LeBron James called Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey uneducated and went off at-length about the “negative” side-effects of free speech, in reaction to Morey’s tweet of support to pro-democracy demonstrators in Hong Kong.
On October 4th, Morey tweeted a message of support of Hong Kong’s demonstrators, saying: “Fight for freedom, stand with Hong Kong.”
That message touched off a firestorm of controversy as China canceled minor league exhibition games and canceled numerous business deals with the Rockets, and the NBA. On Monday, Lakers forward LeBron James spoke publicly about the incident for the first time, and didn’t mince words while calling Morey out for a tweet that he says could have caused people to be physically “harmed.”
Women’s sports on the line as Supreme Court wrestles with defining ‘sex’
EXCLUSIVE: HUD launches civil rights probe into Minneapolis over race-based housing priorities
17 College Basketball Players Charged with Fixing Games
ICE Deputy Director Leaves Agency to Run for Congress in Ohio
Trump rolls out ‘Great Healthcare Plan,’ urges Congress to slash costs for Americans
Trump’s Greenland takeover would likely entail enormous price tag: report
FBI arrests suspect after federal courthouse in Minneapolis windows smashed
Stunning Footage: Minneapolis Rioters Break Into Federal Agent’s Vehicle, Steal Weapon and Ammunition
Alleged Charlie Kirk assassin Tyler Robinson’s lover Lance Twiggs no longer under FBI protection, source says
Leavitt urges Democrats to grab a coffee with an ICE officer before blowing up at ‘left-wing hack’ reporter
DHS, Greg Abbott Call Out Dems After Illegal Sends ICE Agent to Texas Hospital While Trying to Run Him Over
Democrat-led states push anti-ICE bills that may violate supremacy clause
Federal appeals court sides with Trump admin in judge’s Mahmoud Khalil decision
Top House GOP leader demands Tim Walz resign as Minneapolis erupts over ICE shooting
Alarming Video: Furious Somali Men Pour out of ‘Daycare’ and Accost Journalist Investigating Where $2.25 Million in Grant Money Went
LeBron says he believes Rockets GM Daryl Morey wasn’t educated when he spoke about Hong Kong and that his tweet could have hurt a lot of people, including financially pic.twitter.com/UMj71DPQH7
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) October 15, 2019
The NBA received tremendous bipartisan criticism for their initial response to Morey’s tweet, when they responded by calling the post “regrettable” for the offense that it caused. NBA Commissioner Adam Silver eventually tried to quell the backlash by championing Morey’s free speech rights.
Women’s sports on the line as Supreme Court wrestles with defining ‘sex’
EXCLUSIVE: HUD launches civil rights probe into Minneapolis over race-based housing priorities
17 College Basketball Players Charged with Fixing Games
ICE Deputy Director Leaves Agency to Run for Congress in Ohio
Trump rolls out ‘Great Healthcare Plan,’ urges Congress to slash costs for Americans
Trump’s Greenland takeover would likely entail enormous price tag: report
FBI arrests suspect after federal courthouse in Minneapolis windows smashed
Stunning Footage: Minneapolis Rioters Break Into Federal Agent’s Vehicle, Steal Weapon and Ammunition
Alleged Charlie Kirk assassin Tyler Robinson’s lover Lance Twiggs no longer under FBI protection, source says
Leavitt urges Democrats to grab a coffee with an ICE officer before blowing up at ‘left-wing hack’ reporter
DHS, Greg Abbott Call Out Dems After Illegal Sends ICE Agent to Texas Hospital While Trying to Run Him Over
Democrat-led states push anti-ICE bills that may violate supremacy clause
Federal appeals court sides with Trump admin in judge’s Mahmoud Khalil decision
Top House GOP leader demands Tim Walz resign as Minneapolis erupts over ICE shooting
Alarming Video: Furious Somali Men Pour out of ‘Daycare’ and Accost Journalist Investigating Where $2.25 Million in Grant Money Went
Now, with the league representatives and players back from their tumultuous trip to China, it seemed like the news cycle of the NBA-China rift had died down. However, with James denouncing free speech in even stronger terms than the NBA did while calling a pro-democracy tweet “uneducated,” it’s difficult to see the crisis going away.
It’s also difficult to see why James would so willingly and unnecessarily reignite the controversy.
Then again, perhaps it makes sense after all. James is still the best and most popular player in the league. Moreover, for nearly ten years he’s championed numerous social justice causes and launched numerous attacks against President Trump, all to the delight of the sports media.
Maybe he’s become so used to being applauded for speaking his mind, that he no longer recognizes when he shouldn’t?
Story cited here.
