NBA-China crisis: Adam Silver hopes for ‘mutual respect’ amid questions from US senator

NBA commissioner Adam Silver has said that he thinks the league’s relationship with China has improved in recent months amid controversy that will not go away, including questions of the NBA from a US senator.

The league fell foul of a tweet by Houston Rockets GM Daryl Morey last October that expressed support for Hong Kong’s anti-government protesters, which saw games pulled from China’s state broadcaster and the preseason games between the Los Angeles Lakers and Brooklyn Nets in Shanghai and Shenzhen threatened with cancellation.

Those preseason games went ahead but the fallout continued, with protests at regular season NBA games and the Houston Rockets snubbed in the mainland. In February, Silver speculated that the NBA may have lost up to US$400 million from China, which is its largest market outside the US.

“We’ve continued a dialogue with the Chinese, with our business partners there. In certain cases, with certain government officials,” Silver told Time on Tuesday, the same day that Beijing introduced its new National Security Law for Hong Kong.

“As I’ve said before … we come to China with a certain set of core American values and principles. They have a different view of how things have been done, how things should be done. And hopefully, we can find mutual respect for each other.”

The NBA’s relationship with China is an issue that is refusing to go away. US president Donald Trump brought up Morey’s part in it in a meeting with Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta in May, while The Washington Examiner on Monday published an opinion piece titled “NBA’s social justice jerseys give athletes a chance to take a stand on China”.

The NBA has reportedly agreed that players will be allowed to change their names on their jerseys for a social cause when the league resumes later this month. It is expected many will choose to represent the Black Lives Matter movement after US protests following the death of George Floyd in police custody.

On Tuesday, the Republican senator for Tennessee, Marsha Blackburn, sent a letter to Silver that contained several questions about the NBA’s relationship with China, Sports Illustrated reported.

“Your league’s business interests are closely intertwined with Communist China’s estimated US$4 billion NBA market. While the NBA has worked hard to raise awareness of social issues at home, there is concern that the league has turned a blind eye to human rights abuses committed abroad – even bowing down to pressure last year,” she wrote.

“The actions of the NBA and some players have created an appearance that your league prioritises profit over principle. This accusation may be inaccurate; however, I urge you to give it careful thought.”

The letter concludes with three questions for Silver. She gave him a July 21 deadline to answer.

“1. What are the anticipated financial consequences of China Central Television’s (CCTV) continued ban on the airing of NBA games?

“2. Please outline the scope of the NBA’s relationship with Chinese state-owned enterprise Alibaba.

“3. The NBA reportedly continues to operate a training center in Xinjiang, one of the world’s worst humanitarian zones. What steps is the NBA taking to shutter this location?”

Brooklyn Nets owner Joe Tsai is a co-founder of Alibaba, which also owns the Post.