On Thursday, Adam Silver, NBA Commissioner was interviewed. The New York TimesHis league does not take China lightly and denies accusations it is playing blackball against Enes Kanter Freedom, a former player. Given the league’s actions on both regards, his claims rank low on the credibility meter.
Commissioner Silver said “virtually every major U.S. company” is doing business with China, and asked, “Why is the NBA being singled out as the one company that should now boycott China? It’s very difficult for the league to practice foreign policy,” Silver said.
China is the NBA’s largest market, and when people employed by NBA teams have criticized that ruthless nation, it has banned local broadcasts. The NBA made a loss by provoking China this way. In 2019, Daryl Morey (former Houston General Manager) advocated freedom in Hong Kong and China ended all NBA broadcasts in that season. Freedom began a campaign in 2021 against China’s human rights violations. The Boston Celtics broadcast was banned from that country. The NBA understands it must appease its Chinese allies.
Silver also refused to admit the league’s hypocrisy in withdrawing from Russia and maintaining business dealings with the communist dictatorship of China.
No one is asking the NBA to “practice foreign policy.” That’s an air ball cop-out. The NBA is not being asked to participate in domestic policies. It is too involved with that because of its extreme social justice activism, partisan politics and radical social justice. The problem is the NBA looks the other way on China’s human rights atrocities in order to protect a lucrative revenue source. It’s profits over principle.
Dylan Gwinn, who writes for Breitbart, said, “However, as a private business, the NBA does not need the United States government to issue a boycott of China for the league to walk away from its dealings with the communist country.”
The NBA “sought and in many ways secured a spot for itself as the premier American social justice league over the past two years,” Gwinn wrote. “So why shouldn’t it draw increased scrutiny if the league that claims to champion human rights and justice makes hundreds of millions of dollars a year doing business with the world’s most notorious trampler of human rights and justice?”
Freedom joined the Celtics in free agency at the start the current NBA Season. He has heavily criticised China via Twitter, TV interviews, and basketball shoes. He called for freedom of Tibet and all those who are enslaved in China. Boston trade him to Houston earlier this year because his playing time had been reduced. He was quickly released by the Rockets. He appears to have lost his NBA career due to his anti-China activism.
Silver said of Freedom: “We spoke directly about his activities this season, and I made it absolutely clear to him that it was completely within his right to speak out on issues that he was passionate about.” Well, actions speak louder than words, and he disputes the commissioner’s remarks. Freedom said two people pressured him to shut up.
“Instead of advocating on my behalf, I have encountered the union telling me I need to shut up and stop talking about the human rights violations in China,” Freedom.
“It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to realize why I got little playing time and was released,” Freedom commented. “But it does take people with a conscience to speak out and say it’s not right.”
Given the fact that Freedom was a prime-time player for Portland last season, the shabby treatment he has received from the NBA this season points directly to blackballing. Freedom has more to say about blackballing than Colin Kaepernick.
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