Tag: Hong Kong

On Tuesday, Ma Guoli resigned his …

On Tuesday, Ma Guoli resigned his position as an adviser to the Chinese Basketball Association. Michael Ma has a long background with the NBA, previously working for the league for 13 years in various capacities. He had been the CEO of Endeavor China. The relationship between the league and China was disrupted after Morey, the Houston Rockets general manager, tweeted in support of anti-government protesters in Hong Kong on Oct. 4. Morey later deleted his tweet, an image that read “Fight For Freedom. Stand With Hong Kong,” and clarified the intent in two subsequent tweets.

World Amateur Team Championships relocated from Hong Kong in wake of political protests

The International Golf Federation has announced it will move the 2020 World Amateur Team Championships to Singapore.

World events occasionally disrupt sporting events, and the 2020 World Amateur Team Championship is just the latest example of that. The International Golf Federation-sponsored event, which takes place every two years, was slated to be played Oct. 12-24 in Hong Kong. Earlier this month, the IGF announced that the event will be relocated to Singapore “to alleviate any concerns about the potential impact of the protests that have taken place in Hong Kong in recent months.”

The Singapore Golf Association (SGA) will host both championships at Tanah Merah Country Club and Sentosa Golf Club on the same dates as planned, with the Espirito Santo Trophy for women scheduled from October 14-17 and the Eisenhower Trophy for men from October 21-24.

In a statement, IGF executive director Antony Scanlon said the IGF Board felt that relocating the championships was in the event’s best interests, even as the Hong Kong Golf Association was willing to honor its hosting duties.

“We appreciate the SGA’s willingness to host the Championships and its efforts in securing government and local support to enable this to happen on the same dates as scheduled,” Scanlon said in the release. “At the same time, we want to acknowledge and thank the HKGA for all the work it did and its understanding for the decision that we have made. We look forward to the opportunity to hold the Team Championships in Hong Kong at a future date and will be inviting the HKGA to submit a proposal for staging the 2024 edition.”

Sentosa Golf Club hosts the HSBC Women’s World Championship, one of three LPGA events that were canceled this winter due to concerns over the coronavirus outbreak in the region.

It remains possible, of course, that the coronavirus could affect this championship, as well.

The USGA has announced captains for the American teams. Diana Murphy, a past USGA president, and Pam Murray, a former chair of the USGA Women’s Committee, will captain both the men’s and women’s teams, respectively.

The U.S. women will be looking to defend the title won in 2018 in Ireland. Denmark won the men’s team title that year.

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Houston GM Morey’s tweet cost NBA upwards of $200 million in the fallout

Nearly four months removed from Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey’s tweet in support of Hong Kong, league sources say that the fallout from the international firestorm has cost the NBA between $150 and $200 million dollars (those numbers and sourcing made public by an ESPN report Thursday).

Nearly four months removed from Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey’s tweet in support of Hong Kong, league sources say that the fallout from the international firestorm has cost the NBA between $150 and $200 million dollars (those numbers and sourcing made public by an ESPN report Thursday).

Houston GM Morey’s tweet cost NBA upwards of $200 million in the fallout (Hoopshype)

Nearly four months removed from Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey’s tweet in support of Hong Kong, league sources say that the fallout from the international firestorm has cost the NBA between $150 and $200 million dollars (those numbers and sourcing made public by an ESPN report Thursday).

Nearly four months removed from Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey’s tweet in support of Hong Kong, league sources say that the fallout from the international firestorm has cost the NBA between $150 and $200 million dollars (those numbers and sourcing made public by an ESPN report Thursday).

Report: Daryl Morey’s Hong Kong tweet costs NBA up to $200 million

Reduced revenues are bringing down the NBA’s 2020-21 salary cap, which will also lower the luxury-tax line for teams like the Rockets.

The fallout from the October 2019 tweet by Houston Rockets GM Daryl Morey in support of a Hong Kong protest movement could cost the NBA between $150 million and $200 million, according to a new report.

