Celtics off Chinese TV after Kanter posts

Chinese broadcaster and NBA partner Tencent is not showing current or archived Celtics games on its platforms, in apparent response to comments that C’s center Enes Kanter made to advocate Tibetan independence.

Kanter, as part of a series of social media posts, also called Chinese President Xi Jinping a “dictator.” Kanter did not play in the Celtics season-opening 138-134 loss to New York on Wednesday night. The game that was not shown on the streaming services that typically broadcast most NBA games to millions in China.

The NBA had no immediate comment and the Celtics were not practicing Thursday. It was also not immediately clear how long Tencent’s plans to not air the Celtics would last.

Kanter was wearing shoes emblazoned with the words “Free Tibet” during Wednesday night’s game. “More than 150 Tibetan people have burned themselves alive!! — hoping that such an act would raise more awareness about Tibet. I stand with my Tibetan brothers and sisters, and I support their calls for Freedom,” he wrote on Twitter.

Kanter is from Turkey and has long been an outspoken critic of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the Turkish government. Kanter has said his passport was revoked by the Turkish government in 2017.