In 2021, the casino mogul Patrick Dumont approached the N.B.A. commissioner with a brazen idea: Bring American professional basketball back to China.

2021年，博彩業大亨派翠克·杜蒙向NBA總裁提出了一個大膽的建議：讓美國職業籃球重返中國。

The N.B.A.’s relationship with Beijing had been in tatters for two years, after a team executive’s tweet in support of pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong. The resulting controversy cost the league hundreds of millions of dollars. Partners pulled their sponsorships. China’s state broadcaster CCTV stopped airing games.

當時自從一支球隊的總經理在網上發帖表示支持香港的民主抗議活動後，NBA與中國政府的關係破裂已有兩年。帖子引發的爭議已給聯盟造成了數億美元的損失。合作夥伴取消了贊助。中國的官方電視台央視停止了賽事直播。

Western companies that clash so publicly with Beijing rarely get second chances. But Mr. Dumont, an executive with one of the world’s most profitable casino operators, believed that the National Basketball Association could get back into China through Macau, the semiautonomous city where his company ran several highly lucrative casinos.

與中國政府如此公開對抗的西方公司很少會獲得第二次機會。但杜蒙認為NBA能通過澳門重返中國，他是一個全球最賺錢的賭場運營商的高管。他的公司在半自治的中國城市澳門經營著幾家利潤豐厚的賭場。

Mr. Dumont and his family had billions at stake. Las Vegas Sands, which is owned by his mother-in-law, Miriam Adelson, and other family members, was selling its Nevada properties to focus on Asia. The Covid-19 pandemic had devastated profits. And Xi Jinping, China’s top leader, was tightening control of Macau and insisting that casinos diversify beyond gambling.

此事關係到杜蒙及其家族的數十億美元利益。他的岳母米麗亞姆·阿德爾森和其他家庭成員擁有的拉斯維加斯金沙集團當時正在出售公司在內華達州的資產，把精力集中到亞洲市場。新冠病毒大流行給公司利潤造成重創。當時中國最高領導人習近平正在加強對澳門的控制，堅持要求賭場將業務多元化到博彩業以外。

That last demand meant that Sands needed to spend big on outside entertainment or risk its license.

最後這條要求意味著金沙集團需要在賭場以外的娛樂活動上花大錢，否則公司的牌照會面臨風險。

The league’s commissioner, Adam Silver, was intrigued by a Sands partnership.

與金沙集團合作的事情引起了NBA總裁蕭華(Adam Silver)的興趣。

What followed was years of diplomacy by Sands, whose owner, Ms. Adelson, is among President Trump’s top donors. Sands executives met repeatedly with Chinese and Macau officials and hosted events celebrating “one country two systems,” Beijing’s term for its governance of Hong Kong and Macau. The Adelson family, with Mr. Dumont at the helm, even bought a majority stake in an N.B.A. team, the Dallas Mavericks. (He said that the purchase had no connection to his efforts to bring the N.B.A. to Macau.)

那之後，金沙集團進行了多年的外交努力（集團所有者阿德爾森是給川普總統捐錢最多的人之一）。金沙集團的高管多次與中國和澳門政府的官員會晤，並舉辦了慶祝「一國兩制」的活動，「一國兩制」是中國政府用來描述香港和澳門治理的說法。以杜蒙為首的阿德爾森家族甚至買下了NBA達拉斯獨行俠隊的多數股權。（他稱這筆交易與他把NBA帶進澳門的努力無關。）

All of it culminates in Macau this weekend in two preseason games between the Brooklyn Nets and Phoenix Suns at the Venetian Arena, a Sands property. The games are part of a five-year agreement for the N.B.A. to return to China.

所有這些努力上週終於在澳門取得成功：布魯克林籃網隊和菲尼克斯太陽隊在金沙集團旗下的威尼斯人體育館舉行了兩場季前賽。這是NBA重返中國五年協議的一部分。

“It’s certainly a belief of ours that the two world’s largest economies should have continued dialogue,” said Ron Reese, a Sands spokesman. “It’s in everybody’s best interest.”

