ANTA Sports, a Chinese athletic apparel and footwear producer, has halted contract renewal negotiations with the National Basketball Association (NBA) over Hong Kong-related comments from the general manager of the Houston Rockets and subsequent responses from senior NBA officials, the company said in a statement on Tuesday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 08th October, 2019) ANTA Sports, a Chinese athletic apparel and footwear producer, has halted contract renewal negotiations with the National Basketball Association (NBA) over Hong Kong-related comments from the general manager of the Houston Rockets and subsequent responses from senior NBA officials, the company said in a statement on Tuesday."Regarding the wrongful comments expressed by the Houston Rockets and senior NBA officials in recent days, we felt shocked and angry like many NBA fans in China. ANTA stands firmly against and opposes all kinds of activities that harm the motherland's interests. We would halt contract renewal negotiations with the NBA at once," the Chinese sportswear maker said in a statement posted on its official Weibo account.
ANTA Sports did not say whether the suspension would impact its contracts with endorsed NBA stars such as Klay Thompson who plays for the Golden State Warriors.
The Houston Rockets and the NBA have been facing overwhelming criticism from Chinese state press and Chinese basketball fans, after Daryl Morey, the general manager of the Rockets, posted a picture on Friday that said:" fight for freedom, stand with Hong Kong" that was quickly deleted.
Morey's apparent support for the ongoing protests in Hong Kong triggered a firestorm in China, where basketball fans and state media denounced his post and demanded an apology from the Houston Rockets.
The Rockets executive's subsequent attempts to clarify his position failed to pacify the anger in China. Morey wrote that he did not mean for his tweet "to cause any offense to Rockets fans and friends of mine in China," adding that his tweets did "in no way represent the Rockets or the NBA."
At the same time, Joe Tsai, a board member of Chinese internet giant Alibaba who became the majority owner of the Brooklyn Nets in September, issued an open letter on Facebook, explaining why the issue was particularly controversy-prone.
"Supporting a separatist movement in a Chinese territory is one of those third-rail issues, not only for the Chinese government, but also for all citizens in China. The one thing that is terribly misunderstood, and often ignored, by the western press and those critical of China is that 1.4 billion Chinese citizens stand united when it comes to the territorial integrity of China and the country's sovereignty over her homeland. This issue is non-negotiable." Tsai wrote in the letter.
NBA's initial statement saying it recognized that "the views expressed by Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey have deeply offended many of our friends and fans in China, which is regrettable," faced major backlash from the media and politicians at home.
"As a lifelong @HoustonRockets fan, I was proud to see @dmorey call out the Chinese Communist Party's repressive treatment of protestors in Hong Kong. Now, in pursuit of big $$, the @nba is shamefully retreating," US Senator Ted Cruz said in a post on Twitter.
In response to such domestic criticism, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver issued a statement on Tuesday, admitting that "our initial statement left people angered, confused or unclear on who we are or what the NBA stands for" and reiterating the league's firm support for freedom of expression.
"Values of equality, respect and freedom of expression have long defined the NBA � and will continue to do so. As an American-based basketball league operating globally, among our greatest contributions are these values of the game," Silver said in the statement.
The NBA commissioner added that the league would not regulate what players, employees and team owners say on different issues.
In response to the latest statement from the NBA, the sports channel of the state-owned China Central Television (CCTV) said on Tuesday that it would suspend broadcasting all NBA games, including the two preseason games that were expected to be played in China this week.
Similarly, Tencent Sports, which signed a five-year partnership extension deal with the NBA in July, said it would halt broadcasting NBA preseason games, including the two games expected to be held in China, on Tuesday.
The Los Angeles Lakers and the Brooklyn Nets are expected to play two preseason games in China this week, as part of the annual tradition that started in 2004, when NBA began its major marketing expansion into the Chinese market riding on the success of Yao Ming, who played for the Houston Rockets at the time.
Yao spent his eight-year career in the NBA playing solely for the Houston Rockets, which became one of the most popular NBA teams in China. The NBA's popularity in China has also grown significantly since Yao began to play for the Rockets. NBA stars such as Lebron James, James Harden (a star on the Rockets) and Stephen Curry have become fan favorites in China and would travel to the country during the off-season in the summer for various commercial tours.
Massive protests in Hong Kong, triggered by the now-shelved controversial extradition bill, have persisted for almost four months and turned more violent since the beginning of October, as protesters called for the local government to meet their remaining demands, including universal suffrage and an independent investigation into alleged police brutality. The demands did not include calls for independence.
Beijing has suggested that foreign interference caused the political crisis in Hong Kong and expressed full support for actions of the local authorities.
