LeBron James calls Donald Trump 'a bum' after Stephen Curry fiasco

The National Basketball League (NBA) and US President Donald Trump are at loggerheads once again. After Golden State Warriors stars Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant refused to meet the President ahead of the new season, Trump disinvited the reigning NBA champions from their customary visit to the White House.

Thereafter, LeBron James, widely regarded as the face of the NBA, called Trump "a bum" via Twitter in support of Curry's decision. After Trump tweeted: "Going to the White House is considered a great honour for a championship team. Stephen Curry is hesitating, therefore invitation is withdrawn," James fired back with: "You bum, Stephen Curry already said he isn’t (sic) going! So therefore isn’t any invite. Going to White House was a great honour until you showed up."

On Saturday, Curry revealed that he woke up to 20 text messages after Trump's tweet. He called the situation "surreal" and felt Trump's reaction didn't do anything to change his earlier stance.

"My stance is the same as it was (since before). And even kind of cemented even further about how things in our country are going, especially with (Trump) representing us in a very damaging way. I don't know why he feels the need to target certain individuals rather than others. I have an idea of why, but it's kind of beneath a leader of a country to go that route. That's not what leaders do," Curry, the two-time NBA MVP, said via ESPN.

Steve Kerr explains why Warriors turned down White House invite

Earlier in the week, Warriors coach Kerr revealed that the team would hold a lengthy discussion before taking a final call on the White House visit. However, Curry's remarks to the media reportedly triggered an angry response from Trump. "We would (visit the White House), in normal times, very easily be able to set aside political differences and go visit and have a great time. That'll be awesome. But these are not ordinary times. Probably the most divisive times in my life, I guess, since Vietnam.

"Because of the differences that exist in the country, the president made it really, really difficult for us to honour that institution. Our differences in terms of our team and organisation's values are so dramatically different. I'm talking in terms of inclusion, civil discourse and dignity. It's hard for us. Every day we're seeing the things he's saying," Kerr, the former NBA Coach of the Year, added.

The league has taken an anti-Donald Trump from the onset. A day after Trump became the president-elect, renowned coaches such as Gregg Popovich, Stan Van Gundy and Steve Kerr raised concerns about the future of the nation. Subsequently, several teams refused to stay in Trump-owned hotels during their travels.