Per ESPN‘s Adrian Wojnarowski and Bobby Marks, here’s what it means for NBA teams in the 2020-21 season:

The loss of the league’s China-driven revenue has caused many front-office executives to tell ESPN that they’ve been preparing for the possibility that the original 2020-21 cap projection of $116 million could drop as far as $113 million.

These projections have impact on such items as free-agency cap space, luxury tax payouts and player contracts based on percentages of the salary cap ⁠— including maximum deals and midlevel exceptions.

Barring a radical roster reconstruction, the Rockets are on track to have a 2020-21 payroll well above the league’s salary cap, so the reduced cap figure would not directly impact them in the short-term. However, a lower salary cap would also pull down the league’s luxury tax threshold.

To this point, the Rockets have not paid the luxury tax under owner Tilman Fertitta since he purchased the team before the 2017-18 season. Several reports have suggested they are willing to do so in the future, but it did not happen in his first two seasons.

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A lower threshold for tax payments would require more moves than expected for the Rockets to get beneath the line, should that be the goal. Wojnarowski and Marks specifically cited the Rockets, along with Boston, Brooklyn, Golden State and Philadelphia, as probable 2020-21 tax teams.

Prior reports indicated that the fallout from Morey’s tweet had cost the Rockets specifically about $7 million this season and close to $20 million once terminated multiyear deals are calculated.

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However, the latest ESPN figures would seem to suggest a slight leveling of the playing field relative to other teams — since the league’s revenue losses are clearly not exclusive to Houston.

Furthermore, Wojnarowski and Marks say the reduced projections aren’t expected to change behavior by most teams leading up to the Feb. 6 trade deadline, since most already anticipated not having cap space.

The report:

Based on ESPN’s conversations with team executives, the potential drop in revenue isn’t expected to significantly impact the deadline behavior of teams. Salary-cap space is less important this summer than in past years, because only seven teams are currently poised to have salary-cap space above the projected $9.8 million midlevel exception. Also, the talent pool of players available in free agency isn’t considered strong.

As usual, Morey and the Rockets (29-18) are reportedly planning to be very aggressive in pursuing upgrades to the current roster. The trade deadline arrives at 2 p.m. Central time next Thursday, Feb. 6.

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Dwight Howard avoids China and Morey questions

Los Angeles Lakers big man Dwight Howard wasn’t in the mood to field questions from reporters about Rockets GM Daryl Morey and China.

None of the parties involved want to talk about it anymore, but it’s more than understandable that questions would, and will be, asked about Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey to the Los Angeles Lakers, given the events of last October when the Lakers were in China.

Saturday will be the first meeting this season between the Lakers and Morey’s Rockets, with the two inextricably linked this season after the fallout from a pro-Hong Kong tweet from Morey while the Lakers were in China to play games for the NBA against the Brooklyn Nets. The Rockets reportedly lost $7 million in revenue because of backlash from their Chinese business partners.

But as far as the NBA is concerned, the Lakers and Nets felt the brunt of China’s NBA-Rockets backlash in October as they were actually in China. However, even months later, nobody really wants to talk about it. Dwight Howard avoided questions about Morey and China at the Lakers practice on Friday, according to Kyle Goon of the Southern California News Group.

After returning from China, LeBron sparked a firestorm of his own when he bashed Morey’s comments, particularly the timing of his comments with the two teams in China. A few days after that, he expressed his desire not to talk about the fallout of the China situation for the rest of the season. However, given that this is the first meeting between the two this regular season, the questions being asked will likely be unavoidable.

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Former Rocket Dwight Howard avoids questions on Morey, China

Lakers star LeBron James criticized Rockets GM Daryl Morey over his Hong Kong tweet, but teammate Dwight Howard isn’t getting involved.

Back in October, Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James was critical of Houston Rockets GM Daryl Morey over his controversial tweet in support of a Hong Kong protest movement against China.

Specifically, when asked whether Morey should have been reprimanded, James said he felt Morey “wasn’t educated on the situation at hand.”

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With the Lakers playing the Rockets on Saturday night for the first time since those comments, it’s natural for that storyline to be revisited. One player with a unique perspective is eight-time All-Star Dwight Howard, who has experience on both sides of the rivalry.

