Professional sports coaches are typically reluctant to weigh in on political issues, but a number of prominent NBA coaches have been speaking out against President Donald Trump since his inauguration on Friday.
Greg “Pop” Popovich, who leads the San Antonio Spurs, is notoriously averse to discussing anything with the media, but he didn’t hesitate to lash out at Trump during a press conference over the weekend, calling the president “dangerous” and “thin-skinned.”
Popovich said he wished Trump would act with more “gravitas,” especially after losing the popular vote to Hillary Clinton. “Our president comes in with the lowest rating of anybody who ever came into the office,” Popovich said. “And there’s a majority of people out there, since Hillary (Clinton) won the popular vote, that don’t buy his act.”
Popovich praised the Women’s March protests that took place across the country for promoting an important message, and suggested Trump spend less time attacking critics on Twitter and more time trying to bring Americans together.
“I just wish that he was more mature, enough to do something that really is inclusive rather than just talking and saying, ‘I’m going to include everybody,'” said Popovich, who was not the only NBA coach to take a dig at the incoming administration.
Golden State Warrior coach Steve Kerr mocked new White House press secretary Sean Spicer for (wrongly) insisting Trump’s inauguration was the largest in history.
Steve Kerr on his in unmemorable, short Magic career: "Sean Spicer will be talking about my career any second. 14,000 points." pic.twitter.com/XvvuUfKoNW
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) January 22, 2017
The NBA as an organization has been increasingly political of late. A number of teams, for example, announced boycotts of Trump hotels after the election. The league also decided to move its 2017 All-Star game from Charlotte, N.C., because the state’s controversial “bathroom law,” which prohibits people from using public restrooms that don’t correspond to the gender on their birth certificate, violates the “long-standing core values of [the] league.”
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