Trump Accuses LeBron James of Disrespecting US During National Anthem, Says He Should Apologize
President Donald Trump accused NBA star LeBron James of disrespecting the United States for stretching and imitating his free-throw motion during the national anthem before the 76ers' Oct. 20 game against the Knicks, and said James should apologize.
President Donald Trump said NBA star LeBron James should apologize after accusing the Philadelphia 76ers forward of disrespecting the United States during the national anthem.
Trump lashed out at James in an Oct. 22 post on Truth Social that included a video clip of James during the anthem before the Oct. 20 game between the 76ers and the New York Knicks.
“While listening to our National Anthem, LeBron James disrespects our Country!” Trump wrote. “I said right from the beginning that he’s no good, a TOTAL DISGRACE. LeBron James should apologize to all of those Great American Warriors and Heroes who died for the American Flag, and all that our Country stands for!”
During part of the anthem, James moved his arms in the form of a golf swing and then mimicked a basketball shot with his hands, while the rest of his teammates stood still with their heads down or looking at the singer, according to USA Today.
A long-running feud
The attack, which came less than two weeks before the Nov. 3 midterm election, returns Trump to a familiar subject. During his first term, he criticized NFL players and other Black athletes who knelt during the anthem to draw attention to racial inequality and police brutality.
Trump has repeatedly criticized James, who campaigned for Democrat Hillary Clinton in the 2016 election and has backed Trump’s Democratic opponents for president since. In July, speaking in the Oval Office, Trump suggested James could be “racist” while calling Michael Jordan the superior basketball player.
The back-and-forth stretches back to 2018, when James said in a CNN interview with host Don Lemon that Trump was “using sports to kinda divide us, and that’s something that I can’t relate to.” Trump responded that James had made Lemon look smart despite Lemon being, in the president’s words, “the dumbest man on television.”
James, the NBA’s all-time leading scorer, is in his 24th season and his first with the 76ers after eight seasons with the Los Angeles Lakers. In the 76ers’ 106-100 win over the Knicks on Oct. 20, James scored 14 points with nine rebounds and seven assists.
Reporting based on coverage by USA Today.
