The NBA’s relationship with China, which was strained by the general manager’s tweet in 2019, ends with Friday’s announcement that two preseason games will be played in Macau in October.
The Brooklyn Nets and Phoenix Suns will play on October 10 and 12, 2025, at Macao’s Venetian Arena, marking the first games since 17 NBA teams played 28 preseason games in China since 2004 to 2019.
Basketball is very popular in China, and the market was worth hundreds of millions of dollars to the NBA. However, there was a split when then-general manager Daryl Morey tweeted in support of the anti-government protests in Hong Kong in October 2019.
NBA commissioner Adam Silver supported personal freedom of speech and did not punish Morey, the current GM of the Philadelphia 76ers.
In response, sponsorship was cut and league games were not shown on CCTV, China’s state-funded broadcaster, for one year after Morey’s tweet. Silver estimated in 2021 that the NBA lost $400 million that year due to poor relations.
NBA games, however, began to be shown regularly on CCTV in 2022 and became available on the streaming service.
NBA players, including stars Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors and De’Aaron Fox of the Sacramento Kings, have been seen in China. Macao will host a celebrity basketball game on Saturday featuring NBA superstars.
The Venetian Arena is owned by Las Vegas Sands Corp., which operates a casino there. Macau is the only place in China with legal casino gambling. Dallas Mavericks captain Patrick Dumont is president and CEO of Las Vegas Sands.
Joe Tsai, founder and chairman of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, owns the Nets.
–Field Level Media
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