Florida Governor Ron DeSantis—also running for the Republican presidential nomination—slammed the National Basketball Association after the players’ union, the National Basketball Players Association, condemned the Orlando Magic for making a donation to his super PAC.
Thursday morning, the NBPA released a statement following a New York Times report that the team made a $50,000 donation to Never Back Down, a pro-DeSantis super PAC. The statement avoided mentioning DeSantis by name.
“A political contribution from the Orlando Magic is alarming given recent comments and policies of its beneficiary,” the NBPA said. “NBA governors, players and personnel have the right to express their personal political views, including through donations and statements. However, if contributions are made on behalf of an entire team, using money earned through the labor of its employees, it is incumbent upon the team governors to consider the diverse values and perspectives of staff and players.
“The Magic’s donation does not represent player support for the recipient.”
Friday, DeSantis hit back on Twitter—now renamed X—though he directed his ire at the league rather than the union.
“It appears the NBA took a break from protesting our anthem and bending the knee to Communist China to chirp about my policies,” he tweeted.
The Orlando Magic is owned by the DeVos family. Betsy DeVos was the education secretary under President Donald Trump. The team told the Times that the donation, dated May 19, “was given as a Florida business in support of a Florida governor for the continued prosperity of Central Florida.” DeSantis announced his presidential campaign five days later.
The NBA has been criticised over its relationship with China. During the 2019 Hong Kong pro-democracy protests, manager of the Houston Rockets Daryl Morey made a tweet supporting the protesters. China Central Television stopped airing NBA games in response, and other Chinese sponsors pulled out.
The NBA apologized to China, saying “We are deeply disappointed about Morey’s inappropriate comment and he undoubtedly has hurt Chinese fans’ feelings severely,” according to Time. Despite the apology, it was only in 2022 that NBA games began airing again in the country.