Nets' Ben Simmons praises Chinese official who praised CCP, denied Uyghur genocide

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Brooklyn Nets star Ben Simmons donated a basketball court to a town in China’s Guizhou Province last week and praised a prominent Chinese official who dismissed reports of persecution against Uyghur Muslims.

Simmons donated the court to Machang Town in the province, where the sport of basketball has taken off. According to Basket News, a basketball tournament in the province boasted 30,000 in attendance and scores more online.

In a press conference held at the opening of the court, Simmons thanked Huang Ping – who’s been the consul general of China’s New York Consulate since 2018.

"I’m very excited and happy to announce the court donation," Simmons said. "Deep thanks to Ambassador Huang Ping and Guizhou government. I first visited China to play basketball when I was 16 years old, and then again as an NBA player. I always enjoyed visiting the people, and the fans are always so welcoming, and the love for basketball there is incredible.

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Nets guard Ben Simmons during a time-out in the Atlanta Hawks game at Barclays Center in Brooklyn on March 31, 2023. (Brad Penner-USA Today Sports)

"My wish is to bring the joy of basketball to more people, so I wanted to donate a court to help places where people love the game and can benefit from new facilities. I hear people in Guizhou have amazing local basketball tournaments, and they just had this year’s final. I wish the people of Guizhou all the best, and hopefully will get to see them soon in the future."

Huang was in the spotlight early this year when he made appearances at Barclays Center, the Nasdaq MarketSite and the Empire State