LeBron James has responded to President Donald Trump’s criticism of his actions during the national anthem, brushing off the controversy with a brief response.
“It’s a slow news day at the office, you know,” James said Thursday night. “Slow news day in the office.”
The comments came just hours after Trump publicly criticized the Philadelphia 76ers star for appearing to continue his pregame warmups during the national anthem ahead of Tuesday’s season opener against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden.
Video footage showed James practicing a golf swing and a jump shot while standing alongside teammates, most of whom remained still during the anthem.
Trump took to social media to condemn the 41-year-old’s actions, accusing him of disrespecting the country.
“I said right from the beginning that he’s no good, a TOTAL DISGRACE,” Trump wrote. “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!”
The controversy quickly became another talking point surrounding Philadelphia’s new-look roster, but head coach Nick Nurse made it clear that his focus remains on basketball.
“I think that goes right in with other outside noise we’ve already had,” Nurse said, according to ESPN. “I keep saying the same thing. All I really care about is getting to the practice floor, getting them in the film room, getting them to the game floor. The focus that they’ve had and the intent and all the stuff like that has been outstanding.”
James and Trump have publicly clashed on several occasions over the years, particularly regarding politics and social issues.
In 2017, James criticized Trump while playing for the Cleveland Cavaliers, saying:
“This is a beautiful country, and we’re never going to let one person dictate how beautiful and how powerful we are.”
James also defended athletes speaking out on social issues in 2018 after criticism from Fox News host Laura Ingraham.
“We will definitely not shut up and dribble,” he said. “I will definitely not do that. I mean too much to society. I mean too much to the youth. I mean too much to so many kids that feel like they don’t have a way out, and they need someone to help lead them out of the situation they’re in.”
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