Boston Celtics star Enes Kanter says he felt encouraged to speak out against ?hina after the NBA supported players in fighting other injustices and human rights issues.

   In recent months, Kanter has used social media posts and specially designed clothing during NBA games to bring awareness to China's treatment of the Uyghur community, Tib?t, Taiwan and H?ng Kong. His posts and comments have caused a backlash in China with Celtics games being pulled by Chinese video-streaming site Tencent and the government criticizing the 29-year-old's comments.

   Kanter told CNN's Christiane Amanpour in an exclusive interview that despite speaking out on issues such as Black Lives Matter, the NBA has stayed silent on China -- highlighting its struggle in balancing player activism with the lucrative Chinese market.

   "NBA made me do this," Kanter said. "Because every time when one of the NBA teams or the commissioner comes out to speak, they say we are encouraging players to talk about whatever they want to talk about.

   "We are giving freedom to our players to talk about all the injustices happening around the world, all the human rights abuses around the world. So, they gave me this right."

   Kanter says he sat down privately with NBA officials and commissioner Adam Silver, who says Silver has backed Kanter's right to freedom of speech.

   The Celtics center says he has no intention of breaking NBA rules but is concerned as to why the NBA has yet to release a public statement on the issue. "If they were really supporting me, they would have put something out there. They would have put out some kind of statement," he said.

   "People think I do politics, I don't do politics. I do human rights."

   CNN has reached out to the NBA for comment but has yet to receive a response.

   "There are so many athletes, so many actors, so many singers and so many people who have a platform that are speaking out about many of the issues out there in the world.

   "But when it comes to China [...] they are scared because they care too much about money, they care too much about business and they care too much about endorsement deals.

   "To me, the human rights, and saving people's lives, comes first."