Rockets shut down CNN reporter for asking James Harden, Russell Westbrook about China

Jordan Greer

•
Rockets shut down CNN reporter for asking James Harden, Russell Westbrook about China image

Apparently the Rockets are done answering questions about the NBA's relationship with China.

During a press conference in Japan on Thursday, CNN reporter Christina Macfarlane asked — or rather, attempted to ask — Houston stars James Harden and Russell Westbrook about their approach to the heated international dispute and their level of comfort in speaking on political issues.

"The NBA has always been a league that prides itself on its players and its coaches being able to speak out openly about political and societal affairs," Macfarlane said. "I just wonder, after the events of this week and the fallout we've seen, whether you would both feel differently about speaking out in that way in the future."

MORE: Explaining every angle of the NBA-China controversy

A spokesperson can be overheard in the video below saying the players are taking "basketball questions only." After Macfarlane explained it was a "legitimate question," the microphone was taken away from her, and both Harden and Westbrook declined to answer.

Rockets beat reporters noted that Harden and Westbrook have already addressed similar questions, but as Macfarlane said, the topic of how they feel about speaking out in the future has not specifically been covered. Additionally, Macfarlane was permitted to have a back-and-forth exchange with Rockets coach Mike D'Antoni about the NBA-China dynamic prior to the media session with Harden and Westbrook.

The decision to cut off Macfarlane was made by a Rockets representative, not an NBA official, according to ESPN's Tim MacMahon. That action directly contradicts a statement released earlier this week by league commissioner Adam Silver, who declared that the NBA "will not put itself in a position of regulating what players, employees and team owners say or will not say on these issues. We simply could not operate that way."

If Silver wants that statement to be more than empty words, these exchanges simply cannot happen in the future.

UPDATE: The NBA offered a quick reaction to Thursday's incident. Via The Athletic's Richard Deitsch:

"During today's Houston Rockets media availability, a team representative inappropriately interjected to prevent CNN's Christina Macfarlane from receiving an answer to her question. We've apologized to Ms. Macfarlane as this was inconsistent with how the NBA conducts media events."

Jordan Greer

Jordan Greer Photo

Jordan Greer has been with The Sporting News since 2015. He previously worked for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. He is a graduate of Westminster College and Syracuse University.