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Agence France-Presse

Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey, whose tweet last year supporting Hong Kong freedom led to a China rift with the NBA, stepped down on Thursday.
Morey departed of his own choice after guiding the Rockets basketball operations since the 2007-08 season, making the decision after the Rockets were beaten in the second round of the NBA play-offs in the Covid-19 quarantine bubble in Orlando.
Chinese basketball fans delighted after Daryl Morey quits Rockets
“After returning from Orlando and reflecting on what has been an amazing 14 years with the Houston Rockets, and after discussing my thoughts with family and close friends, I’ve decided I’ll be stepping away from the Rockets organisation effective November 1,” Morey said in a statement.
His final campaign brought severe scrutiny after a tweet one year ago regarding Hong Kong protests that led to China suspending sponsorship deals with the NBA and pulling NBA game telecasts off Chinese television for a year, resuming only with last Friday’s fifth game of the NBA Finals.
 


 
NBA-China: Houston Rockets GM Daryl Morey’s Hong Kong tweet one year on
NBA commissioner Adam Silver and Houston Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta both backed Morey, the 2018 NBA Executive of the Year, despite Chinese calls for his dismissal and what Silver estimated were financial losses to the NBA of about US$400 million.
“Tilman and I have had many conversations since I returned and his unwavering support and counsel during our time together has been critical to our success,” Morey said.

After the Rockets were eliminated from this year’s NBA play-offs in the Covid-19 quarantine bubble at Orlando, Morey approached Fertitta about leaving and an exit deal was completed.
“Daryl is a brilliant innovator who helped the Rockets become a perennial contender,” Fertitta said. “I have truly enjoyed working with Daryl and couldn’t have asked for a better general manager to have at the start of my ownership.”


Morey, who had signed a five-year contract extension in March 2019, remains to the end of October to help the Rockets complete their search for a new coach.
Rafael Stone, the Rockets’ executive vice-president of basketball operations, will be promoted into Morey’s old job, while Eli Witus will be promoted to assistant general manager, according to the reports.
LeBron James’ ‘uneducated’ Daryl Morey stance and Twitter clarification reignite Houston Rockets row
“I am very confident that the future – for the Rockets and for our incredible fans – is in great hands, and that the Rockets will continue to perform at the highest level,” Morey said.
The Rockets have made the NBA play-offs for each of the past eight seasons, the league’s longest active run. They lost to the eventual champions Los Angeles Lakers in the Western Conference semi-finals.


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NBA (National Basketball Association)

Hong Kong-tweeting NBA Houston Rockets executive Daryl Morey steps down

Daryl Morey is stepping down on his own accord, a person familiar with the decision said. Photo: AP

FILE - In this file photo taken Oct. 15, 2019, demonstrators hold up signs in support of Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey during a rally at the Southorn Playground in Hong Kong. CCTV announced Friday, Oct. 9, 2020 that it would air Game 5 of the NBA Finals between the Los Angeles Lakers and Miami Heat — the first time that the league would appear on the network since the rift that started when Morey tweeted support for anti-government protesters in Hong Kong. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein, File)

NBA: Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban ‘OK with doing business with China’

Oklahoma City Thunder's Terrance Ferguson on the NBA court with the message ‘Black Lives Matter’. Photo: AP

FILE - In this Dec. 8, 2017, file photo, Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban yells after a technical foul during the second half of the team's NBA basketball game against the Milwaukee Bucks in Milwaukee. Cuban is talking once again about running for president and this time no one is laughing--at least publicly--at the thought. (AP Photo/Morry Gash, File)

NBA-China relations returning to normal after CCTV brings back live coverage for game five of  Finals

Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James reacts after making basket against the Miami Heat in game five of the 2020 NBA Finals. The game was the first shown on China’s CCTV in a year. Photo: USA Today Sports

NBA-China: Houston Rockets GM Daryl Morey’s Hong Kong tweet one year on

Protesters shout slogans at Southorn Playground in Hong Kong on October 15, 2019, during a rally in support of NBA basketball Rockets general manager Daryl Morey and against comments made by Lakers superstar LeBron James. Photo: AFP

Sport

Basketball


Morey was the cause off a huge rift between the NBA and China after tweeting support for Hong Kong protesters last year
China has only recently allowed NBA action to return to TV in the country



Morey was the cause off a huge rift between the NBA and China after tweeting support for Hong Kong protesters last year.


US-China relations

Hong Kong protests

Social media