The NBA brought star-studded lineups to Macao last week for the league's return to China after six years but many of the biggest wins happened off the basketball court, industry insiders and experts said.
Thousands of fans cheered Friday as the Phoenix Suns — led by four-time NBA All-Star Devin Booker — beat the Brooklyn Nets, with celebrities such as David Beckham, actor Jackie Chan and Alibaba founder Jack Ma in front-row seats.
It heralded the NBA's return to China for the first time since being effectively frozen out of the country in 2019 after a team official tweeted support for democracy protests in Hong Kong.
With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.