Former NBA star Shaquille O’Neal voiced support for Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey, who threw NBA-Chinese relations into turmoil by tweeting support for anti-China protesters in Hong Kong.
O’Neal weighed in on the controversy on TNT’s pregame show on Tuesday on the first night of the NBA season.
The NBA and its players have struggled to navigate the fallout from Chinese censors and United States public relations. NBA commissioner Adam Silver distanced himself from Morey’s comments, and several players have criticized Morey for speaking out.
Morey has since deleted the tweet and apologized for any offense.
“We, as the American people, do a lot of business with China, and they know and understand our values, and we understand their values. One of the best values here in American is free speech,” O’Neal began.
“We’re allowed to say what we want to say, and we’re allowed to speak up about injustices, and that’s just how it goes. If people don’t understand that, that’s something they have to deal with,” O’Neal said.
The basketball Hall of Famer said that the controversy over Morey’s tweet was “unfortunate for both parties” and that many that commented on the tweet did not “know what they’re talking about.”
“Daryl Morey was right. Whenever you see something wrong going on anywhere in the world, you should have the right to say, ‘That’s not right.’ That’s what he did,” O’Neal said.
Shaq on Daryl Morey/China “One of our best values here in America is free speech we’re allowed to say what we want to say and we are allowed to speak out on injustices and that’s just how it goes. and if people don’t understand that that’s something they have to deal with. pic.twitter.com/vefcHSPlMD
— gifdsports (@gifdsports) October 22, 2019
