The NBA is returning to China, a half-decade after one tweet triggered a firestorm from the league’s second-most lucrative country.
The Brooklyn Nets and Phoenix Suns will play two preseason games in Macao next October, according to ESPN.
The Nets are owned by Chinese billionaire Joe Tsai, and the game will reportedly be played at the Venetian Arena, which is controlled by the Adelson family, who also own a majority of the Dallas Mavericks. The Adelsons’ company will also reportedly collaborate with the NBA on new youth development programs and social impact initiatives in Macao.
ESPN paints the games as the result of a yearslong process of repairing the league’s relationship with China. NBA China CEO Michael Ma has reportedly been helpful since his hire in 2020.
The NBA’s troubles began on Oct. 4, 2019, when then-Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey posted an image reading “Fight For Freedom. Stand With Hong Kong.” amid a series of protests in the special administrative regions against the Chinese government.
The NBA responded by immediately distancing itself from the tweet, as did Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta. Morey, now the president of basketball operations for the Philadelphia 76ers, later deleted the tweet and clarified the statement only reflected his personal views, but that single bit of criticism still provoked the full wrath of the Chinese government.
NBA games were removed from the country’s broadcast television, and the Rockets became an overnight taboo, despite being the team of national hero Yao Ming. The league played 28 preseason games in China from 2004 to 2019, but not one since The Tweet.
The NBA’s response also became a domestic political issue, with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle harshly criticizing the league for allowing China to suppress the free speech of an American citizen. There was no shortage of protests at games in the subsequent weeks.