NBA commissioner Adam Silver always publicly supports players/staff when they're pushing political issues.

Whether it's NBA commissioner supporting players with "I can't breathe" or "Enough" shirts, allowing players to kneel, or even publicly supporting players like Enes Kanter who condemned a Turkish president and got a huge backlash from Turkey (Turkish sports news won't even mention his name/team).

NBA loves to play the "We're socially conscious and woke" card.

So I can't wait for Adam Silver to step in and offer his support for a GM that made a pro Hong Kong social media post. You know, because of Chinese human rights violations, heavy handed police tactics, organ harvesting, locking people in concentration "education" camps is a LOT worse than any of the perceived social injustices in America.

Not holding my breath because we know damn well it's not about being "socially conscious" and "wokeness," it's simply about the almighty dollar.

https://www.foxnews.com/sports/chinese-suspends-work-houston-rockets-hong-kong-tweet

Almost perfect timing right after that latest South Park episode.

It would be awesome if a bunch of NBA players and managers all jumped on board to support Hong Kong in a unified effort. It would really show if they truly had any balls or simply chose "safe" social causes that won't affect their wallet.

the message being deleted tells you all you need to know

Vans also recently deleted pro-HK protest shoe design from a contest.

See the recent South Park episode. Fuck China.

I would say I'm quitting watching bassetbaw, but I did that when the Dixie Classic got busted for point shaving in '61.

Wow.

'He wasn't educated on the situation at hand, and he spoke': LeBron James breaks his silence on NBA's China controversy and CRITICIZES Houston Rockets GM Daryl Morey's for tweeting in support of Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters



LeBron James believes Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey 'was either misinformed or not really educated on the situation' when he tweeted in support of Hong Kong's pro-democracy protests.

The Los Angeles Lakers superstar broke his silence as the team returned home from a week-long tour of China which has been dominated by backlash at Morey's incendiary tweet.

'Yes, we do have freedom of speech,' James said. 'But at times, there are ramifications for the negative that can happen when you're not thinking about others, when you only think about yourself. I don't want to get into a word or sentence feud with Daryl Morey, but I believe he wasn't educated on the situation at hand, and he spoke.'

James's Lakers and the Brooklyn Nets were thrust into the controversy when the clubs arrived in China last week to play two exhibition games on Thursday and Saturday amidst turmoil after Morey tweeted a graphic that said, 'Fight for Freedom. Stand with Hong Kong.'

More

 Yeah I guess their isn't enough criminals in Hong Kong for Lebron "hands up don't shoot" James to support the people of Hong Kong. Fucking hypocrite, people will be real life executed by china and that fuck doesn't have the balls to speak out about how their lives matter.

Lol, as if that fuckhead is somehow more educated on the situation.

He's just relaying what the managers told him to say.

Is there a list of companies that have bent the knee for the chicoms? I know of the NBA, Vans, Blizzard...

Activision Blizzard: The gaming company suspended a professional player of one of their card games following the player's stated support for pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong. The Hong Kong protests began in June in response to an extradition bill that would have subjected Hong Kong residents to China's rule of law; in effect jeopardizing the civil and political rights afforded to the city's residents as a legacy of its colonial era.

American Airlines: Changed descriptions listing Taiwan as a country following pushback from China's Civil Aviation Authority. The Chinese government in Beijing claims sovereignty over Taiwan, which is self-governed.

Apple: Removed an app from the Apple Store that aided Hong Kong protesters in tracking police and removed the Taiwanese flag emoji from Hong Kong iPhones.

Audi: Used a China map at a press conference that excluded Taiwan, South Tibet, and parts of the Xinjiang region; a company statement, then apologized for their "incorrect geographical map."

Cathay Pacific: China ordered Cathay Pacific, a Hong Kong-based airline, to suspend staff who support and participate in the pro-democracy Hong Kong protests.

Coach: Referenced Hong Kong and Taiwan as individual countries on a shirt, then later called the design a "serious inaccuracy."

Disney/ESPN: An internal memo distributed to ESPN employees prohibits reference to Chinese politics when alluding to a supportive tweet for Hong Kong protesters from the manager of the Houston Rockets.

Delta Airlines: Listed Tibet and Taiwan as countries on its website, and was ordered by China's Civil Aviation Administration to make an apology. Delta called their listing a "grave mistake" with no "political intention."

