The Denver Nuggets are skipping the customary White House visit for reigning NBA champions, but they’re not making a political statement against the Biden Administration.
Instead, as TNT NBA insider Chris Haynes reported, Denver is simply focused on securing the top seed for the Western Conference Playoffs. They currently sit one game behind the first-place Oklahoma City Thunder at 43-20.
‘The Denver Nuggets are prioritizing that No. 1 seed,’ Haynes said. ‘They’re really trying to do all that they can to get into that spot heading into the playoffs.’
The Nuggets were originally supposed to visit the White House in January, but a scheduling conflict with the administration pushed the visit back to March 18 before Denver pulled out altogether this week.
Denver is scheduled to face the second-place Timberwolves on March 19 in Minneapolis.
Nikola Jokic and Jamal Murray, Denver’s top stars, are from Serbia and Canada, respectively
TNT’s Charles Barkley, however, wasn’t buying the excuse.
‘Are they flying Southwest or something?’ Barkley joked. ‘Come on, man. I actually have a problem with this whole thing that’s happened in sports the last few years, not just now.
‘It’s an honor and a privilege to go to the White House. It shouldn’t matter who’s in the White House. It’s an honor and a privilege to go to the White House. You should always go. But these guys act like they’re flying Southwest.’
American professional and collegiate sports teams are traditionally welcomed to the White House after winning their respective championships, but that custom has come under fire in recent years.
Barkley wasn’t buying the Nuggets’ excuse and said it’s an honor to go to the White House
Detroit Pistons power forward Rasheed Wallace once said he didn’t have ‘s*** to say’ to then-President George W. Bush before the reigning NBA champs’ White House visit in 2005.
Ultimately, though, Wallace and Bush shared a nice moment on stage when the 6-foot-11 NBA star introduced his daughter to POTUS.
Boston Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas skipped the customary visit in 2012 over his disdain for then-President Barack Obama.
But things really became contentious between athletes and the White House during the Trump Administration.
President Biden is presented with a jersey while hosting the Astros to celebrate their 2022 title
When Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry publicly admitted he didn’t want to go in 2017, Donald Trump then rescinded the offer to the team, igniting a war of words in the process.
At the time, LeBron James rushed to Curry’s defense on Twitter (now X), writing, ‘U bum @StephenCurry30 already said he ain’t going! So therefore ain’t no invite. Going to White House was a great honor until you showed up!’
A year later, James told reporters: ‘No one wants an invite anyway.’
Things have returned to normal in the Biden years, with customary White House visits resuming for respective league champions – that is, until the Nuggets declined the invitation this week.
