The NBA is facing widespread condemnation Monday, a day after the league apologized following Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey’s tweet supporting the ongoing protests in Hong Kong.
On Friday, Morey, in a now-deleted tweet, posted an image that also said, “Fight for Freedom. Stand for Hong Kong,” amid increasing tension between Hong Kong and Beijing, which controls the territory. Morey later apologized for the tweet.
The NBA distanced themselves from the comment in a statement Sunday by NBA Chief Communications Officer Mike Bass, who said that the NBA has “great respect for the history and culture of China and hope that sports and the NBA can be used as a unifying force to bridge cultural divides and bring people together.”
The NBA found themselves in a precarious position considering their overseas partnership with China. In the aftermath of Morey’s tweet, the Chinese Basketball Association announced they were suspending their cooperation with the team. Further, Tencent Holdings, a Chinese tech conglomerate, reported that nearly 500 million people viewed NBA programming on the platform last year with more people tuning in to watch the final game of the NBA Finals than the number of Americans who watched it, according to The New York Times.
A number of people, including politicians on both sides of the political spectrum, have voiced their outrage that the NBA would issue an apology for supporting what many consider pro-Democratic protests.
[Related: NBA commissioner Adam Silver breaks silence on controversial China tweet from general manager]
No one should implement a gag rule on Americans speaking out for freedom.
I stand with the people of Hong Kong in their pursuit of democratic rights.
I stand with Americans who want to voice their support for the people of Hong Kong.
Unacceptablehttps://t.co/5B5KMGZujh
— Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) October 7, 2019
I am so disgusted with the @NBA right now. I’m pulling for Hong Kong, of course, but China is literally an apartheid state committing cultural genocide and religious persecution on a mass scale. This should be a no brainer. Woke at home, lickspittles to power abroad I guess.
— Jonah Goldberg (@JonahNRO) October 7, 2019
The NBA is covering for China—pathetic. Just like Hollywood. “NBA chief communications officer said the league recognizes that Morey’s tweet ‘deeply offended many of our friends and fans in China, which is regrettable.’” https://t.co/IePyc5Mkwy
— Laura Ingraham (@IngrahamAngle) October 7, 2019
A number of people also pointed out that the NBA has a track record on both supporting liberal issues as well as allowing players to speak on controversial matters. Back in 2014, a number of NBA players, including superstar LeBron James, wore pregame warm up shirts that read, “I can’t breathe,” which was a reference to Eric Garner, a black man who was killed by police officers through a banned move used to subdue suspects.
Further, the NBA moved the location of the 2017 All-Star Game from Charlotte as a result of North Carolina’s House Bill 2, which limited anti-discrimination laws.
This NBA-Hong Kong-China mess is fascinating. The NBA is super woke when it comes to things like made up US transgender bathroom disputes, but bent the knee to China when Daryl Morey came out in support of democracy & upset communists. Shows you how hypocritical the league is.
— Clay Travis (@ClayTravis) October 7, 2019
NBA players have no problem speaking out on politics & social issues in America.
But they apologize to #China for a pro democracy tweet from an @NBA team executive.
Hypocrites https://t.co/Yoeyk7o8XO
— Marco Rubio (@marcorubio) October 7, 2019
