ESPN NBA analyst Jalen Rose says we should expect championship players from pro sports teams that are invited to the White House for presidential recognition to skip the festivities under Donald Trump’s presidency.
Speculating on how the election will affect the NBA and sports in general, Rose said on “NBA Countdown” Wednesday: “What we’re going to see in professional sports — NBA and NFL — mark my words, there will be players that decline the opportunity to visit the White House under his presidency.”
“And a lot of players will take that right,” concurred fellow analyst Chauncey Billups.
Trump shocked the world on Tuesday night by upsetting Hillary Clinton to win the Presidential election. He is scheduled to take office on Jan. 20, and met with President Obama in Washington D.C. on Thursday afternoon to discuss the transition.
The current reigning NBA Champion Cleveland Cavaliers also visited the White House Thursday afternoon. President Obama has invited the World Series champion Chicago Cubs to make their visit before he leaves office.
Rose’s comments came after an invective by Stan Van Gundy earlier in the day in which the Detroit Pistons coach called the president-elect “openly and brazenly racist and misogynistic.” Steve Kerr, coach of the 2015 NBA champion Golden State Warriors, concurred.
“The man who’s going to lead you has routinely used racist, misogynist, insulting words. That’s a tough one,” he said, following his team’s win over the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday night.