Speech is free in America, but Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey has proved that it can still be costly.
A recent report from ESPN revealed that the ramifications from China’s decision to pull sponsorships and television coverage back in October due to Morey’s tweets in support of anti-government protesters in Hong Kong could cost the league between $150 million and $200 million.
Who knew that a tweet could be that expensive?
“We all talk about this freedom of speech,” LeBron James commented back then. “Yes, we all do have freedom of speech, but at times there are ramifications for the negative that can happen when you’re not thinking about others, and you’re only thinking about yourself. I don’t want to get into a… feud with Daryl Morey, but I believe he wasn’t educated on the situation at hand and he spoke.”
James was highly criticized for his language at the time, but it will be interesting to see how things will play out now given how much money was lost because of Morey, who has yet to publicly share his thoughts on everything that’s taken place.
According to the report, the salary cap projection of $116 million could fall to $113 million due to the loss of revenue from China. It is believed that teams will be made aware of the revised projects soon, as the trade deadline is scheduled for February 6.
