3 UCLA Players in Police Custody in China

[jpvegas52]

The three UCLA players are accused of shoplifting from a store in China. Players from Georgia Tech & UCLA were questioned, but the GT players were released. The 3 UCLA players are in police custody. I guess a night in a Chinese jail might not be too comfortable.

http://www.espn.com/mens-college-bas...na-shoplifting

[MUAlphaBangura]

LiAngelo Ball involved. Let's all sit back and watch with a grin on our faces.

[TedBaxter]

LiAngelo Ball involved. Let's all sit back and watch with a grin on our faces.

It was probably racial profiling.

Seriously, these are 3 freshman who have probably done this before knowing they would get a slap on the wrist. This one, hopefully, may be a little different.

[Markedman]

It could be a lot different.

https://newsone.com/3757629/china-sh...ed-punishment/

[Alan Bykowski, "brewcity77"]

I think this goes one of two ways.

China may set an example and the three young men spend a decade in prison. I can see them not granting any leniency because it could make them look weak internationally and send a message they don't want to their people and the rest of the world. They may lose some future NCAA games or even NBA games as a result, but I'm not sure entertainment holds a comparable level of importance with government the way it does in the US.

Alternately, the state department gets involved and gets them released. I'm not sure three young men of that age should be forced into a prison where they don't speak the language for 3+ years, and if held it is something that would certainly make our government look weaker since this will be on the international stage. It's an interesting coincidence that President Trump is in China today and could likely extend that stay to tomorrow.

[Phantom Warrior]

"UCLA freshman LiAngelo Ball may have set a record for steals in the storied college basketball program’s history before even playing one game."

Clever line, but not all that funny.

Also, Big Mouth Papa had called a press conference before he was talked out of it. A press conference by the Big Mouth would have been interesting to say the least, though definitely not helpful for his son and the other players.

Regardless of how this turns out, it should never have happened.

[TheSultan]

The fact that Trump is in China right now could be very helpful for them.

[pbiflyer]

The fact that Trump is in China right now could be very helpful for them.

This may be their only hope. If they are relying on the state department, they are short on resources:
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/trump...ry?id=51006690

The U.S.’s ranks of diplomats are losing key leaders at a “dizzying speed” as the State Department struggles to recruit talent amid a hiring freeze and sinking morale in the Trump administration, according to a new letter from a top ambassador.

Sixty percent of the agency’s career ambassadors, the highest rank for diplomats, have retired or quit since January. Nearly half of career ministers — the next level down and equivalent to the military’s three-star generals — are gone too, down to 19 from 33. The next-level minister counselors have seen their numbers drop by 62 diplomats since Labor Day alone “and are still falling,” writes Ambassador Barbara Stephenson, the president of the American Foreign Service Association union.

[Goose85]

This may be their only hope. If they are relying on the state department, they are short on resources:
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/trump...ry?id=51006690

The U.S.’s ranks of diplomats are losing key leaders at a “dizzying speed” as the State Department struggles to recruit talent amid a hiring freeze and sinking morale in the Trump administration, according to a new letter from a top ambassador.

Sixty percent of the agency’s career ambassadors, the highest rank for diplomats, have retired or quit since January. Nearly half of career ministers — the next level down and equivalent to the military’s three-star generals — are gone too, down to 19 from 33. The next-level minister counselors have seen their numbers drop by 62 diplomats since Labor Day alone “and are still falling,” writes Ambassador Barbara Stephenson, the president of the American Foreign Service Association union.

Yep, this is where the it could get interesting. These guys need the career type state department people that know how such things work to get involved and go through the right channels for these players. Without the right representation it could be a tough road.

When you go to other countries, they don't care what we consider the level of a crime to be, you have to play by their rules which are almost always tougher than ours. For their sake I hope they can leave with the team.

[MUMac]

Yep, this is where the it could get interesting. These guys need the career type state department people that know how such things work to get involved and go through the right channels for these players. Without the right representation it could be a tough road.

When you go to other countries, they don't care what we consider the level of a crime to be, you have to play by their rules which are almost always tougher than ours. For their sake I hope they can leave with the team.

Agree with this take. When I first heard of this, had a bad feeling for these guys. Also question whether or not UCLA did a proper job of educating them as to their behaviors on international soil. If they had, really, really dumb of these guys to do this (not that it wasn't dumb on it's own right). If they had not, shame on them.

China is one tough place to get in trouble. They do not really care about the political view of this or international relations all that much. They care about their laws being followed by all - including international visitors. Leniency is likely not a word in the Chinese language.