Key points:
- Phoenix Suns beat Brooklyn Nets 132–127 in overtime in Macau
- First NBA game in China since 2019 under deal with Sands China
- Adam Silver confirms discussions on staging games in mainland China
The National Basketball Association (NBA) returned to China for the first time in six years on Friday evening as the Phoenix Suns beat the Brooklyn Nets 132–127 after overtime at Macau’s Venetian Arena.
The game marked the first of two pre-season fixtures being held in the casino hub under a multi-year partnership between the NBA and Sands China.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said: “Yes, games can take place in other parts of China, concurrent with our Macau arrangement.”
Earlier in the day, Silver described the league’s cooperation with the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) as a “transformational partnership.”
Good to know: Sands China, a subsidiary of Las Vegas Sands, operates theVenetian Macao where the games are being staged
The company’s majority shareholders, the Adelson family, also own the Dallas Mavericks NBA franchise.
NBA China Chief Executive Michael Ma said: “We’re looking at this part of the world, China, the Greater Bay Area, as an integral territory together to really spread around our mission to develop basketball in China. So right now, we’re focused on getting these two games here tonight and in two days from here, but in the future, we’re definitely looking at the Greater Bay Area.”
The 2025 NBA China Games are the first held in the country since 2019, when the Houston Rockets controversy led to a suspension of Chinese broadcasts of NBA events.
The new agreement between the NBA and Sands China ensures four more years of games in Macau, with officials confirming that discussions are ongoing about a possible return to mainland venues.
The second game between the Phoenix Suns and Brooklyn Nets will take place on Sunday, concluding the NBA’s long-awaited return to Chinese territory.