As the commissioner of the NBA, Silver holds many responsibilities. Hailed as one of the most hardworking individuals in the league, he started his NBA commissioner duties in October 2012 after David Stern, Silver’s mentor would step down from his post. After assuming the role of the league’s commissioner, Silver is in charge of many legislative duties for the NBA. One notable action that Silver took to heart was when Donald Sterling, former owner of the Los Angeles Lakers, made racist remarks on camera. This action led to Sterling’s permanent suspension and expulsion from the NBA. Additionally, Silver, along with other members of the NBA’s officiating staff, saw this event as one of the harshest punishments given to a professional sports owner in the league’s history. Silver was also responsible for handling international relations with the league. For instance, in October 2019, Daryl Morey, the Houston Rockets general manager, tweeted that he supported the Hong Kong protests happening that year. Morey deleted the tweet quickly, but it was already too late since both China and the NBA caught wind of the social media post. According to a New York Times article, Morey didn’t intend to cause any offense to the tweet. He also mentioned that it was a ‘regrettable’ decision to share that post. Although it seemed like an ordinary tweet, it became the precursor for the fallout for the international relationship between China and the NBA. China wasn’t too keen about the tweet that the country threatened to cut ties with the NBA. At that point, it was Silver that took the podium as he publicly announced the inevitable as China and the NBA would cut ties soon. As such, Chinese smartphone manufacturer and former NBA associate Vivo suspended its cooperation with the league indefinitely.