A Republican senator has relived a story that dominated the NBA at a time that it feels years ago, but that actually emerged just eight months ago.
Tennessee Senator Marsha Blackburn sent a letter to NBA Commissioner Adam Silver on Tuesday, asking multiple questions about his league’s relationship with China, according to Sports Illustrated.
In the letter, Blackburn praises the NBA’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, and then mentions “concern” for the NBA’s interests in China:
His league’s business interests are closely intertwined with Communist China’s estimated $ 4 billion NBA market. While the NBA has worked hard to raise awareness of social issues at home, there is concern that the league has turned a blind eye to human rights abuses committed abroad, even yielding to pressure last year. . NBA actions and some players have created an appearance where their league prioritizes profit over principle. This accusation may be inaccurate; However, I urge you to think carefully.
Blackburn’s letter went on to repeat some of the most controversial points in the controversy created by the tweet from Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey in support of a free Hong Kong. That included the letter from Brooklyn Nets owner Joseph Tsai, which labeled Hong Kong protesters as a “separatist movement,” and LeBron James called Morey “misinformed” and “not very polite” and the relative silence of Gregg Popovich and Steve Kerr on the matter.
The letter ends with Blackburn presenting three questions for Silver to answer, with a July 21 deadline:
1. What are the anticipated financial consequences of the continued ban on China Central Television (CCTV) on NBA game broadcasting?
2. Indicate the scope of the NBA’s relationship with the Chinese state-owned company Alibaba.
3. The NBA reportedly continues to operate a training center in Xinjiang, one of the worst humanitarian zones in the world. What steps is the NBA taking to close this location?
The second question is obviously loaded since Tsai is a co-founder of Alibaba. The third question is something the NBA has never adequately addressed, although we might have received an answer when a sign saying “Google Uyghurs” was confiscated in a preseason game by the Washington Wizards.
That sign was referring to the Uighurs, a Muslim ethnic group that is being jailed en masse by the Chinese government and even reports of forced organ harvesting. Approximately 1 million members of the group are reportedly being held in camps in the Xinjiang region, where the NBA also owns a training center.
Blackburn has frequently criticized China since he took office in 2019. Even the current tweet pinned on his official Twitter account is a montage of his demanding payment from China for various atrocities, including “shipping” the new coronavirus to the States. United.
Obviously, Silver is already dealing with a lot of things as his league tries to get back to playing despite increasing coronavirus numbers and discourse on racial inequality. And yet, it should come as no surprise that some are trying to bring China back into the league debate.
The NBA has a lot on its plate right now. (Photo by Stacy Revere / Getty Images)
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