Though the big man is now teammates with James in Los Angeles, he remains arguably the biggest free-agent signing of Morey’s NBA career after his move to Houston in July 2013. Howard’s three years with the Rockets also gave him a pathway to endorsement deals in China.

But when asked about the subject several times at Friday’s practice, Howard showed no interest in addressing it.

That has nothing to do with me or the Lakers. I’m staying away from that. … I’m not Daryl.

When asked if he was personally experiencing any fallout from that, in terms of his business dealings, the 34-year-old replied:

No. I’m going to stay away from China questions and focus on Houston. No offense.

Howard also declined to address the matter of Houston’s potentially weakened relationship as a franchise with China.

My focus is on the Los Angeles Lakers, and what we’re trying to accomplish this year. I understand that it’s a big political issue, and it also involves a lot of players in the league and on our team, but I can’t focus on that and don’t have enough information to give you a well-educated answer on the situation.

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James was not made available to the media at Friday’s practice in Los Angeles, so he did not face the same questions.

Over three seasons in Houston from 2013 until 2016, Howard averaged 16.0 points (60.1% FG) and 11.7 rebounds in 32.2 minutes per game.

As a reserve with the Lakers in the 2019-20 season, Howard is averaging 7.7 points (72.3% FG) and 7.5 rebounds in 19.8 minutes per game.

James, Howard, and the rest of the West-leading Lakers (33-8) will tip off their game in Houston against the Rockets (26-14) at 7:30 p.m. Central time on Saturday night. The game will be broadcast nationally on ABC.

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Report: Chinese backlash costing Rockets over $7 million this season

The Chinese backlash to Daryl Morey’s tweet could reportedly cost the Rockets $20 million, once terminated multiyear deals are calculated.

The Chinese backlash to the now infamous Hong Kong tweet by Houston Rockets GM Daryl Morey could cost the franchise nearly $20 million once terminated multiyear deals are calculated, according to a story published Tuesday by ESPN‘s Kevin Arnovitz.

The ongoing controversy could also have ramifications for owner Tilman Fertitta and superstar guard James Harden, if no resolution is reached between the NBA and its Chinese partners. Arnovitz writes:

No team has felt the brunt of the fallout more than the Rockets. League sources say the franchise has lost more than $7 million in revenue this season from cancelled Chinese sponsorship agreements and nearly $20 million overall when terminated multiyear deals are calculated.

Previous Rockets owner Leslie Alexander was able to parlay the Rockets’ presence in China into numerous investment opportunities, from wine distribution to the Chinese auto aftermarket. The friction between the NBA and China could temper any ambitions his successor, Tilman Fertitta, has to expand his portfolio into China after paying $2.2 billion for the team in 2017. For their superstar James Harden, the losses could be considerable if no resolution is reached. A source says Harden’s endorsement agreement with Shanghai’s SPD Bank Credit Card is imperiled.

The financial amount of Harden’s endorsement pact with SPD Bank Credit Card was not reported in the story.

Two days after Morey’s original post, Harden attempted to mend fences with an apology to Chinese fans for the team’s involvement in the controversy. Harden typically travels to China at least once per NBA offseason for endorsement purposes and to promote his brand.

The overall terms are roughly in line with an October report from the Houston Chronicle‘s Jonathan Feigen, who said the fallout from Morey’s tweet in support of the Hong Kong protest movement could cost the Rockets between $10 million and $25 million. It remains to be seen if any of those relationships can ultimately be repaired.

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Just a year ago, Tencent Holdings Ltd. …

Just a year ago, Tencent Holdings Ltd. locked up one of the most coveted media franchises in the country when it paid $1.5 billion for five years of exclusive streaming rights to National Basketball Association games. A single tweet changed all that. Now, the Chinese social media giant may have to suspend airing those matchups — which drew half a billion viewers last year — after Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey triggered a media blackout in China by tweeting support for Hong Kong’s pro-democracy protests. That sums up a disappointing 2019 for a company that looked like it was back on track after a horrendous 2018.