Gap: After selling a shirt that featured an "incorrect" map of China by not featuring Taiwan or South Tibet and receiving negative comments on Weibo, Gap apologized and removed the shirt from its stores.

Marriott International: In a customer questionnaire, Marriott listed Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau as separate countries; Marriott was ordered by the Shanghai's Cyberspace Administration to take down its website for a week.

Medtronic: Listed "Republic of China (Taiwan)" on its website, then changed it and issued an apology following pressure from Chinese authorities.

Mercedes-Benz: Posted an Instagram photo accompanied by a quote from the Dalai Lama, then deleted the post, and offered a public apology to the Chinese people.

Muji: Eliminated maps in their store catalogues deemed "incorrect" by China's National Administration of Surveying, Mapping and Geoinformation.

NBA: The General Manager of the Houston Rockets, Daryl Morey, tweeted — then deleted — support for Hong Kong protesters; Chinese companies revoked sponsorship and the issue sparked controversy within the NBA.

Nike: Merchandise for the Houston Rockets was removed from Nike stores in large cities in China following Morey's tweet.

Ray-Ban: Changed website location listings from "Taiwan" to "China Taiwan," Unlike other cases, it is unclear whether or not this decision followed pressure from China.

Swarovski: Listed Hong Kong as a country on its website then apologized on their Facebook page for "misleading communication on China's National Sovereignty."

Tiffany & Co: Tweeted then deleted an ad campaign with a model covering her eye, a move that appeared similar to gestures made by Hong Kong pro-democracy activists. The company dubbed the image "was in no way intended to be a political statement of any kind."

Tik Tok: The platform, owned by Chinese company ByteDance, told moderators to censor videos featuring references to Tiananmen Square and Tibetan independence, as well as references to the banned religious group Falun Gong. These requests became public following the release of leaked documents from Tik Tok's moderation guidelines.

Vans: Eliminated Hong Kong protesters' entries in their annual Vans Custom Culture competition. In a statement, Vans said: "As a brand that is open to everyone, we have never taken a political position and therefore review designs to ensure they are in line with our company's long-held values of respect and tolerance, as well as with our clearly communicated guidelines for this competition."

Versace: Described Hong Kong as a country on a shirt that went viral. The fashion brand then tweeted an apology from Chief Creative Officer Donatella Versace apologizing for the shirt.

Viacom / Paramount Pictures: Trailers for "Top Gun: Maverick" censored the Taiwan flag in a jacket shown in the trailer, worn by Tom Cruise.



Zara: Listed Taiwan on a country list on their website; received an order from Shanghai's Cyberspace Administration to publish an apology.

Lebron made a stupid comment which I'm sure he'll be backtracking at any moment.

What's sad is that Lebron pulled this same act before almost a decade ago.

Now over 10 years later he's still "unsure" to form an opinion...

What I'm reading on sports forums is that everyone thinks it's a mixture of Nike pressure and Lebron not wanting to piss off a large part of movie going audience for his upcoming Space Jams 2 movie.

It's just hilarious to see how hypocritical all of these NBA players are. I remember when Lebron got all butthurt at the "Shut Up and Dribble" comments when he was running his mouth about every social issue in America. But with China? Guess he found his masters.

Someone made a great comment on Reddit. At this point, Lebron is likely a billionaire with his NBA salary, Nike endorsements, etc..
So what exactly is the point of having "F-you money" if you're only going to say it when it doesn't hurt your bottom line?

I'm honestly enjoying this whole NBA fiasco. It's putting so much light on this situation and the hypocrisy of NBA SJW "woke" types.

N/M

thanks!

fuck Lebron
fuck the NBA
fuck China

I wonder how many billions China is propping the NBA with?

The hypocrisy is staggering.

As usual.

Shoe deals and there's more NBA fans in China than the US.

But these are some colossally bad quotes. Total sell out by Lebron, Yao, and a bunch of other players.

Savage!

Black man trapped again, holds his chains in his hand

To somewhat quote Tucker Carlson: “Instead of exporting freedom to China, we have imported authoritarianism from it.”

Please LeBron, share your high school education with us all.

Yea I heard there's around 500-800 million NBA fans in China. More than the entire US population. They see more money to be made in China than the US. Sellouts...

