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Chinese Organizers Shut Down NBA Fan Event Over Free-Speech Fight

Chinese organizers said the cancellation of the event was due to the “inappropriate attitude” of NBA officials.

To no one’s surprise, it seems China hasn’t been swayed by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver’s appeal for freedom of speech. Chinese organizers have canceled a fan event on the eve of an NBA exhibition game in Shanghai in the latest development of a fight that has badly damaged the league’s commercial relationship with China. Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey last week tweeted in support of anti-government protests in Hong Kong, and Silver said Tuesday that it wasn’t the NBA’s job to regulate the speech of its players, staff, and owners. The Shanghai Sports Federation said the cancellation of the event was due to the “inappropriate attitude” of Morey and Silver. A Wednesday afternoon press conference with the Brooklyn Nets and Los Angeles Lakers—due to play Thursday—was indefinitely delayed and workers tore down massive banners advertising the game in the city, according to Reuters. China has also announced tighter visa restrictions for U.S. nationals with ties to anti-China groups.