Mavs, Rockets scheduled for preseason matchups in Macao
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The Dallas Mavericks and Houston Rockets will meet for two NBA preseason games in China next fall, the league announced Monday.
Both contests are set for Oct. 9 and Oct. 11 at Venetian Arena in Macao, the same 15,000-seat venue that hosted this season’s Brooklyn Nets–Phoenix Suns exhibition series. The arena is operated by Sands Corp., whose president and chief operating officer, Patrick Dumont, also serves as governor of the Mavericks.
“I could not be prouder of having the Mavericks come to Macao and have the team experience the incredible hospitality that Sands properties provide,” Dumont said in a statement released by the NBA.
Houston was chosen in large part because of its long-standing popularity in China, driven by Hall of Famer and eight-time All-Star Yao Ming, who spent his entire NBA career with the Rockets. “Since drafting Yao in 2002, the Rockets have received overwhelming love from the passionate basketball fans of China and built several cherished memories playing overseas,” Rockets alternate governor Patrick Fertitta said.
The 2025–26 trip continues the league’s return to China after a years-long hiatus that began in 2019, when a tweet by then–Rockets general manager Daryl Morey supporting Hong Kong protesters strained relations with Beijing. NBA games were pulled from Chinese television for an extended period, but broadcasts and promotional events have gradually resumed.
Macao, a former Portuguese colony handed back to China in 1999, remains the only jurisdiction in the country where casino gambling is legal.
Source: ESPN
