The Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) has canceled NBA G League exhibition games in China involving the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, the official affiliate of the Houston Rockets.
The news was first reported on Monday by The Athletic‘s Shams Charania. The Vipers were scheduled to play the Texas Legends, an affiliate of the Dallas Mavericks.
On Sunday, a wide range of Chinese organizations — including the CBA, with former Rockets franchise icon Yao Ming as its president — opted to suspended their ties with the Rockets after GM Daryl Morey briefly tweeted an image in support of a Hong Kong protest movement. It is not known if any of the moves are permanent.
For more background on the situation in Hong Kong, as well as updated statements from Morey and the NBA league office, read our previous story for the latest details on the controversy.
The Rockets have had a significant number of Chinese fans and revenues since 2002, when Houston drafted Yao No. 1 overall in the NBA Draft. Just last week, the CBA’s Shanghai Sharks — once owned by Yao — visited Houston to play the Rockets in an exhibition.
The Vipers won the NBA’s 2019 G League championship and announced a new head coach and GM last week. Their regular season begins in November.
