NBA is Back
Friday, 6th June 2008 ~ Maggie ~ Link ~ Comments (0)
After an unexplained suspension, NBA broadcasts are back in mainland China, with Game 1 of the NBA Finals airing on this morning on CCTV Sports. Several times during the game, the NBA ran a message of support for earthquake victims featuring NBA stars Dwayne Wade, Trace Mcgrady, Chris Paul, Baron Davis, Lebron James and commissioner David Stern.A China Sports Today editor spent the last week deep in the Chinese basketball world and never heard a definitive reason for why the conference finals didn't air. However, most people seemed to agree that a vague statement from an unnamed NBA official supporting players' decisions to be active on social issues drew Beijing's ire. The confusing move makes one thing clear: Even the mighty NBA, which has done so well in China, exists here because the government allows it to.
Tags: basketball, CCTV, David Stern, NBA, television