It’s customary for championship-winning teams to visit the White House for a photo op with the president, and typically most players and coaches attend. But if the Golden State Warriors receive an invite from President Donald Trump, one star baller who will be noticeably absent is the 2017 NBA Finals MVP.
Nike-sponsored basketball standout Kevin Durant said, “Nah, I won’t do that. I don’t respect who’s in office right now,” when asked by ESPN on Thursday if he’d attend the White House celebration of his team’s championship if the offer presented itself.
Durant continued, “I don’t agree with what he agrees with, so my voice is going to be heard by not doing that. That’s just me personally, but if I know my guys well enough, they’ll all agree with me.”
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Although Durant has already made his stance clear, multiple reports state that the Warriors haven’t received an invitation from the White House, so he may not have an invitation to turn down. Golden State is scheduled to visit Washington, D.C., on Feb. 28 to take on the Wizards.
The superstar forward isn’t the only basketball player to voice displeasure with President Trump. Three-time NBA champion LeBron James of the Cleveland Cavaliers stated on Twitter this week that the president made hate “fashionable again” following Trump’s response to the white supremacist violence in Charlottesville, Va. James also stated in December that he wouldn’t stay in Trump’s hotel on the Cavaliers trip to New York.
Two-time NBA champion Stephen Curry has also publicly spoken against the president, most notably in February when he followed up on Under Armour chairman and CEO’s comment calling Trump’s business acumen a “real asset.” The guard replied by stating, “I agree with that description if you remove the ‘et’” from ‘asset'” in a Mercury News interview.
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