「世界兩個最大經濟體之間應該繼續對話，這肯定是我們抱的信心，」金沙集團發言人榮恩·裡斯說。「這符合所有人的最佳利益。」

The story of how the deal came together is an example of how casino profits, connections and quiet diplomacy healed a political wound. It is a win for the N.B.A., which lost more than $300 million in its rift with Beijing. It is also a win for Chinese leaders, who have sought to burnish China’s global image through influencers, sports figures and other celebrities.

完成這筆交易的過程是賭場利潤、人脈關係，以及低調外交如何治癒政治傷口的一個例子。達成協議對NBA來說是一場勝利，與中國政府關係破裂導致該聯盟損失了逾3億美元。交易對中國領導人來說也是一場勝利，他們一直在尋求通過網路紅人、體育明星和其他名人來提升中國的全球形象。

“Sports exchanges between China and the United States reflect public sentiment and serve both sides’ interests,” the Chinese Embassy in Washington said.

「中美體育交流反映民意，符合雙方利益，」中國駐美國大使館表示。

The N.B.A. never abandoned its Chinese ambitions. It kept its China offices open. Teams hired experts to put content on Chinese social media. Executives from the Brooklyn Nets, which is owned by Joe Tsai, the chairman of the Chinese tech giant Alibaba Group, met with Chinese officials and diplomats. The league donated to China during the pandemic and installed the son of a former CCTV executive at the helm of N.B.A. China.

NBA從未放棄其在中國的雄心。它始終維持著中國辦公室的運營，各球隊聘請專家在中國社群媒體上發布內容。由中國科技巨頭阿里巴巴集團董事長蔡崇信所有的布魯克林籃網隊的高管還與中國官員及外交官會面。疫情期間，NBA向中國捐贈物資，並任命前中央電視台高管之子執掌NBA中國。

Mr. Silver said that the league made no promises to China to curtail speech, and that the N.B.A. would defend the rights of players and team officials to speak freely. But league and team officials said they were keenly aware of the consequences of another controversy.

蕭華稱，NBA未向中國承諾限制言論，並將維護球員及球隊官員自由發聲的權利。但NBA及球隊高管均表示，他們深知再引發一起爭議可能導致的後果。

“In our job, we have to talk about what’s the most important thing, which is to speak through the game,” Jordi Fernández, the Nets coach, said in Macau this past week.

「在我們的工作中，必須明確核心——通過比賽傳遞信息，」籃網隊主教練霍爾迪·費爾南德斯上週在澳門表示。

The October 2019 preseason trip to Shanghai and Shenzhen should have been an easy moneymaker.

2019年10月NBA赴上海、深圳的季前賽之旅，本應是一場輕鬆的吸金活動。

The N.B.A. sent its marquee franchise, the Los Angeles Lakers, to play the Brooklyn Nets. Two of the stars, LeBron James and Kyrie Irving, were to face off in a country that loved American basketball. At peak viewership, more people watched the N.B.A. finals in China than in the United States, according to estimates in the Chinese news media.

NBA派出了招牌明星球隊洛杉磯湖人隊對陣布魯克林籃網隊。雷霸龍·詹姆斯與凱裡·歐文這兩位球星本將在中國這個熱愛美國籃球的國家上演對決。據中國媒體估算，NBA總決賽在中國的收視人數峰值超過美國本土。

The trip came amid pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong. Millions of people were taking to the streets, some of them clashing with the police, in a high-profile challenge to Mr. Xi’s power over the city.

此次賽事舉辦期間，恰逢香港民主抗議浪潮高漲之際。數百萬人走上街頭，部分人與警方發生衝突，這場高調抗議直指習近平對香港的管制權。

Days before the games, Daryl Morey, then the general manager of the Houston Rockets, posted an image on Twitter that said, “Fight for freedom. Stand with Hong Kong.”

比賽前幾天，時任休士頓火箭隊總經理達里爾·莫雷在Twitter上發布圖片，配文「為自由而戰，與香港站在一起」。

Derek Chang, then the chief executive of N.B.A. China, recalled what happened next: “Everything started to explode.”

時任NBA中國首席執行官張墀駒回憶起後續情景：「一切開始失控。」

With Chinese officials irate, the N.B.A. released two statements — the Chinese version much more contrite than the English. That angered just about everyone. Mr. Silver gave interviews defending Mr. Morey’s right to free speech.

