USA TODAY International Edition
Don’t expect Warriors to visit the White House
Durant is latest to express concerns about president
Maybe Andre Iguodala had the right idea all along.
In June, a day before his Golden State Warriors won their second title in three years, the veteran forward was asked about a possible White House invitation that is typically extended to NBA champs.
President Trump and the Warriors did not sound like a dream matchup to Iguodala.
“Maybe (President Trump) doesn’t (invite us) and we don’t go, or we don’t say anything and make a big deal of it, and he doesn’t make a big deal of it and we go our separate ways,” Iguodala told USA TODAY Sports at the time. “Y’all might write about it (in the media). I might call him and say, ‘If they ask, just say our schedules conflicted.’ And then if y’all write something, we’ll say, ‘Fake News.’ ”
While that was a facetious narrative, the reality is growing more awkward by the day.
The Warriors have yet to receive a formal invite, but the signs are stronger than ever that they have no interest in visiting 1600 Pennsylvania Ave., given its current occupant. Finals MVP Kevin Durant became the latest Warrior to voice concern about this administration, on Thursday telling ESPN he would not want to attend if the invite was extended because “I don’t respect who’s in office right now.”
Yet even before the recent tragedy in Charlottesville, Va., where a white supremacist rally led to the death of 32-year-old counter-protester Heather Heyer and Trump was widely accused of empowering racists with his responses, the most influential of the Warriors voices had already been heard. Coach Steve Kerr has been a vocal critic of Trump throughout his election campaign and the first months of his presidency.
Two-time MVP Stephen Curry, who first voiced his displeasure for Trump in February after Under Armour CEO Kevin Plank had called him “a real asset to this country,” followed Iguodala’s comments in mid-June by saying he had no interest in attending the White House.
“We’re going to do what our leader (Curry) does,” Iguodala had explained back then.
The dots aren’t hard to connect. The Warriors are a thoughtful and unified group with strong leadership from their stars, and it is highly unlikely they would see anything worthwhile in a presidential photo op.
The league isn’t about to push back on the Warriors, either, though NBA Commissioner Adam Silver advocated for continuing the tradition in July when he told “The Player’s Tribune” that White House visits shouldn’t be a matter of partisanship for the league’s champions.
That was before Charlottesville.
Silver’s track record for supporting players and their social stances also is well known, and Trump’s public comments after the tragedy are seen as the president’s latest low point.
There will be no formal Warriors word for quite some time. The team plans to meet on the matter during training camp next month to make sure each voice is heard.
If recent history is any indication, Trump could opt to scrap the usual event rather than let this kind of rejection marinate much longer, a la the American Manufacturing Council that Trump shut down on Wednesday after several CEOs — including Plank — voiced their disapproval of his Charlottesville response and walked away. Ditto for the Strategic and Policy Forum that Trump also disbanded.
So maybe the president sends a tweet congratulating the Warriors and says there’s just no time for hoops celebrations at the moment. Or maybe it’s time for Iguodala to make that call to the red phone.
No matter how it happens, don’t expect to see the Warriors celebrating their latest championship at the White House.