Bipartisan Commission Wants NBA To End Relationship With Apparel From China

It's no secret that the NBA's relationship with China runs deep.

Now, the league is facing what could be one of the most high-profile requests to curb some of its ties with the communist regime.

According to ESPN, a bipartisan committee has sent a letter to the league. In it, the Congressional-Executive Commission on China asked it to ban the use and sale of apparel made by forced labor.

Furthermore, they requested that NBA Commissioner Adam Silver "learn about the sad reality of genocide."

The commission is comprised of members of Congress as well as White House appointees. Their letter spelled out in no uncertain terms that they want the league to no longer sell branded merchandise made by forced labor or with cotton from Xinjiang.

Xinjiang is the region in China where over a million Uyghur Muslims are being held in internment camps.

NBPA president CJ McCollum also got a letter about the NBA and the players' union's ties to China. (Photo by Justin Ford/Getty Images)

CJ McCollum, Head Of The NBPA, Also Received A Letter About China

This committee clearly means business with respect to doing away with some of the NBA's ties to China. Not only did they reach out to the league, but they also sent a letter to CJ McCollum of the New Orleans Pelicans. He's the head of the National Basketball Players Association. This was to ensure that players were aware of their "potential complicity" in forced labor.

"NBA players should not be subsidizing genocide by endorsing or wearing shoes and gear from Chinese sportwear companies complicit in forced labor," Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.) and Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) wrote in the letter to McCollum. The two serve as the commission chair and co-chair respectively.

The letter sent to the NBPA included quotes from former NBA player Enes Kanter Freedom's testimony before Congress from earlier this year. In July, he alleged the union pressured him to remain quiet on China.

It'll be hard for the NBA and the NBPA to ignore these letters. At least in the way they ignore every other critique of how they do business with China. It's becoming increasingly difficult for the league to stay silent or just play dumb on the topic.

Now there's some serious bipartisan pressure on the league. Soon, they're going to run out of excuses for doing years of business in China.

Follow on X: @Matt_Reigle