Dennis Rodman on the Philippines

Apparently, aging former NBA stars do some barnstorming here, as my taxi driver from the airport told me almost immediately upon my arrival in Manila.  From an excellent Grantland article on the topic, no love of sports required, here is one excerpt:

Before tip-off, a sideline reporter snags a short interview with Pippen. “Scottie, what have you heard of the Philippine league?” she asks. “Well, I haven’t heard too much about it.” The moment was a flashback to the unintentional comedy bonanza at the press conference the day before the game, where Pippen & Co. strained to find polite answers to questions like “Besides the Philippines, what other countries have you guys been to?” and “I’m not a press but how is it when you arrive here, how do you feel that you are playing in this country where basketball is one of the popular sports?” Rodman, predictably, punctured the air of false ceremony when he was asked how he found the Philippines on this, his second trip to the country. “The same [as] when I left it,” he said. “You guys still look the same, so what the hell.”

In contrast, I have been here only once.