I have worked and lived on the internet for a decade, and I have learned that the power of K-pop fans is never underestimated. Anything can happen online when they are mobilized.
Andrew Wiggins was the NBA All-Star Game starter.
The Golden State Warrior was named one of the five best players in the Western Conference when it was announced last night that he would be a starter. To be clear, the former No. 1 overall pick is a good player and has done a great job changing his reputation as a draft bust. The All-Star starter felt a bit much to a lot of fans.
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Even though he has been a wonderful player, and even though he has been a good one, no one thinks he will crack the top 10 in the NBA. Look at his statistics against a player who was not even close to earning a spot.
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This is the thing. All-Star selections are not always left to the experts. 50 percent to the fans, 25 percent to media voters, and 25 percent to player votes determine the starting lineup. Thanks to K-pop stans, he made his hay with the fans. Only four media members voted for Wiggins, while 98 voted for James. Only 46 players voted for him, less than teammate Draymond Green and Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert.
In third place for Western Conference frontcourt fan voting, he got 3,452,586 fans votes. Clippers forward Paul George trailed by more than 600,000 votes.
You can thank K-pop stans for that. No, really.
It mostly comes down to a few posts from the massive global star, BamBam. He is a huge deal and you might not have heard of him. Like huge. He has more than 15 million followers on social media. A few weeks ago, BamBam was named the Warriors global ambassador.
A member of the band GOT7 is acting like a good ambassador by supporting the All-Star candidacy. The post was shared over 40,000 times and racked up 68,000 likes.
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Each player's name is counted as a vote for the All-Star game. Retweets count as well. SFGate pointed out earlier this month that the only other NBA All-Star post with even comparable engagement was from BamBam. The number of K-pop fans who followed the example of BamBam is not even taken into account.
This is hilarious and amazing. People who are upset about the All-Star Game should go outside and take a deep breath. Touch the grass. It is a game.
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The internet makes everything connected. There is a chance that K-pop and U.S. professional basketball will be linked.
It shows that K-pop fans can do anything online. Q-Anon followers have been overwhelmed with fancams. The snitch cam was shut down to arrest protesters. After the murder of George Floyd, they took their power of amplification and used it to promote the #BlackLivesMatter movement. K-pop fans can make any event happen, from the good to the bad.
It is silly that Wiggins is an All-Star starter. One person has a lot of influence. The Golden State Warriors are kind of genius at co-opting BamBam's power.
The franchise seems to understand that there is a universal truth.
