A popular Australian basketball star was on the receiving end of a barrage of death threats, abuse and loss of sponsorship deals over a tweet.

Basketballer Andrew Bogut, who plays for Sydney Kings, made a 'harmless' tweet about Chinese Olympic swimmer Sun Yang.

'Swimmers who medal vs Sun Yang should break the podiums with hammers,' the 34-year-old tweeted on July 23.

Basketballer Andrew Bogut (pictured) for Sydney Kings made a 'harmless' tweet about Chinese Olympic swimmer and drug cheat Sun Yang

Bogut's tweet took aim at the 27-year-old's (pictured) doping scandal which alleges one of his crew used a hammer to smash Yang's blood sample container

Bogut's tweet took aim at the 27-year-old's doping scandal where it was alleged one of his crew used a hammer to smash Yang's blood sample container.

Yang, who served a three-month doping ban in 2014, denied any wrongdoing.

However, Bogut's tweet then opened the flood gates to an 'endless barrage of death threats, sexual violence threats and vile abuse you wouldn't spew to your worst enemy'.

Bogut, his wife, children and even his mother were targeted in the vile abuse following his 'harmless' tweet.

'A somewhat harmless joke on Twitter turned me into public enemy No.1 in China,' he wrote in The Daily Telegraph.

He also received a tweet 'NMSL' which in Chinese means 'your mother is dead'.

However, Bogut's tweet (pictured) then opened the flood gates to an 'endless barrage of death threats, sexual violence threats and vile abuse you wouldn't spew to your worst enemy'

The champion bastketballer (pictured) who also played for the NBA in America, then began loosing sponsorship deals

The champion bastketballer, who also played for the NBA in America, then began losing sponsorship deals.

An agreement with Basketball Australia was meant to see Bogut promoting a packaging and logistics company which was sponsoring the Boomers, he wrote in the publication.

Then a few days before the shoot, Bogut received a phone call demanding that he be swapped with another player for the promotion.

Bogut sought answers as to why he was being let go when he eventually found out that 'my tweet was too controversial for them'.

'Reading between the lines they had most likely received a call from the big boss in China which told them to say bye bye to yours truly.'

He didn't hear from the company again and said, 'I can only hope they do not support drugs in sport'.