Yao Ming joins NBA owners in major investment for Asian University Basketball League

The Asian University Basketball League has secured significant backing from basketball’s elite, completing a Series A funding round led by some of the sport’s most prominent figures. The investment round, characterized as being at least eight figures, signals growing confidence in Asian college basketball’s potential.

Blue Pool Capital, the family office of Brooklyn Nets owner Joe Tsai, led the funding round after providing seed investment last May. Tsai, who co-founded Alibaba, has been the driving force behind the league’s development since its inception.

Basketball legends unite behind Asian expansion

Yao Ming, the Basketball Hall of Famer and former NBA All-Star, made his first basketball investment in almost a decade by joining the round. « When I learned about AUBL, it felt like a chance to help build something I wish had existed earlier in my career, » Ming stated. « The combination of education, competition, and community is very powerful, and I wanted to support a platform that gives student-athletes in Asia that opportunity. »

The investment group reads like a who’s who of basketball ownership. Marc Lasry’s Avenue Capital Group joined after his recent exit as Milwaukee Bucks co-owner, while David Blitzer’s Bolt Ventures brought Philadelphia 76ers ownership expertise to the table. Additional backing came from Hong Kong’s Nan Fung Group and venture capital firm HSG, formerly known as Sequoia China.

Ambitious expansion plans taking shape

The league’s growth trajectory appears promising following its successful debut tournament. The inaugural event in Hangzhou drew over 65 million live streaming views and attracted more than 29,000 live fans, demonstrating substantial appetite for elite college basketball across Asia.

AUBL’s 2026-2027 season will feature an expanded format, beginning with the AUBL 2026 Tournament in Hangzhou, China on August 2-9. Twelve participating universities, to be announced in May, will compete in this standalone tournament. The season will then evolve into a comprehensive 16-school, home-and-away format running from late November 2026 through early April 2027.

« Attending last year’s AUBL Finals in person and witnessing first-hand the energy in the arena, the passion of the fans, and the level of play on the court further reinforced my belief that the league is headed in the right direction, » Tsai explained. The league aims to create an Asian equivalent to March Madness, building upon the NBA‘s decades-long presence in the region while establishing a distinctly Asian college basketball tradition.