“We apologize”- James Harden once showed strong support for China following Daryl Morey’s Hong Kong tweet

Once upon a time, James Harden and Daryl Morey seemed to have a tight friendship. Harden even apologized on behalf of Morey for his take on the situation between China and Hong Kong in 2019.

This was during their days together with the Houston Rockets.

In an interview at a Tokyo practice, Harden stood next to Russell Westbrook and said:

"We apologize. You know, we love China. We love playing there. For both of us individually, we go there once or twice a year. They show us the most important love."

Harden was quoted in response in a deleted post on X, then known as Twitter, by Morey showing his support for the Hong Kong protest, which read,

“Fight for Freedom, Stand with Hong Kong.”

What led to Daryl Morey's tweet that James Harden apologized for?

The issue surrounded a proposed bill to amend the current Fugitive Offenders Ordinance.

With the amendment, fugitives who committed crimes in Taiwan, China, and Macau but escaped to Hong Kong could be extradited to where the crime took place.

However, the proposed legislation, stemming from a dilemma surrounding a Hong Kong resident accused of murdering his girlfriend in Taiwan, was met with mixed reactions.

Those opposing the bill believed that it could become an avenue for the government, which was mainly pro-China, to harshly address political dissent. This led to huge protests in 2019.

Daryl Morey tweeted his support for the pro-democracy protestors on Oct. 4, 2019. The tweet, however, sparked outrage among the Chinese people, leading to the Chinese government deciding not to show the Rockets' games live in China (this was exacerbated by the NBA standing by Morey).

This led to James Harden apologizing to them during the chance interview on Oct. 7, 2019.

Three weeks after the deleted tweet, the bill was formally withdrawn. However, the protests continued as the pro-democracy camp demanded four more issues to be resolved.

First, the retraction of the government's original classification of a protest made on June 12 as a riot. Second, the immediate release of arrested protestors. Third, an independent inquiry into the police's actions during the protests. Fourth, then Hong Kong chief executive Carrie Lam to resign from her post.

On May 21, 2020, a new Hong Kong national security law was passed through promulgation (didn't go through the scrutiny of the now pro-democracy-ruled legislative chamber), sparking more protests amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Fast forward to now, and James Harden has publically called Daryl Morey a liar.