The 2018 NBA champions took full advantage of their only scheduled trip to the nation’s capital Thursday by meeting with some of the most important leaders in American politics, which absolutely did not include President Donald Trump. Instead, the Golden State Warriors opted to meet with America’s Favorite President, Barack Obama, ahead of their game with the Washington Wizards.
After beating the Wizards 126-118, players also kicked it with some Bay Area heroes: Reps. Barbara Lee and Eric Swalwell, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Both congresswomen invited the team to D.C. last June, despite their beef with the man who wasn’t yet universally known as Individual 1.
The Warriors, based in Oakland, are just the kind of basketball team that Mr. “I don’t like losers” Trump should love. Of course, the NBA champions, hailing from the forever-blue Bay Area in the perennially blue California, have declared their disgust for the current occupant of the Oval Office in previous years by adamantly refusing to meet with him, upending the longstanding tradition of a White House trip for winners of national championships. Who can forget this amazing presidential display?
Vocal Trump critic LeBron James—whose Cleveland Cavaliers actually lost the championship to the Warriors in a brutal near-sweep that still hurts this Cleveland native’s heart—defended his rivals’ choice in a most concise way.
While it’s no secret that team members met with Pelosi outside of the locker room, the Golden State folks are staying quite closed-lipped about the visit with Obama, according to the Mercury News.
The meeting was revealed via a picture posted by a team official on Instagram Thursday afternoon — a post that has since been deleted.
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Warriors head coach Steve Kerr declined to comment on the meeting … .
“That’s private,” Kerr said. “Appreciate the question. Doesn’t mean I have to answer it.”
Like Kerr, many Warriors’ players didn’t expound on the visit, opting to keep details of the meeting under wraps.
“It was good,” said forward Draymond Green. “Private team meeting and team event.”
Last year, the team opted to visit the National Museum of African-American History and Culture instead of the White House. This year, that wasn’t an option, since the museum was closed due to the Trump shutdown.