LeBron James returned to his usual warm-up routine Thursday night, then came out firing.
The 76ers superstar responded to criticism from Donald Trump over his continued pregame activities during the national anthem ahead of Tuesday’s season opener against the Knicks.
“It’s a slow news day at the office, you know,” James said. “Slow news day at the office.”
The NBA’s all-time leading scorer swung his arms and mimed a golf shot during Avery Wilson’s rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner” at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday.
“By listening to our national anthem, LeBron James is disrespecting our country,” Trump wrote in an article for Truth Social. “LeBron James should apologize to all those great American warriors and heroes who died for the American flag and everything our country stands for!”
Before Thursday night’s home opener against the Cavaliers, James was much more subdued during the national anthem — not that he or his teammates took Trump’s post to heart.
“I think it fits right in with some other outside noise that we’ve already had,” coach Nick Nurse said before the 114-106 victory that improved his team to 2-0. “I keep saying the same thing. All I really care about is getting on the practice field, getting them in the film room, getting them on the playing field. The focus they’ve had, their intent and all that kind of stuff has been outstanding.”
James and Trump have never been shy about trading barbs, with the 22-time NBA All-Star calling the president a “bum” in a 2017 social media post.
Their dispute comes as the national anthem re-emerges as a hot topic in sports.
The WNBA’s Valkyries and Dream attracted attention by leaving the court before the anthem during the league’s championship series, although both maintained it was part of their pregame routine long before the best-of-seven series began.
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