NBA world wants nothing to do with Donald Trump
It seems like the basketball world hasn't taken kindly to Donald Trump's meteoric rise to power. Ever since Trump emerged as the US president-elect, various players and coaches from the NBA have expressed their displeasure in the nation's voters, besides threatening to cut ties with businesses linked with new American leader.
After coaches Stan Van Gundy, Steve Kerr and Gregg Popovich took the first shots at Trump, athletes from various American sports have lamented the turn of events in the nation.
The words of Popovich, coach of the San Antonio Spurs, seem to have resonated really strongly with the media. Popovich went as far as to say that the election result made him "sick to his stomach."
"I'm a rich, white guy. And I'm sick to my stomach thinking about it (Trump as president). I couldn't imagine being a Muslim right now or a woman or an African-American, a Hispanic, a handicapped person, and how disenfranchised they might feel. And for anyone in those groups that voted for him, it's just beyond my comprehension how they ignored all that," Popovich said last week (via ESPN).
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Moreover, former NBA player Jalen Rose reckons that teams will avoid trips to the White House over the next four years. Every year, the championship team visits the White House to engage in a meet-and-greet session with the incumbent president.
"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," Rose said during ESPN's NBA Countdown last week (via USA Today).
Meanwhile, ESPN is reporting that up to three NBA teams have decided to stop staying at Trump-branded hotels this season since they wish to distance themselves from the president-elect.
According to the report, the Milwaukee Bucks, Memphis Grizzlies and Dallas Mavericks will no longer reside in Trump-endorsed hotels during their visits to New York City and Chicago.
The report added that while another team from the Eastern Conference has decided to cancel its contract with Trump SoHo in New York, several other teams confirmed on Tuesday that they are still scheduled to reside at hotels owned and managed by Trump's company.
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The NBA regular season, which lasts nearly six months between October and April, requires 30 teams to travel on a nightly basis from town to town to play games on a home-and-away format.
Jabari Parker, a native of Chicago who plays for the Bucks, commended his team's decision to boycott future visits to Trump-owned hotels. "I'm really proud we won't be staying there because I couldn't be comfortable being around him and his businesses. I know he's our president. But it's just going to take some time. And he hasn't publicly come out with an apology for anyone or for the things he said."
One thing is for certain: Donald Trump has unruffled some feathers and continues to elicit a strong response from athletes, movie stars and other celebrities.
