Independent thinker and outspoken sports journalist Jason Whitlock has some thoughts about the NBA's refusal to discuss, not to mention condemn, China's tyranny against Hong Kong protestors and Muslim Uyghurs.
During an interview with Fox News Wednesday night, Whitlock argued profit driven players and coaches giving into China's censorship are promoting a marxist, communist agenda.
"I think the cultural impact that China's influence over a great sport, great American sport like basketball, is just now being exposed and just how dependent the NBA is on the Chinese economy and the Chinese money to put on the appearance of how great the league is doing," Whitlock said. "You really have to understand the shoe companies, Nike, Adidas, they run American basketball from the high school level all the way to the pros and the shoe companies are dependent on the China market and that's where all of this is coming from."
"We are apologizing to a communist government and then we have athletes here and coaches like Steve Kerr and Gregg Popovich that rail against our government. We're the bad guys in the minds of these NBA players and coaches and their little parade of being so woke...They're doing the bidding of the shoe companies and protecting China and demonizing us and our culture and dramatically changing our culture," he continued. "These guys can rail against our government, our president and be applauded for it. They don't have the courage to speak out against a communist government. All kinds of human rights violations. It's the epitome of hypocrisy and cowardice."
Meanwhile, the NBA has sent out a league wide memo to security guards about "political" signs at games. Over the past two days, signs at different games were confiscated for references to "freeing Hong Kong" and googling the "Uyghurs."