ABOARD AIR FORCE ONE (AP) 鈥� President confirmed he will of the NBA Finals on Monday at Madison Square Garden, but said he doesn’t have much sympathy for ordinary basketball fans who can’t afford sky-high ticket prices to do the same.
鈥淭hey can watch it on television,鈥� Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Friday as he flew to Wisconsin for an event with farmers, after he was asked about tickets that have climbed as high as $8,000 each when the New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs square off in Manhattan for the first time in the series.
“It鈥檚 sorta semi-free to watch it on television,鈥� the president added. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 the way life goes.鈥�
Trump further noted that if the Knicks weren’t successful 鈥� as they haven’t been most seasons since last advancing to the finals in 1999 鈥� 鈥測ou could go very easily.鈥�
The president of course doesn’t have to purchase tickets to attend major sporting events. Trump has , including the , and .
But a centerpiece of his reelection campaign was a promise to and bring down the price of groceries and other cost-of-living essentials. He has increasingly to make good on that pledge as November draw nearer 鈥� and as the has caused gas prices to spike and global commodities markets to wobble, raising and the .
A longtime Knicks fan, Trump said on Air Force One that he watched Game 1, which in San Antonio. 鈥淚 think the Knicks have an amazing team the way they played,” he said.
鈥淪tarted off slow and it just got stronger and stronger,” Trump said of Game 1. He pointed to and when asked to name his favorite player on the team.
Trump was also asked about Spurs star having stood with his arms crossed for the national anthem before Game 1. That touched off a conservative firestorm online, even though Wembanyama is French, meaning his country’s anthem wasn’t being played.
Trump was complimentary of Wembanyama, saying that he 鈥渓ooks like he’s gonna be a great player.鈥� But he ducked a chance to weigh in on the national anthem controversy, suggesting he’d not seen Wembanyamba’s crossed arms.
“Is that what he did? What did he mean by that?鈥� Trump asked, before recommending that reporters seek the answer from Wembanyama himself.
Trump confirming his attendance for Game 3 follows NBA Commissioner Adam Silver that a presidential appearance at a finals game might be unifying in 鈥渙ur increasingly divided society.鈥�
鈥淚t creates a sense of connectivity among people,” said. “It creates a sense of belonging, and I feel that every day.鈥�
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Weissert reported from Washington.
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An earlier version of this story said the Knicks were last in the NBA Finals in 1994. The last year the team competed in the Finals was 1999.
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