US senators call out NBA's relationship with Rwanda dictator Paul Kagame: 'Putting profit over principle'

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Two United States senators have accused the NBA of "putting profit over principle," which was detailed in a letter sent to commissioner Adam Silver on Tuesday. 

The letter sent by Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) to the NBA commissioner comes after an ESPN report detailed the league’s relationship with Rwandan dictator Paul Kagame. 

While the league needed Kagame’s help to build its first league outside North America with the Basketball Africa League, ESPN’s article pointed out how the NBA had to look past human rights abuses that the dictator is responsible for in Rwanda. 

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President of Rwanda Paul Kagame arrives at the "Sport For Sustainable Development" Summit at Carrousel du Louvre on July 25, 2024 in Paris, France. Paris will host the Summer Olympics from July 26 to August 11, 2024 (Richard Bord/Getty Images)

Blackburn and Merkley’s letter said the NBA has "long positioned itself as a beacon of social justice, but it continues to develop "relationships with dictators and despots."

"Anyone who dares to question Kagame’s rule – whether it be opposition candidates or the free press – is jailed, disappeared or brutally murdered," the letter reads, via ESPN. 

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The senators also questioned the NBA’s relationship with China, which has long been in a state of controversy. It’s been reported that league owners all allegedly have over $10 billion invested in China, while former NBA center Enes Kanter Freedom has publicly ridiculed the league for its relationship.