The Brooklyn Nets’s Nick Claxton shoots during a practice session ahead of the NBA pre-season games, at the Venetian Arena in Macau on October 9, 2025.
Eduardo Leal | Afp | Getty Images
NBA team owners and legends have welcomed U.S. basketball’s return to China after a six-year hiatus, saying the glitzy gambling hub of Macao is “buzzing like nothing before.”
Two preseason games between the Brooklyn Nets and the Phoenix Suns are scheduled to take place on Friday and Sunday. The teams will play at The Venetian Hotel in Macao, a special administrative region of China.
For Chinese fans of U.S. basketball, it’s been a long wait for a game. That’s because Beijing, the most important overseas market for the NBA, effectively froze out the NBA in 2019 following a fallout over protests in Hong Kong.
In an apparent thawing of political tensions, however, Chinese tech giant Alibaba on Thursday announced a multi-year partnership with the NBA to provide artificial intelligence and cloud services in China.
Alibaba Group chairman Joe Tsai, who also owns the Brooklyn Nets, told CNBC on Friday that he “couldn’t be more excited” that his team would be the first to come back to China to play in Macao.
“The NBA has a huge fan base in China, hundreds of millions of fans, and during the time when the NBA wasn’t playing games here, the games are broadcast in China, and they continue to engage with fans on social media,” Tsai said.
Asked how his team prepared to make the trip, Tsai replied: “Well, for me, there’s really not a lot of preparation for our team. You know why? Because our mindset is very international.”
He added: “We’re a very international team, and for us, if there’s any opportunity for us to play internationally, we put up our hand. So, this is a thrill for me personally, to kind of come … home and be able to participate in this great event here.”
Mario Ho, co-owner of the Boston Celtics and son of casino magnate Stanley Ho, echoed this sentiment.
“As a Macao local, I can tell you, the city is buzzing like nothing before, everyone has traveled here to catch a glimpse of the players, catch a glimpse of the legends, and I think everybody just can’t wait for the games to actually take place already,” Ho said in an interview with CNBC’s “The China Connection.”
“Now, as a Celtics co-owner, I think this time for me, it’s to look at the commercial opportunities of what this means to the teams, and also to interact with the players and see how they feel. And obviously, I think they’re all excited, and the fans are very excited to be able to see them,” Ho said.
For former Houston Rockets star Yao Ming, the NBA’s return to China offers the chance to connect with former colleagues.
“I’m very excited to see a lot of old friends. I think this happened because of the support by so many different parties, whether it’s in the States or in China. That shows people have great desire for the sport,” Yao said.
Yao Ming speaks to the media during NBA Cares and Sands Cares Community Service Week Tipoff as part of 2025 NBA Global Games China at Venetian Arena on October 9, 2025 in Macau, China.
Ryan Stetz | National Basketball Association | Getty Images
Asked what it would take for another Chinese basketball legend to follow in his footsteps in the NBA, Yao replied: “Good question. Let me ask this question in another way if you allow it. Have we ever taken advice from our parents? Not that much.”
He added: “So I think the younger generation need to … find their own path, to make their own way. And I would like to be the guy standing outside to cheer for them, help them when they need to. And I think that will be my role.”
