The National Basketball Association (NBA) takes one more step to get closer to fans in China as they schedule to preseason games in the country later this year.

The two games will feature the Charlotte Hornets and the Los Angeles Clippers. Shenzhen will host the NBA game slated for October 11 at the Universaide Center, while the October 14 game will be held in Shanghai at the Mercedes-Benz Arena.

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Apart from the games though, the teams are locked in to participate in a slew of promotional activities while there.

The first efforts of the NBA to reach out to the roughly 300 million Chinese basketball fans finds its roots more than 10 years ago in 2004. This was part of the "Global Games" effort of the NBA to expand the league's worldwide presence.

Previously, the Clippers have already travelled to China in 2012 where they faced off against the Miami Heat.

Clippers owner Steve Ballmer said that the return of the Clippers to China is the next big step for their organization to becoming an established first-class international franchise. He adds that they are looking forward to representing both Los Angeles and the NBA as they bring their exciting brand of basketball to the fans in China.  

Apart from the team though, Clippers superstar Blake Griffin is also quite excited to return to China as he had visited there previously many times. Griffin says that he has gotten to know the culture and the country a lot from his experience there.

"It's cool every time you go you see something different, you see something cool," said Griffin.

The Hornets on the other hand have never been to China.

Team Owner Michael Jordan --- whose acquisition of the team has landed him on the Forbes' list of billionaires --- also expressed how excited he was to showcase the strength of their franchise to the fans in China. 

TagsLos Angeles Clippers, Charlotte Hornets, Preseason Games