中國官方對此表示憤怒，NBA隨後發布了兩份聲明——中文版本的語氣遠比英文版本更顯懊悔。這一做法幾乎激怒了所有人。蕭華則通過採訪表態，維護莫雷的言論自由權利。

The broadcaster CCTV announced it would cease airing N.B.A. games. The Lakers and Nets watched from their Shanghai hotel as workers removed ads for the game, peeling their faces off the building across the street. Mr. James, in an interview with The New York Times last year, remembered wondering, “How fast can we get out of here?”

中央電視台宣布暫停轉播NBA賽事。湖人隊和籃網隊在上海下榻的酒店內目睹工作人員拆除賽事廣告，將球員的肖像從街對面的建築外牆撕下。詹姆斯去年在接受《紐約時報》採訪時回憶，當時他心裡在想：「我們能多快離開這裡？」

Mr. Chang said he spent the next few months “trying to look for the avenue back” to China. He did not see one.

張墀駒表示，接下來的幾個月裡，他一直在「尋找重返中國市場的途徑」，但始終未能找到突破口。

Macau is the world’s casino capital, with gambling returns dwarfing those of Las Vegas. In 2021, when Mr. Dumont broached the idea of N.B.A. games, Macau accounted for nearly 70 percent of his company’s revenue.

澳門是全球博彩之都，其博彩收入遠超拉斯維加斯。2021年杜蒙提出舉辦NBA賽事的想法時，其公司近70%的營收來自澳門。

A former Portuguese colony, Macau was reclaimed by China a quarter-century ago and declared a special administrative zone. Like Hong Kong, it faces increasing pressure from Beijing as Mr. Xi strips away some of its independence.

澳門曾是葡萄牙殖民地，25年前回歸中國，成為中國的特別行政區。與香港類似，隨著習近平逐步削弱其自治權，澳門面臨著來自北京日益增大的壓力。

One pressure point was gambling. Foreign casinos need licenses, called concessions, to operate. And as it negotiated the 2022 renewals, the Macau government was demanding: higher taxes, the right to cancel concessions in the name of national security and, crucially, more spending on events unrelated to gambling.

博彩業是其中一個施壓焦點。外資賭場需獲得名為特許權的牌照才能運營。2022年澳門政府協商特許權續期時提出了多項要求：提高稅率、有權以國家安全為由撤銷特許權，還有關鍵的一點是，要求增加與博彩無關的活動投入。

Like sports.

體育賽事便是其中之一。

High rollers had long used casino junkets to evade China’s restrictions on moving cash internationally. The city had a reputation as a haven for bribery. Las Vegas Sands even paid an S.E.C. fine in 2016 to settle accusations of foreign corruption (the company admitted no wrongdoing).

長期以來，高端賭客通過賭場中介規避中國對資金跨境流動的限制，澳門也因此有了賄賂避風港的名聲。2016年，拉斯維加斯金沙集團甚至就外國腐敗指控向美國證券交易委員會支付罰款以達成和解（該公司未承認存在不當行為）。

Mr. Xi was cracking down on junkets and corruption. Leaders wanted to rebrand Macau as family friendly — with casinos footing the bill.

習近平當時正在打擊賭場中介及腐敗行為，官方希望將澳門重新打造為適合家庭遊玩的場所——重建的相關費用由賭場承擔。

Sands suddenly needed to spend billions on outside entertainment to guarantee its license. The arena at the Venetian had hosted mostly concerts and would need to be modernized. But a big-ticket event like the N.B.A. could help publicize the Venetian on the mainland, where casinos are banned from advertising.

金沙集團突然需要投入數十億美元用於外部娛樂項目，以確保特許權續期。威尼斯人的場館此前主要用於舉辦演唱會，亟需現代化改造；而NBA這類高規格賽事能幫助威尼斯人在禁止賭場廣告的中國大陸提升知名度。

“We started thinking about our next phase of investment, which is part of our concession renewal. How can we invest more and innovate in both tourism and hospitality?” Mr. Dumont said. “We felt like the N.B.A. would be a good way to do that. We had the arena. We had the obviously very strong fan base in China.”

「我們開始思考下一階段的投資計劃，這也是特許權續期的一部分。如何在旅遊和酒店業務上加大投入、實現創新？」杜蒙表示。「我們認為NBA是實現這一目標的絕佳選擇。我們有場館，中國顯然也有龐大的球迷基礎。」

There were signs that Beijing was open to reconciliation.

