The Red Panda makes a triumphant return at halftime during 76ers-Bulls
Popular NBA performer and Chinese-American acrobat The red panda was last seen by basketball fans during halftime of the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup final between Indiana Fever and Minnesota Link. She suffered a serious fracture to her left wrist after falling from her unicycle, an accident that required surgery after a lengthy hospital stay.
Now he’s returning to the NBA, debuting in the 2025-26 season halftime show game between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Chicago Bulls. A video posted by ClutchPoints on X shows Rong “Crystal” Niu performing her signature act of riding a seven-foot unicycle while spinning and stacking bowls on her head.
With enthusiastic cheers, the video shows an enthralled crowd with the familiar tune playing in the background. Niu debuted in 1993 and has more than 60 games a year for more than three decades. After the accident, The red panda spent about 11 hours in a hospital in Minneapolis and later underwent wrist surgery.
Another video, released by the Bulls, showed the Red Panda wearing Michael Jordan’s jersey number 45. Before the injury, she was constantly seen in big games, including halftime of Game 5 of the 2025 NBA Finals.
Niu has also made an impact on reality television, previously reaching the semi-finals of Britain’s Got Talent (Season 18) and the quarter-finals of America’s Got Talent (Season 8). She is a fourth-generation acrobat from Taiyuan, China, trained since childhood.
Niu was previously a touring member of the Shanghai Acrobatic Troupe and immigrated to the US as a teenager, becoming an official citizen in 1997.
“She’s recovering well and working out. She’s looking forward to performing this season,” Niu’s agent, Pat Figley said earlier about her recovery, according to Outkick.
Fans will no doubt be delighted to see that the recovery has gone as planned and the Red Panda is back in action.
2025-11-05 03:37:00
