basketball Association (NBA) announced.

The Lakers will play two games in China against the Golden State Warriors, beginning with an October 15 contest at the MasterCard Center arena. Three days later the same two teams will square off in Shanghai at the Mercedes-Benz Arena. Lin`s Rockets will play in both China`s Taiwan province and the Philippines. Houston faces the Indiana Pacers October 13 at the Taipei Arena. They start their Asia swing with an October 10 contest against the Pacers in Manila. It has been just over a year since "Linsanity" gripped New York Knicks fans and propelled break-out star Lin to global fame. Lin, who was born in Los Angeles, is the first American of Chinese descent to play in the NBA. Bryant`s Lakers will be playing for the first time in China. Five-time NBA champion Bryant has been co-authoring a blog in Chinese for several years. Last month Bryant joined the Twitter-like Chinese micro-blogging site Sina Weibo, getting thousands of followers in just the first few hours. The Lakers vs. Warriors and Rockets vs. Pacers games highlight a total of eight NBA overseas games in October. They are joined by the Oklahoma City Thunder, Philadelphia 76ers, Washington Wizards and Chicago Bulls in the NBA global games schedule. The Thunder will play October 5 against Fenerbahce Ulker in Istanbul and October 8 against the 76ers in Manchester, England. The Sixers also play against Uxue Bilbao Basket in Bilbao, Spain, October 6. The Bulls and the Wizards face off in Rio de Janeiro, October 12. IANS