But the National Basketball Association has more fans in China than anywhere else in that country.

Just announced it won't show or stream any n b a preseason games played.

They're the reason why is our first topic today on CNN?

10.

An international political storm involving the National Basketball Association started with a tweet, the subject of that tweet concert.

Recent protests in Hong Kong.

For months, demonstrators have been calling for more democracy and less influenced by China.

Some of the protests have been violent.

Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China, and the communist country says it has ultimate control over what happens there.

So there are two sides in the story of the protests and a basketball managers tweet.

That pick decide is what led to the N B.

A controversy.

The National Basketball Association is at risk of fouling out in China while also facing booze and backlash from fans back home.

It all began when the general manager of the NBA's Houston Rockets, Daryl Morey, posted this on Twitter over the weekend.

Fight for freedom.

Stand with Hong Kong, but what may have seemed like a simple tweet ignited a geopolitical firefly.

That's because Maurice comment was a clear show of support for anti China protesters who have been out in force on Hong Kong streets for months.

Hong Kong is officially part of China, and to say the Chinese government was furious would be an understatement.

Yeah, didn't got what we want to warn people like Mori that it is not realistic for them to earn a large amount of money from China while hurting the feelings of the Chinese people.

Chinese state TV demanded an apology.

The league, which has stood up for free speech by its players when it comes to US politics, back down, saying Maury's views have deeply offended many of our friends and fans in China, which is regrettable.

The Rockets owner and star player also distanced themselves from their own general manager.

Yeah, we apologized.

Um, you know, we love tied up with a plan.

They're even.

Daryl Morey, himself, whose original Tweet has since been deleted, said he didn't intend to offend anyone in China, saying in a follow up tweet.

I have had a lot of opportunities since that tweet to hear and consider other perspectives.

N ba has led the way and progressive thought in ideology and speaking your mind and to see the n b a cave in this manner.

It's absolutely stunning.

So why would the N.

B.

A, which one senator derisively called the Whoa Cus Professional Sports league, buckled to pressure from a foreign power?

Experts say it's because China is a financial slam dunk for the MBA worth billions.

The MBA has at least 25 marketing partnerships, and more than 200 stores in China for more than 600 million people watched N b A games on Chinese TV during the 17 4018 season.

The fact is that the n B A ratings were actually higher in China.

More people in China watch the MBA, then watch the MBA in the United States.

Extraordinary.

China, sports analysts say, knows its influence on and off the court and immediately started issuing threats.

Chinese Basketball Association, led by the iconic Yao Ming Ah, former Rockets star player himself, has said it would suspend cooperation with the rockets.

The company, 10 cents Sports, the NBA's exclusive digital partner for China, is suspending live streaming of rockets games.

China has a long track record of pacing pressure on governments and companies that sating settle offend the Chinese Communist Party.

Theo NBA's response has led to a Rockets red glare, with members of Congress and others going hard in the paint against the N B A.

Leaders on both sides of the aisle, from Republican senators Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio to Democrats Chuck Schumer and Congresswoman Jackie Spear are calling the n B a hypocritical.

So the National Basketball Association is getting criticized on both sides of the Pacific.

On one hand, it says it regrets that the tweet offended it's fans in China.

But on the other, the NBA's commissioner says he still supports Darryl Morrie's right to speak out.

We are not apologizing for Darryl exercising his freedom of expression.

I regret again having communicated directly with many friends in China, that so many people are upset, including millions and millions of our fans.

I understand that there are consequences from that exercise of, in essence, his freedom of speech and you know we will have to live with those consequences.

Chinese media strongly disagreed with commissioner Adam Silver on the issue of free speech.

Responding to his statement, China's main government run TV broadcaster said.

Quote any remarks that challenge national sovereignty and social stability do not belong to the category of free speech.

China's constitution does give its citizens the right of freedom of speech, but human rights organizations say in practice, China's Communist government limits that right.

Commissioner Silver says he plans to travel to China this week for a game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Brooklyn Nets.

He's hoping to meet with Chinese officials to talk about the issue, but says it may not be going away anytime soon.

Which planet has 82 known moons the most in our solar system?

Venus, Jupiter, Saturn or not, the record holder is no longer Jupiter.

The planet with the most moons is Saturn.

That's because of a brand new discovery by the International Astronomical Union.

It says it recently identified 20 previously unknown moons around the ringed planet, and that gives Saturn a total of 82 moons, surpassing Jupiter's previous record of 79.

Sorry, Jupiter.

But hey, at least you're still a planet, scientists say.

Saturn satellites, the newly identified ones or all around the same size and that they were located using stronger computing power and better algorithms for keeping track of faint, distant objects.

And now you can help name them.

There's a contest being held until December 6th, but there are guidelines.

You can't just submit something like Kimberly.

The astronomer whose team found the moon, says they have to be named after giants from North Gallic or Intuit mythology.

So good luck up next.

Today, Palos Verde Ace is a peninsula in Southern California.

It's known for its horse trails, ocean views, great schools, incredibly expensive homes and what just might be the rarest butterfly on the planet.

The Palos Verde is blue Butterfly was thought to be lost forever after its habitat was developed in the early 19 eighties.

Since then, it's been rediscovered, reinvigorated and reintroduced to parts of the peninsula.

This butterfly was once thought to be extinct, their rediscovered.

It remains one of the world's rarest and most elusive butterflies.

This is the palace Birthdays.

Blue Butterfly this'll Butterfly is as elusive as it is beautiful, and the brilliance of its blue wings are only visible when it opens them.

Theo wings air distinctive with the brilliant silvery blue color butterfly was thought to be extinct in the 19 eighties, when it seemed to disappear without a trace.

It wasn't until the 1919 that this visually striking butterfly was spotted again.

Biologists were surprised and delighted in its existence, and a breeding program was begun to build up the species.

The captive breeding has helped bolster numbers.

The population is still low enough to remain on the endangered list through careful nurturing and management.

This small but mighty butterfly has a fighting chance.

This is the Pollos for today's Blue Butterfly.

10 10 goes to the marching band in color guard of Corona del Sole High School in Tempe, Arizona, for illustrating how the show must go on even when the sprinklers do.

This happened when they were in the middle of their halftime show, but what one?

The crowd and national news coverage was their determination to soldier on until the sprinklers were finally turned off.

After that, they took it from the top without missing a beat.

Well, that's certainly not in the drill book.

Those students could have easily disbanded, gotten Brassed off, had some drum major issues, faced, presumes of problems or drop their color guard and marched off on a bad note.

But by sheer determine instrumentation, they showed nothing could stop them even if it rained on their parade.

That's all for seeing and 10 ancora wazoo.