Tensions between the NBA and China appear to be waning to the point league Commissioner Adam Silver said games could be played in the country again.
It’s been five years since the controversy sparked by Houston Rockets GM Daryl Morey that led to Chinese broadcasters not airing games in the country.
But the relationship between the NBA and China has since mended, Silver said Thursday at the Columbia University Sports Management Conference, and he thinks games could be back there soon.
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NBA Commissioner Adam Silver arrives prior to the WNBA All-Star Game at Footprint Center. (Mark J. Rebilas/USA Today Sports)
“I think we will bring games back to China at some point,” he said. “China’s government took us off the air for a period of time. We accepted that. We stood by our values. … Anybody in our league has the right to speak out on political matters.”
The rift in the relationship came in 2019, when Morey posted on social media that he supported anti-government protests in Hong Kong.
What transpired after the post was financially detrimental to the NBA, according to Silver, because China is an important market for the league.
Silver also noted that Chinese officials wanted Morey fired in 2019 after he showed his support for the anti-government protests, leading to a disagreement from China on this issue.
In turn, Chinese broadcasts reacted by not airing two preseason games played in the country after the Los Angeles Lakers and Brooklyn Nets traveled to play there. Silver revealed that the league had suffered “dramatic” financial losses due to corporate sponsors fleeing and other factors.
However, in 2022, the blackout for China’s CCTV ended, which was a good sign in the eyes of the NBA. The league has been adamant about wanting to reach its global audience, while creating new demographics in different countries.
Brooklyn Nets owner Joe Tsai also mentioned that the league’s relationship with China is “in a very good place” when speaking with reporters.
“So, what happened before, I think it’s water under the bridge,” Tsai said, adding that China is the league’s “biggest fan base.”
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver speaks during the announcement of the NBA-backed Basketball Africa League at the Museum of Black Civilisations in Dakar July 30, 2019. (Seyllou/AFP via Getty Images)
But the league has been under fire for its business partnerships with China for years, in part because of league-backed training camps in Xinjiang, where the government represses the Uyghur population. The United States government has deemed it genocide by China.
That was recently brought up to Dallas Mavericks minority owner Mark Cuban, who posted on X that he is against “Chinese and all human rights violations.” However, he does agree with the NBA exporting its content to China because the league gets “paid for it.”
Other than the Uyghur genocide, China’s population control through forced abortion, involuntary implantation of birth control and other human rights violations have been the cause for controversy with the country and its acting government.
In 2022, an ESPN investigation found NBA owners had a combined $10 billion in China, which included an owner whose company had a joint venture with an entity sanctioned by the U.S. government.
Enes Kanter Freedom, a former NBA center, testified before Congress in 2023, arguing his criticism of China’s treatment of the Uyghur people affected his NBA career. Kanter Freedom has even suggested the NBA is run by “the Chinese dictatorship.”
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver at a press conference during the 2023 NBA Mexico City Game at the Arena CDMX. (Kirby Lee/USA Today Sports)
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The 2024-25 NBA regular season will kick off Oct. 22.
Fox News’ Jackson Thompson contributed to this report.
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