Kevin Garnett has joined the long list of NBA stars that toured China this summer, though his itinerary is rather surprising, starting in Harbin. It is so far in the North that it’s actually just a few hours’ drive away from where I’m currently based in Russia.

The organizers have set up a stage on the central pedestrian street of Harbin, and what seems to be thousands of fans flocked to see the event. I know that place very well, as I’ve been learning Chinese for a month just a few blocks from there, across the Stalin Park.

Don’t be surprised to see a Russian Orthodox Cathedral standing nearby in the video, as it’s Harbin’s most recognizable building, left there by Harbin Russians and turned into a museum by now.

Here’s what Red’s Army blog posted earlier after seeing the photos:

“The one thing that really blows me away about some of these pics is the amount of fans that turned-out. Now I know KG is huge worldwide, but this crowd rivaled some of the Sox & Celtics’ victory parades we had here in Boston recently”.

Here’s guessing that it was the biggest event in Harbin in quite some time. It is a great city, which is tenth in population in China, and yet it’s very remote and rather quiet as compared to Shanghai or Beijing, and not really spoiled by superstar visits.

On stage, Garnett has unveiled his new signature shoe, Anta KG III.

Among other things, a Chinese journalist has asked KG about his relationship with Didier Drogba, who is the biggest star from abroad currently playing in China. Garnett said yet another time that he is a fan of Chelsea F.C. He added that he only met Drogba briefly, yet sent him a telegram, congratulating on a championship, which probably shows how close of a friends they are. A telegram.

Garnett recalled that Drogba also went to see him play in an exhibition game in London. No surprise as Drogba is a basketball guy himself.

Too bad that Shanghai is not on Garnett’s schedule, as Drogba’s team plays a home game September 15th.

Now, Garnett’s tour goes on, with a complete schedule as follows: Harbin (Sep. 6), Zhengzhou (Sep. 7), Chengdu (Sep. 8) and Shenzhen (Sep. 9-11). So there’s probably more to come about Garnett’s travels.