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JAKARTA -- Aboard the shuttle to the Gelora Bung Karno basketball center, a British journalist writing for a Hong Kong media outlet struck up a conversation with a counterpart from China. The topic, of course, was the Philippines-China men's basketball game that was to unfold in a few minutes. "So what do you think of the game?" the British journalist asked. "Easy win for China?" The Chinese journalist hesitated and gave a shrug. "Well, they have Clarkson. We'll see." The shuttle, which was standing room only, stopped at the basketball venue, and maybe 90 percent of its occupants disembarked.  The arena has reserved seating behind one of the baskets for athletes not competing. While it is empty most of the time, on Monday afternoon, players from at least four other countries filled up the seats, even those from countries who had no game that day. Meanwhile, the seats reserved for spectators were quickly filled as well. The word here was that tickets had sold out days before, with some of them showing up on the black market for six times their actual price. China-Philippines basketball matches are always a big event at any level, but this particular duel had an added dimension. The media, the fans, even the other competitors all had one thing in mind: They all wanted to see the Jordan Clarkson Show. Ever since the Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas announced they were including the Cleveland Cavaliers guard in the lineup for Jakarta, the anticipation had built up to this moment. The Philippine media here covering the games had caught glimpses of Clarkson's skill level during team practices, but that really didn't count. Everyone looks good in practices. Everyone needed to see Clarkson in a real game and against real opponents. And what better team to test him than mighty China, which also has NBA-level talent and enough swagger to not be intimidated or star-struck by this basketball celebrity. Clarkson scored his first basket after one minute, a floater in the lane that gave the Philippines an early 5-0 lead. But his first half as a Philippine national player was a bit of a letdown. Though he finished the half with 12 points, he struggled with his shot, making only one of his seven 3-point attempts and missed 2-of-3 free throws. Despite his struggles, the Philippines stayed within striking distance, trailing only by five at intermission. And when the third period started, Clarkson showed everyone what all the fuss was about and why he was an NBA player. His outside shooting finally clicked and he scored 16 third quarter points, missing just one of his five 3-point attempts. During that stretch, he could not be guarded. But playing in his first competitive game in nearly two months, Clarkson was hit by cramps and he had to sit out most of the fourth period. His teammates hardly missed him though, overhauling a double-digit deficit and even taking a three-point lead with two minutes left. There's a bit of irony in the fact that it was Clarkson's foul with 13 seconds left that gave China the lead it wouldn't relinquish. He was going for a steal, and had tapped the ball out of bounds, but the referee felt he did something illegal. The Philippines came a Paul Lee triple away from a dramatic win and Clarkson lived up to the hype by giving everyone the show they sought. His final stat line read 28 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists and 2 steals. While many were mesmerized, Clarkson himself wasn't celebrating. He didn't speak to the media, but a source said he told team manager Butch Antonio after the game: "I'll do better in the next game." We can't wait.
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