NBA Commissioner Adam Silver has given a maximum donation to Joe Biden’s presidential campaign. This is significant for a couple of reasons. Silver seems to be continuing the trend of making the NBA a major contributor to progressive politics in the United States. More importantly, this move sends a clear signal to China that the NBA wants to mend fences and keep the revenue flowing from sales of merchandise in that country.
In response, Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) tweeted, “Of course he did. Now will Silver and the @NBA take the pledge to be #slavefree?”
Of course he did. Now will Silver and the @NBA take the pledge to be #slavefree? https://t.co/eIA3EVkiug
— Josh Hawley (@HawleyMO) July 23, 2020
Donald Trump, Jr. also weighed in, tweeting, “The @NBA’s commissioner, who’s completely in bed with China, backs #BeijingBiden. Makes sense. Wonder if Hunter [Biden]’s getting a cut like he usually does?”
The @NBA’s commissioner, who’s completely in bed with China, backs #BeijingBiden. Makes sense. Wonder if Hunter’s getting a cut like he usually does?
Adam Silver Gives Max Donation to Biden Campaign – OutKick https://t.co/WlU4BkKmAa
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) July 23, 2020
The donation shows up on Page 817 of the Federal Election Commission (FEC) itemized report of donations to Joe Biden’s campaign:
Adam Silver 645 5Th Ave
New York, New York 100225910NBA / Commissioner * Earmarked Contribution: See Below 06/18/2020 2800.00 2800.00
The sports blog Outkick the Coverage first reported the donation:
The news seemingly backs the claims made by our very own Clay Travis that the NBA is more interested in repairing a relationship with China than doing anything positive here in the United States.
“If the NBA players, coaches and commissioner want to argue the league should be making political statements in this country, which they clearly are with names on the back of jerseys changed to player causes and “Black Lives Matter” spelled out on the court itself, how in the world can the league express respect for communist Chinese values while tearing down American values?,” Travis has said.
Clay Travis, who worked on the Al Gore campaign in 2000, has consistently criticized Black Lives Matter and the hypocrisy of the NBA on his popular sports talk radio show and the website that bears the same name.
One Day After Cuban Feuds with Cruz, NBA Reveals Black Lives Matter Logo On Court
Controversy over the NBA’s business dealings in China has swirled since Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey tweeted in favor of protests for democracy in Hong Kong, saying, “Free Hong Kong.” The NBA quickly forced Morey to delete the tweet and apologize. Chinese companies severed their business relationships with the NBA, which in turn affected the bottom line for many of basketball’s biggest stars.
This has led to a backlash against the NBA’s most vocal progressive voices. Joshua Wong, a pro-democracy activist who has demonstrated in Hong Kong and testified before Congress, blasted LeBron James in a tweet. “Defending democracy is vital,” Wong said, “but @KingJames only talks loud in the US. On China, not only is he silent, he actively shuts others up. He called @dmorey “misinformed” and “not really educated” for supporting #HongKong. All he cares about is money, not human rights. Hypocritical.”
Defending democracy is vital, but @KingJames only talks loud in the US. On China, not only is he silent, he actively shuts others up. He called @dmorey "misinformed" and "not really educated" for supporting #HongKong. All he cares about is money, not human rights. Hypocritical. https://t.co/vxVMWIjsjY
— Joshua Wong 黃之鋒 😷 (@joshuawongcf) June 11, 2020
Of course, between the NBA’s support for the Chinese Communist Party and turning a blind eye to slave labor there, and backing the openly Marxist Black Lives Matter movement whose stated goal is the destruction of the United States, the NBA has continued its open support for anti-American, anti-freedom, communist organizations and regimes. The donation to Joe Biden is just the latest open signal to China that the NBA is ready to do what it takes to keep the revenue flowing.
What I wrote just two days ago bears repeating:
This is not the first social media controversy this month for the NBA. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) displayed the hypocrisy of the pre-approved social justice message list earlier in July when he wrote a letter to NBA Commissioner Adam Silver asking whether pro-Hong Kong or anti-CCP messages would be allowed. He copied ESPN’s NBA reporter, Adrian Wojnarowski on the letter, prompting a vulgar response. ESPN was forced to suspend Wojnarowski, prompting several NBA stars to jump to his defense.
So if you tune in to the restart of the 2019-2020 NBA season, and you see the Black Lives Matter message on the court and social justice messages on player jerseys, remember the NBA’s complicated relationship with Marxist and communist ideologies. The willingness of so many players, coaches, owners, and even the commissioner to turn a blind eye to these matters indicates that they are either not serious, or in bed with the Marxist movement. Indeed, the NBA seems more than happy to stay in bed with China, despite the CCP’s responsibility for COVID-19 and how it disrupted the NBA season in the first place.
Jeff Reynolds is the author of the book, “Behind the Curtain: Inside the Network of Progressive Billionaires and Their Campaign to Undermine Democracy,” available at www.WhoOwnsTheDems.com. Jeff hosts a podcast at anchor.fm/BehindTheCurtain. You can follow him on Twitter @ChargerJeff, and on Parler at @RealJeffReynolds.
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