有跡象表明，中國政府對和解持開放態度。

In February 2020, the N.B.A. sent $2.65 million in medical supplies to Hubei Province, the center of the Covid-19 outbreak, earning it accolades in the Chinese state press.

2020年2月，NBA向新冠疫情重災區湖北省捐贈了265萬美元醫療物資，此舉得到中國官方媒體的讚譽。

That year, the league named Michael Ma, the son of a well-regarded former CCTV executive, as the new head of its China operations. The network aired two N.B.A. finals games that year and resumed broadcasting a regular slate of N.B.A. games in 2022. That “sent a signal to the rest of the community, other current business partners or potential business partners, that we were no longer being punished,” Mr. Silver said.

同年，NBA任命中央電視台一位廣受認可的前高管之子馬曉飛擔任中國區新任負責人。中央電視台當年轉播了兩場NBA總決賽，並於2022年恢復了NBA常規賽的常規轉播。蕭華表示，這「向業界其他方——無論是現有商業夥伴還是潛在合作夥伴——釋放了一個信號：我們不再處於受懲罰狀態」。

The following year, Mr. Dumont and his family bought the Mavericks. The N.B.A. had no qualms about being in business with a casino operator. The league hosts a tournament each summer in Las Vegas, where Tilman Fertitta, the Rockets owner, owns the Golden Nugget. Mr. Silver has long supported legalized sports betting.

次年，杜蒙及其家族收購了達拉斯獨行俠隊。NBA對與賭場運營商合作並無顧慮：聯盟每年夏季都會在拉斯維加斯舉辦賽事，火箭隊老闆蒂爾曼·費爾蒂塔擁有當地的金塊賭場；蕭華也長期支持體育博彩合法化。

The China deal was not a factor in the N.B.A. approving the Mavericks sale, Mr. Silver said. But it had advantages. As an owner, Mr. Dumont would have a stake in the league’s success in China. Additionally, the Venetian Arena was controlled by a private company, rather than the state. “It reduces the number of variables that could go wrong,” Mr. Silver said.

蕭華稱，與中國的合作協議並非NBA批准獨行俠隊出售的考量因素，但該協議確實存在優勢：作為球隊老闆，NBA中國市場的成功關乎杜蒙的切身利益；此外，威尼斯人由私人公司控制，而非政府機構。蕭華表示：「這減少了潛在風險因素。」

The Adelson family has long played informal diplomatic roles. In the 2024 election, Ms. Adelson was the third-largest donor to Mr. Trump. She and her husband, Sheldon Adelson, repeatedly spoke with Mr. Trump about foreign policy, including, in Mr. Adelson’s case, trade policy toward China. Just before Mr. Trump’s inauguration this year, Sands’s chief executive met with a Chinese vice minister to discuss trade and “the company’s growth in China,” according to Xinhua, China’s state news agency.

Mr. Dumont did not say when the N.B.A. came up in discussions. But he said his pitch to the government focused on making Macau a broader tourism destination, just as Mr. Xi wants.

杜蒙未透露會談中是否提及NBA，但他表示，自己向中國政府闡述的核心思路是將澳門打造成更全面的旅遊目的地，這與習近平的願景一致。

“When we explain the context about using the N.B.A. to come to Macau and have it be a very prominent feature of tourism for the city, everyone was really excited,” he said.

他說：「當我們闡述藉助NBA賽事吸引遊客來澳門，使其成為澳門旅遊業核心亮點這一構想時，所有人都表現出極大熱情。」

In December, three years after Mr. Dumont raised the idea, the league announced a deal to play preseason games in Macau.

去年12月，杜蒙提出這一想法三年之後，NBA正式宣布協議，將在澳門舉辦季前賽。

Mr. Silver returned to China in March for the first time since 2019.

2025年3月，蕭華自2019年後首次重返中國。

He said the N.B.A. and the Chinese government would need to be flexible in their renewed relationship. “If this is about ideological purity on either side,” he said in an interview, “it will never be achieved.”

他表示，NBA與中國政府在重啟的合作關係中需保持靈活性。「如果雙方都追求意識型態上的純粹性，」他在採訪中說，「事情永遠無法做成。」