The relationship between the NBA and China appears to have recovered.
ESPN reported late Thursday that the association will play the preseason play in Chinamarking the NBA’s first trip there since 2019.
The Brooklyn Nets and Phoenix Suns were scheduled to play two preseason games there.
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A general overview of the Houston Rockets against the New Orleans Pelicans as part of the Global Games 2016 – China at LeSports Center on October 12, 2016 in Beijing. (Joe Murphy/NBAE via Getty Images)
It has been five years since the controversy arose Houston Rockets GM Daryl Morey led to Chinese broadcasters not airing games in the country. Morey posted on social media that he supported the anti-government protests in Hong Kong.
Chinese officials wanted Morey fired in 2019 after he expressed support for the anti-government protests, sparking disagreement with China over the issue.
In turn, Chinese broadcasters responded by not broadcasting two preseason matches played next in the country Los Angeles Lakers and Brooklyn Nets traveled to play there.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said the league has suffered “dramatic” financial losses due to the fallout from China. (Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images)
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NBA Commissioner Adam Silver revealed that the league had suffered “dramatic” financial losses due to the flight of corporate sponsors and other factors.
However, in October, Silver said he thought a return was possible. NBA players have made numerous appearances in China over the years, despite the fractured relationship between the league and the country.
The league has been under fire for years for its business partnerships with China, in part because of league-backed training camps in Xinjiang, where the government oppresses the Uighur population. The US 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 abuses.” However, he does agree that the NBA is exporting the content to China because the league is “paid for it.”
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver speaks to the media during a press conference at the United Center on February 15, 2020 in Chicago. (Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
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Enes Kanter Freedom, a former NBA center, testified before Congress in 2023 and argued that his criticism of China’s treatment of the Uighur people affected his NBA career. Kanter Freedom has even suggested that the NBA is run by “the Chinese dictatorship.”
Scott Thompson and Jackson Thompson of Fox News contributed to this report.
