Eric Bledsoe reportedly signing with Shanghai Sharks in China

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On3 image — Photo by Dylan Buell | Getty Images

Eric Bledsoe will start the upcoming basketball season in China.

According to Emiliano Carchia of Sportando, Bledsoe will join the Shanghai Sharks out of the Chinese Basketball Association. The 6-foot-1 point guard has spent the last 12 years in the NBA playing for four different franchises: the Phoenix Suns (five seasons), Los Angeles Clippers (four seasons), Milwaukee Bucks (three seasons), and New Orleans Pelicans (one season).

Bledsoe was the No. 18 overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft after spending one season at Kentucky, where he was named to the SEC All-Rookie Team as part of John Calipari’s first recruiting class in Lexington.

Eric Bledsoe is joining the Shanghai Sharks, I am told.
Bledsoe has played 54 games for the Clippers last season averaging 9.9ppg
— Emiliano Carchia (@Carchia) October 26, 2022

Bledsoe, 32, spent the 2021-22 season with the Los Angeles Clippers (the team that he began his career with from 2010-13) and played 54 games, including 29 starts. He averaged 9.9 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 4.2 assists in 25.2 minutes played per game. Bledsoe was a borderline All-Star during his stint with the Phoenix Suns (2013-17) and later helped turn Milwaukee into a title contender.

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Ahead of the shortened 2020-21 season, Bledsoe was included as part of a mega-deal that sent Jrue Holiday to the Bucks with Bledsoe and several first-round picks going to the New Orleans Pelicans. Milwaukee would go on to win the 2021 NBA Finals over the Phoenix Suns that same season. Bledsoe has since been traded two more times and was ultimately waived by the Portland Trail Blazers in July.

Now, he’ll head to the Shanghai Sharks, which is one of the most popular basketball franchises in the world, best known for helping develop NBA Hall of Famer Yao Ming before he came to the United States. More recently, it has become a hotbed for former NBA players to spend the twilight years of their careers. The likes of Michael Beasley, Gilbert Arenas, Jimmer Fredette, John Lucas III, and Delonte West have all had stints with the Sharks. Boston Celtics backup center Noah Vonleh played the 2021-22 season in Shanghai before making a return to the NBA.