"Yao was the game changer. Without him coming to America, the bridge may have never been built for me to come across," he wrote on his Chinese social media account, which has more than 3.7 million followers. The cover picture for his account reads: Work hard in silence, let success make the noise.

"I don't really look at myself as a hero or anything of that sort," he told China Daily. "I just look at me as a person, as a bridge to the excitement that a lot of people in China never felt before."

In the eyes of some, the sportsman's transformation is nearly too good to be true.

"Stephon Marbury has gone from being one of the most hated sports stars in his native US to being one of the most loved in China in just a few years," said Mark Dreyer, a former reporter for Sky Sports and the AP who now runs China Sports Insider.

"While American sports fans saw him as arrogant, aloof, overrated and as the proverbial 'cancer' in the dressing room, his persona in China has been humble and open off the court and hugely positive on it, through a combination of coaching, mentoring and inspirational play.

"You would never believe it's the same person - indeed, many US sports fans who have read of his latest heroics in China struggle to accept it's the same Marbury."

So how has he done it? Marbury has cleverly embraced the Beijing culture and given fans a few off-court reasons to like him, too, such as riding the subway, eating local delicacies and chatting with fans through social media.

But it has not been easy. The player lives a disciplined and rather solitary life, with his family still living in New York. His apartment is spacious but equipped with only basic furniture, while his living room has a massage table and a 25-kg dumbbell. He has a personal trainer to keep him fit.

"The drama in his life is largely why Marbury is accepted as a symbolic hero in China," said Yang Yi, a renowned basketball commentator and one of Marbury's agents. "His career has been full of ups and downs, but he has been reborn in China.

"Moreover, he has a charisma that suits Beijing. He likes what Beijingers like, and he's not just here to make money like some other foreign players. His behavior is sometimes showy, but he appreciates Chinese culture."

Despite his age, Marbury said he has no intention of retiring or leaving the capital anytime soon.

"I'm thinking about how to continue to elevate my body through training," he said. "I can be different from all the other athletes who stopped playing at my age. This is a great opportunity for me to continue playing as long as I want by training my body.

"Living in Beijing has been a great experience. This is my home, and this is where I live."

Sun Xiaochen contributed to this story.

Contact the writer at yuyilei@chinadaily.com.cn