Trump Calls LeBron James a 'Total Disgrace' Over Anthem Warm-Up Video

On Thursday, President Donald Trump took to social media to accuse LeBron James of disrespecting the country, two days after a video showed the NBA star appearing to keep warming up while the national anthem played before Philadelphia's season opener. "I said right from the beginning that he's no good, a TOTAL DISGRACE," Trump wrote in the post that shared the clip.

The video comes from Tuesday's game in New York. As The Star-Spangled Banner was performed, James appeared to practise a golf swing and a jump shot. He was lined up with his new teammates, most of whom stood still during the anthem. It is James's first season with Philadelphia.

Trump did not stop at the criticism. He wrote that 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."

As of Thursday evening, James had made no public comment and no social media post in response. The 41-year-old is in his record 24th NBA season, and he was due to make his home debut for the Sixers that night against Cleveland.

The exchange is the latest in a long run of public swipes between the two men. Al Jazeera's account of the history begins in 2017, when James was with Cleveland and wore one black shoe and one white shoe during a game, each with the word "equality" in capital gold letters on the back. After the game he spoke about Trump: "This is a beautiful country and we're never going to let one person dictate how beautiful and how powerful we are." That season he had also called Trump "a bum" on Twitter, and said the president did not understand how many children, whatever their race, look to the office for guidance, leadership and encouragement. That, he said, made him sick more than anything.

The next episode came in 2018, when Fox News host Laura Ingraham criticised the four-time champion for his comments on social issues. James answered that he would definitely not "shut up and dribble," saying he meant too much to society and to young people who feel they have no way out and need someone to help lead them. He cited Muhammad Ali, Jim Brown, Bill Russell and Jackie Robinson as athletes who spoke up for equality and change without worrying about consequences or rewards. "We know it's bigger than us," he said.

In 2020, The Associated Press named him its Male Athlete of the Year, largely for leading the Los Angeles Lakers to a championship and, at the height of the Black Lives Matter movement, helping persuade many people who had never voted to go to the polls. He said then that he could make a greater impact off the floor than on it, and wanted to help cultivate, inspire, bring together and empower people.

He was pressed on the same theme in 2021, when AC Milan striker and former LA Galaxy player Zlatan Ibrahimovic said it was "a mistake" for James and other athletes to engage in political causes and that they should "just do what you do best, because it doesn't look good." James's reply: "I would never shut up about things that are wrong."

What to watch now is whether James responds, and whether the dispute moves beyond Trump's post into statements from the league or the team. Note too that the video shows James only "appearing" to continue warm-ups; his own account has not yet been heard.