Crayton and I visited Monterrey this weekend to watch the Phoenix Suns, his favorite team, play the Philadelphia 76ers. It was a pre-season game intended to spread the NBA love in Mexico. (This marked the 18th time the NBA has hosted a game in Mexico — the most in any other country besides Canada.)
The whole thing ended up being this really cool, Mexican/American hybrid experience. Jay-Z and Rhianna and FloRida blared through the stadium speakers, while the announcer gave a play-by-play in Spanish. (“Dos puntos para Andre Iguodala!”) Vendors trudged up and down the stairs selling salted peanuts with hot sauce, cotton candy, and those little plastic hand-clappers.
I bought some Japanese-style peanuts, rolled in chili powder…
… And then listened to Steve Nash greet the crowd in Spanish. (He’s my favorite player.) Click below for an audio clip.
Before the game, an announcer warned fans — most of whom appeared to be locals, in jeans and T-shirts and the occasional designer handbag — not to rush the court, or use any “obscene language.” Surprisingly, everybody was exceedingly polite. (Are these the same Mexicans who throw beer at soccer games?) From our seats, somewhere around the 12th row, it was so quiet that we could hear the players yelling at each other. “Red! Red!” a few Sixers kept shouting.
You could also hear the referees, without their microphones.
“Hip check! Number one-four!”
Crayton kept grumbling: “Replacement refs.”
The stadium, a smallish venue with two tiers of seats, was about two-thirds full. Felipe Baloy, a bald, tattooed soccer player for the Rayados de Monterrey, sat two rows in front of us with his wife. During halftime he posed for photos with fans.
The Suns shot horribly during the first half, but there were still some NBA nuggets to keep the fans entertained. People gasped when one Sixers player, racing to keep a loose ball inbounds, dived into a row of journalists, who ducked to avoid getting creamed. Andre Iguodala had some beautiful shots that people applauded, even if, you know, the 76ers were technically the away team.
Mostly everyone stayed until the end of the game, even when it was obvious that the Suns weren’t going to win. After the game, people filed out in an organized fashion, and we found a cab easily in front of the arena. The cabbie asked us what had been going on, and we told him.
“Perdimos!” I said, dejected.
“Eh — the Chicago Bulls are better anyway,” he said.
Crayton snorted.
Overall, I’d go to an NBA game in Mexico again in a heartbeat. The seats were cheaper (we had awesome seats for the price of nosebleed seats in Dallas); the beer was cheaper, and they sold bananas drizzled with chocolate. You can’t beat that.
Hi, Lesley, I was looking at your friend’s website (wagamama) through the link in your article about the basketball game. He mentions in one article that in his neighborhood, it is possible to buy tlacoyos — do you have them in your neighborhood too, and if so — would you post a photo of one sometime, please? I am very curious to see them, and how they are served and with what toppings etc., because they are the forerunner of the tortilla, and related to the tlayudas of Oaxaca.
And about your basketball article — no wonder people wear those raincoats to stadium games! Did not think of beer showers! aack!
I was there and I couldn’t figure out who that bald guy was. I knew he played soccer but I had know idea who he actually was. Thanks for the pro-tip.
I find the appearances of the NBA in other countries as an outstanding accomplishment for the U.S. It sends a positive influence throughout the entire world were they can not only get active, but interact with other ethnicities, regarldess of your race.
funny, I imagine bball being as popular as Hockey in Mexico, who knew?
I don’t understand…Chicago Bears and Phoenix Suns?
Yeah, it’s a little odd, I guess. The Suns are from his childhood; the Bears came later.
Re: Phoenix Suns Support Illegal Immigration
Just curious, but did Los Suns players have to display their `papers` (passports) when they entered mexico to play basketball?
Hi Harry: I’m sure they did. But Mexican law does not require them to keep their passports and/or birth certificates with them at all times, simply because they don’t look Mexican, like the SB 1070 law in Arizona does. The Suns have never said they support illegal immigration. They’re wearing the Los Suns jerseys at tonight’s game because they’re against the civil rights violations supported by SB 1070.