The NBA’s Dance with the Dragon: How Basketball Became a Pawn in China’s Geopolitical Chess Game.

The National Basketball Association, long celebrated as the pinnacle of professional sports leagues, has become a disturbing emblem of Western complacency in theh face of China’s rising authoritarian menace. It’s a league that touts itself as a champion of social justice and free expression, yet it willingly genuflects before Beijing—a regime that embodies the antithesis of these values. The hypocrisy is staggering, the stakes are high, and the complicity is undeniable.

For decades, China has wielded its economic might as both carrot and cudgel, bending corporations, industries, and governments to its will. The NBA, with its insatiable hunger for market expansion, has proven no exception. At first glance, the relationship seemed innocuous, even promising: the league gains access to a billion-plus potential fans, while China gets a slice of American cultural prestige. But this Faustian bargain has consequences that extend far beyond the hardwood.

The Price of Access

When former Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey tweeted in support of Hong Kong’s pro-democracy protests in 2019, the fallout was swift and brutal. The Chinese government demanded an apology, Chinese broadcasters pulled NBA games, and the league scrambled to control the damage. Morey’s offense? A seven-word tweet: “Fight for freedom. Stand with Hong Kong.”
The league’s response was telling. Instead of unequivocally defending Morey’s right to free speech—a core American value—it equivocated. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver issued carefully parsed statements about “different perspectives” and “respecting cultures.” Meanwhile, LeBron James, the face of the league, criticized Morey as “misinformed.” The message was clear: when it comes to China, profits outweigh principles.

 
The financial stakes are immense. The NBA’s partnership with China is worth billions, from lucrative broadcasting deals with Tencent to merchandise sales and branded events. This isn’t just about sneakers and streaming rights; it’s about the league’s entire global growth strategy. To jeopardize that would be to risk its future—or so the league’s leadership seems to believe.

The Moral Cowardice

The NBA’s capitulation to China reveals a profound moral cowardice. This is a league that positions itself as a beacon of progressive values, proudly backing movements like Black Lives Matter and championing player activism. And yet, when confronted with a regime that runs re-education camps in Xinjiang, suppresses dissent in Hong Kong, and threatens Taiwan with invasion, it turns a blind eye.
How can the NBA reconcile these contradictions? It can’t. The league’s selective morality exposes the emptiness of its virtue signaling. It’s easy to take a stand when there’s no financial cost, but the true test of principle is whether you’ll stand firm when money is on the line. The NBA has failed that test spectacularly.

The Broader Implications

This isn’t just about basketball. The NBA’s relationship with China is a microcosm of a larger problem: America’s willingness to prioritize short-term economic gains over long-term security and moral clarity. Every time the league kowtows to Beijing, it normalizes the idea that authoritarianism can dictate the terms of engagement in the free world.

China understands this dynamic all too well. It uses its economic leverage to silence critics and export its values, reshaping global norms in its own image. And while the NBA is far from the only guilty party, its cultural influence makes its complicity particularly dangerous. The league’s actions don’t just affect basketball fans; they send a message to the world about what the West is willing to tolerate in exchange for access to Chinese markets.

The Way Forward

The NBA must make a choice: Will it continue to serve as a propaganda tool for a regime that stands against everything it claims to represent? Or will it summon the courage to put principles above profits? The path forward isn’t easy, but it is necessary.

First, the league must acknowledge the ethical and geopolitical ramifications of its relationship with China. This means transparency about its dealings, from broadcast agreements to manufacturing partnerships. Second, it must empower players, coaches, and executives to speak freely about global issues—including China’s human rights abuses—without fear of reprisal.
Finally, the NBA must accept that walking away from China might be the only way to retain its moral credibility. Yes, the financial losses would be significant. But the cost of continuing down this path—eroded values, diminished integrity, and complicity in the rise of an authoritarian superpower—is far greater.

The NBA likes to position itself as more than just a sports league—it’s a platform for change, a voice for the voiceless, a defender of justice. But in its dealings with China, it has become the opposite: a silent accomplice to repression, a vehicle for propaganda, a beacon of Western hypocrisy.
The league’s complicity in China’s rise isn’t just a betrayal of American values—it’s a betrayal of its own. And until the NBA confronts this uncomfortable truth, its claims to moral leadership will ring hollow.
The dragon is roaring, and the world is watching. Will the NBA find its spine, or will it continue to kneel?