The NBA is back in business with China.
And the Nets are the team that helped get them there.
The Nets will play the Suns in two preseason games in Macau next October, marking the first time the league has tilted in China since 2019.
Nets is owned by Taiwanese-born Joe Tsai, co-founder and chairman of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba.
This is a significant step for the NBA, first reported by ESPN and confirmed by the Post.
China was the league's largest and most important international market, but in October 2019, then-Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey posted on social media supporting the Hong Kong protests. A rift appeared in the relationship.
The Nets were actually on their way to China to play preseason games against the Lakers in Shanghai and Shenzhen when the Chinese government attacked Morey's post.
All league officials were essentially kept quiet during this international incident, and the Post obtained the only on-the-record comment from Tsai.
The dispute cost the NBA many lucrative sponsorships and led to the league's games being pulled from Chinese television broadcasts.
There are 300 million NBA fans in this country, and commissioner Adam Silver estimated in 2021 that TIFF cost the league $400 million that year alone.
However, speaking at the recent GBA International Sports Business in Macau, Tsai said the league was “delighted” to resume play in Macau, which is close to China and Hong Kong.
“I think the NBA is in a very good position regarding its relationship with China,” Tsai said, according to Reuters. “In fact, China is the NBA's biggest fan base. So what happened before, I think it's water under the bridge.”
The bridge has now been rebuilt.
Brooklyn will face the Suns, whose owner Matt Ishbia calls Tsai his mentor.
Their relationship helped pull off the Kevin Durant trade, and they will now take the team to China.
The Nets have been roaming the league for a long time.
After playing in Paris last season, they have played 20 games outside the United States (and Canada), more than any other team.
From 2004 until the Morey incident, 17 different teams in China had a total of 28 preseason tilts.
The Nets are expected to increase that to 30.
