Roughly 35 people rallied outside the Toyota Center in Houston to show support for democracy in Hong Kong before the Rockets' game against the Pelicans Saturday night.
The protesters wore shirts that read "Fight For Freedom" on the front and "China, Stop Bullying" on the back, ESPN reported. The protesters also were seen waving American flags and had signs that advocated for freedom of speech for the Chinese people.
According to ESPN, the rally was organized by the Vietnamese Community of Houston and Vicinities and Texas for Hong Kong groups. These same groups organized a rally during the Rockets' home opener on Thursday, where 30 people sat behind the south basket and held up signs in support of Hong Kong during play stoppage.
The protests have stemmed from a tweet Rockets general manager Daryl Morey sent out on Oct. 4, when he voiced his support of the protesters in Hong Kong. This prompted the Chinese government and other Chinese agencies to blast Morey, the Rockets and the NBA.
The Rockets were a fan favorite NBA team in China since Chinese legend Yao Ming played for Houston for a large chunk of his career. The NBA had been working to build relations in China, even having teams travel to the country to play in exhibition games.
After Morey's tweet, broadcasters in China, Chinese sponsors and the Chinese Basketball Association have severed or scaled back agreements with the NBA. Tencent, an ESPN partner, has resumed streaming NBA games, but the Rockets have not been in that lineup.
Tram Ho, who immigrated to the United States from Vietnam in 1982 after spending time as a refugee in Hong Kong, said she wanted to help organize the events in front of the Toyota Center because she believes the tensions between the United States and China after Morey's tweet represents a far larger issue.
"China is not only bullying the United States right now, but [it] has been bullying other countries in Asia and South China Sea for a long time," Tram said. "I feel very sorry for Hong Kong, a democratic society. The two systems — it's not going to work."
As game time grew closer Saturday night, the group could be heard breaking out into chants, including: "Stand for freedom, no censorship," before breaking into rallies of "Morey, Morey, Morey" and then "NBA, NBA, NBA."