Sen. Ted Cruz Rafael (Ted) Edward CruzCrenshaw looms large as Democrats look to flip Texas House seat SCOTUS confirmation in the last month of a close election? Ugly The Hill's Morning Report - Sponsored by Facebook - Trump previews SCOTUS nominee as 'totally brilliant' MORE (R-Texas) dinged the NBA in a Monday tweet supporting "South Park's" statement on their ban from the Chinese internet following an episode highly critical of Beijing.

Cruz encouraged his followers to watch "South Park" while criticizing the NBA for its statement earlier Monday saying it had been "regrettable" for one of its general managers to support Hong Kong in a tweet.

Annoy a communist. Watch South Park.



(Note to @NBA: this is how it’s done.) https://t.co/WByDpKyBtm — Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) October 7, 2019

ADVERTISEMENT

"Like the NBA, we welcome the Chinese censors into our homes and into our hearts," the creators of "South Park" said in a statement following their ban in China. "We too love money more than freedom and democracy."

Criticism of the NBA erupted Monday after it condemned Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey for tweeting: "Fight for Freedom. Stand with Hong Kong."

In response to Morey's statement, the Chinese Basketball Association suspended ties with the Rockets.

The NBA released a statement saying the tweet "deeply offended many of our friends and fans in China, which is regrettable," prompting denunciation from politicians and journalists.