Latest news on Daryl Morey's Hong Kong tweet

Posted by freemexy on October 12th, 2019

A couple of weeks before the start of the 2019-20 NBA regular season, the league finds itself involved in a controversy with China stemming from a now-deleted tweet from Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey. In the tweet, Morey gave a message of support to protesters in Hong Kong who are currently involved in demonstrations that began in opposition to controversial proposed legislation.To get more breaking news china, you can visit shine news official website.
Morey's tweet was met with considerable backlash from Chinese authorities, while several different parties, including NBA commissioner Adam Silver, have weighed in on the issue. The timeline of events has been lengthy. Below is a rundown of how we got from Morey's tweet to the current situation between China and the NBA along with the latest on this constantly evolving situation.
How did this all start?
On Oct. 4, Morey tweeted (and later deleted) support for the ongoing protests in Hong Kong which began in opposition of controversial legislation that would allow criminal suspects to be extradited to mainland China. The protests have since expanded. The tweet read: "Fight for Freedom. Stand with Hong Kong." Morey's tweet showing direct support for Hong Kong was viewed by some as criticism and/or opposition to China's political strategy and was not received well by Chinese officials.
The Hong Kong protests initially opposed government legislation that would allow people to be extradited to mainland China to face charges. They are now generally pro-democracy protests that expand far beyond the removal of the legislation. CBS News has you covered with the latest news on all things related to the Hong Kong protests, including what the protesters want from China beyond the removal of the legislation. The protests are in their fifth month.
What backlash have the NBA and Rockets faced?
The backlash to Morey's tweet was felt immediately by the Rockets and the league.
The Chinese consulate in Houston released a statement expressing its "strong dissatisfaction" with Morey's tweet, stating that "anybody with conscience would support the efforts made by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region to safeguard Hong Kong's social stability." Also, Sponsors began to cut ties with the Rockets and the league as a whole:
Sportswear brand Li-Ning, which sponsors a handful of NBA players, announced that it would suspend business ties with the league.
Tencent, the NBA's exclusive digital partner in China, announced it will suspend business relations with the Rockets. The company is offering fans who bought a team-pass to watch the Rockets this season a chance to choose a different team.
The Chinese Basketball Association has canceled planned exhibition games with the NBA G League affiliates of both the Rockets and Mavericks later this month in China, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic.
The Lakers-Nets exhibition game in Shanghai is still scheduled to be played on Thursday, reports Jeff Zillgitt of USA Today. On Wednesday, however, media sessions for both teams were canceled.
An NBA Cares event with Nets players in Shanghai was also canceled on Tuesday by the Chinese board of education.
Chinese state television CCTV said it would no longer air the Rockets' preseason games in China.