LiAngelo Ball, Cody Riley and Jalen Hill, the UCLA basketball players held in China over allegations of shoplifting, are on their way back to the United States.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the trio were seen checking into a flight bound for LA at Shanghai’s Pudong International Airport on Tuesday. The Pac-12 later confirmed the report and UCLA said the players will appear at a news conference on Wednesday, along with their coach Steve Alford. LiAngelo Ball is the brother of Los Angeles Lakers rookie Lonzo Ball.

Earlier on Tuesday, Donald Trump said he had a long conversation on the matter with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping. “They’re working on it right now,” Trump told reporters in the Philippines as he prepared to return to Washington after a visit to Asia that included an earlier stop in Beijing. “He’s been terrific,” Trump said, in an apparent reference to Xi.

Three UCLA players arrested in China to stay behind as team flies home – report Read more

On Monday, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said that three American men were being investigated in the eastern city of Hangzhou for alleged theft and that China and the US were in contact over the matter. “China will handle this case in accordance with law and protect the lawful rights and interests of the people involved,” Geng said.

Chinese authorities detained the UCLA freshmen for questioning last week about allegations of shoplifting before a recent game against Georgia Tech in Shanghai. The UCLA team returned to the US without them on Saturday.



ESPN last week reported the players could be Hangzhou for “a week or two” while the situation is resolved. ESPN said there is surveillance footage of the players shoplifting from three stores inside a high-end mall. They were questioned when allegedly taking sunglasses from a branch of Louis Vuitton.