NBA exiting China ‘should be for US government to decide’, says Adam Silver
- NBA commissioner Adam Silver points to long-standing push for expansion into China backed by governments on both sides of the aisle
- League’s relationship with China increasingly politicised amid backdrop of support for Black Lives Matter and US social justice
NBA commissioner Adam Silver has said the decision to whether the league should do business in China should rest with the US government.
Speaking to CNN’s Bob Costas in a Tuesday interview, Silver responded to a question about the NBA’s stance on China amid deteriorating US-China relations and allegations of widespread human rights abuses.
“There are definitely trade-offs there, and somebody could say given the system of government in China, you the NBA should make a decision not to operate there,” Silver said.
“I would only say that at the end of the day, I think those are decisions for our government in terms of where American businesses should operate.”
As the league has shown increasing public support for the Black Lives Matter movement and social justice causes in the US it has come under increasing criticism for its ongoing relationship with China, with several people demanding it leave the country.