LeBron Asshole!



Demonstrators set a LeBron James jersey on fire during a rally at a playground in Hong Kong


A demonstrator stomps on Lebron James jerseys after the Lakers star criticized Rockets general manager Darryl Morey over his support for anti-China demonstrators on the Island















One critic likened James to a soldier in the Chinese People's Liberation Army

More

South Park had a far better reply.
Though the Chinese may not have understood it was very far from an "apology."

Attached File

Communists beating us by using capitalism against us really was a genius, long game play.  It seems communists often get their best wins playing the long game since our "leaders" rely on elections and always focus more on short term gains.

The greed of our own corporations fully selling out to the chicoms in exchange for access to their markets while they simultaneously espouse leftist talking points and support leftists domestically is

I remember 10 years ago when the left was against "big corporations" and the way things are headed now anyone that is truly pro-freedom will take that stance.  The irony is that in fiction whenever people looked to the future in the Sci-Fi genre and predicted corporations having this kind of influence it was always in a hyper-capitalist, right-wing kind of way and the opposite is what is actually happening.

When occupy wall street was happening if you would have told me that in a few years I'd also be "against large corporations" I would have punched you in the face.

This NBA kowtowing to China fiasco seems to only get worse by the moment.  It is all blatant prostitution to totalitarianism for money.  The amazing part is the more the NBA and its players try to explain their apologizing the worse they look.

Lets face it, our so called elites in this nation have long since cooperated and prostituted themselves to totalitarian china for years now at our nations expense.  They know the consequences and they don't care, so long as they get paid.

What a great time to be alive
All the hypocrisy from the liberals coming to light

I mean, we all knew how hypocritical they are and were but now it’s out there for all to see. Tis glorious

Chump James for freedom of speech... Move to China James and see how you like it... Idiot...

Too much money in China to be 'woke ' about human rights.

-Haven’t seen or talked to my family 5 years
-Jailed my dad
-My siblings can’t find jobs
-Revoked my passport
-International arrest warrant
-My family can’t leave the country
-Got Death Threats everyday
-Got attacked, harassed
-Tried to kidnap me in Indonesia

FREEDOM IS NOT FREE

Enes Kanter  (@EnesKanter) October 15, 2019

Lol.

Will attack Trump calling him evil...

China, which is true evil, gets praise.

Clown world.

Lol! Lebron catching major flak today.  Now back peddling

\uD83C\uDDFA\uD83C\uDDF8America is the greatest country in the world-free to speak and think for yourself! Question ..during Summer Olympics will the @NBA players play for USA or China?@Nike @FoxNews @CNN @DonaldJTrumpJr @realDonaldTrump @USATODAY @NBCNews @ESPNNBA @espn @NBAonTNT @nikebasketball

Herschel Walker  (@HerschelWalker) October 13, 2019

If one more muthafucka like him starts going on about 'OPPRESSION of black people' after this...I will have to cut a fool.

Some great comments in the Reddit thread.

It's almost like his fans are finally becoming "woke."

And the comment after the last quote: "That’s the definition of virtue signaling."

Lebron knows who butters his bread and who makes his shoes.  He’s going to say whatever his masters at Nike tell him to.

Remember when those minor league basketball players shop lifted in China and learned about Chinese hospitality , then begged Trump to help um ?

Pepperidge Farms remembers

Remember when LeBron meant "too much to society" to not share political views?

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/lebron-james-i-mean-too-much-to-society-youth-to-shut-up-and-dribble

This is how I know the American dream is real and slavery reparations are not needed.

This guy has bought in and gotten rich partially due to popularity in china and he defends them because it benefits him monitarily.

China, that still has basically no human rights and quite possibly slavery. (Even if you skip their Nork Puppeteering.)

No.

Principles.

At.

All.

Not a big fan of Max Kellerman but he hits the nail on the head.

https://streamable.com/tqvl4

They didn't even say thanks when they got back.

hahaha...this gets better and better.

Someone found a Lebron voiceover cut scene from the latest 2K20 NBA video game title where he gets all preachy about helping others without a voice...and how it's more than "just about the ball."

You can't make this up.

Absolutely hilarious. I so hope some reporter plays this out loud for Lebron during a press conference.

https://streamable.com/jxkz0