One tweet. That’s all it took to tarnish the relationship between the NBA and China – possibly forever.
Wait, what’s going on?
On Friday, October 4, Daryl Morey, general manager for the Houston Rockets, shared a graphic in a since-deleted tweet that read, “Fight for freedom, stand with Hong Kong.” As protests rage on in Hong Kong, China saw this tweet as a challenge to the nation’s authority over its own territory, and reacted accordingly. 
The Chinese Basketball Association canceled a G-League exhibition game it was hosting – one of those teams is the affiliate of the Houston Rockets. Then, China’s state-run TV network CCTV and Tencent Sports, which streams NBA games in China, announced they were both suspending NBA broadcasts.
Morey, after deleting his initial tweet, tried clarifying his tweet. But, the damage was already done.
Every single one of the NBA’s official Chinese partners has suspended ties with the league – from fast-food chain Dicos to Changhong Electric.
So, how did the NBA respond?
Poorly….at first.
The NBA is known as a progressive league that lets its players stand up for their beliefs. So, people expected the league to defend one of its employees for doing the same. That wasn’t the case.
Here’s the initial statement from the NBA post-tweet:
While Daryl has made it clear that his tweet does not represent the Rockets or the NBA, the values of the league support individuals educating themselves and sharing their views on matters important to them. We have 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.
I don’t think you need my PR wisdom to see through this statement. The NBA showed what it values the most – money. China is the most populous country in the world, and losing a partnership with the country could cost the league billions.
However, China is also known for its censorship – just ask Winnie the Pooh – and this statement was seen as the NBA catering to China. Backlash was fierce in the United States with fans, reporters and even politicians criticizing the NBA. Heck, we finally found something politicians on both sides agree on!
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver saw the heat his league was taking and had to decide what’s more important: retaining current fans or the lure of the Chinese market.
What did the NBA choose?
In a new statement, Silver pivoted from the league’s initial response and affirmed his support for Morey.
Silver was candid in his statement, acknowledging the backlash as well as the critique that the NBA only cared about growing its business. Silver reminded the world of how diverse the NBA is, including a mention of offices in four Chinese cities.
Then, Silver declared his stance.
“However, the NBA will not put itself in a position of regulating what players, employees and team owners say or will not say on these issues. We simply could not operate that way.”
Silver’s statement was apology free. And instead, he drew a line in the sand.
Now what?
Silver is hoping to salvage the NBA’s relationship with China.
To make matters more complicated, while this was all happening, the Brooklyn Nets and Los Angeles Lakers were in China for a set of preseason games. The Chinese government canceled each team’s NBA Cares event. But shockingly, allowed the teams to play the two games. Although, the league had to comply with intense media restrictions.
Chinese retail stores have also begun pulling NBA gear from its shelves, and advertisements were physically removed.
The NBA is in a no-win scenario. Do you cater to China and alienate U.S. fans, even if it means censoring media? Do you stay strong and lose billions of dollars from partnerships in China?
It also puts the players in a tough position. Do you stay silent? Or do you voice your opinion? While many have stayed silent, LeBron decided to voice his opinion and has received harsh criticism.