With wacky filters and comical dance routines, the antics of American basketball players Chet Holmgren, Tyrese Haliburton and Jared McCain – crafted by marketing agencies – have recently spread across Chinese social media. This is yet another sign that the National Basketball Association (NBA) has regained its footing with Chinese fans since preseason games returned to Macao on October 10 and 12, after a six-year break.
By welcoming back the NBA, China is signaling a return to normalcy at a time of trade and tech war between the world’s two largest economies. US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are scheduled to meet in Seoul on October 30, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit.
Back in October 2019, the tone was far less conciliatory. A tweet by Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey in support of Hong Kong’s pro-democracy protesters, who were clashing with police, triggered a diplomatic and economic firestorm. Preseason NBA games in China were canceled, the league’s broadcasts were suspended for Chinese audiences and several lucrative sponsorships were cut off – including a deal with the Tsingtao Brewery. The rift between the NBA and its largest foreign market cost the league at least $300 million, according to The New York Times.
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