President Donald Trump’s comments about athletes have repeatedly drawn national attention, especially when they intersect with politics, race and celebrity. That dynamic resurfaced on July 24, when Trump was asked about LeBron James after the NBA star’s latest career move. The exchange quickly widened from a sports question into another round of a long-running public feud.
Trump’s remarks put a sports debate back into national politics
Trump made the remarks Friday, July 24, during a conversation with reporters when he was asked whether LeBron James or Michael Jordan was the better player. According to the Associated Press, Trump said Jordan was “a friend of mine,” then added that James was “maybe he’s a racist” before saying, “I only like people that like me,” and picking Jordan. Reuters also reported the same exchange, tying it to questions about James’ basketball future and the broader Jordan-James debate.
The comments came the same day James announced he would return for a record 24th NBA season rather than retire, according to CNN’s reporting on the exchange. Multiple outlets described Trump’s answer as the latest escalation in a public back-and-forth that has stretched across nearly a decade. The immediate trigger was a sports question, but the substance of Trump’s answer focused on his relationship with James rather than on basketball statistics or championships.
The scale of the moment was national rather than local: the sitting president weighed in on one of the country’s most prominent athletes, and major national outlets carried the remarks within hours. Fox News and other outlets also replayed the comments in video and text coverage. That ensured the exchange moved quickly beyond a routine press question and into a broader political and cultural story.
The local angle centered on Philadelphia because the question to Trump followed reporting that James would continue his career with the 76ers. CNN and other coverage linked Trump’s remarks directly to James’ decision and to the immediate reaction surrounding that move. For Philadelphia, the confirmed fact is that the city became the setting for the latest chapter in a national dispute between Trump and James, even though Trump’s criticism was aimed at the player, not at the team, league or city.
What is not yet known is whether the White House or the 76ers intended to address the remarks further beyond the initial coverage. No formal team response was included in the reporting referenced here, and no broader list of local events, appearances or civic responses tied to the comment had been publicly detailed at the time of publication. The available reporting focused on Trump’s words and the existing feud, not on any immediate operational impact for Philadelphia institutions.
For residents and fans, the practical effect is mainly media attention around the team’s newest star and the political commentary now attached to that move. The comments do not change James’ reported return for another season, and there was no indication in the cited coverage of any league action tied to Trump’s statement. The local consequence, at least for now, is reputational and conversational rather than administrative.
The latest exchange did not emerge in isolation. CNN reported that James endorsed Hillary Clinton in 2016, later criticized Trump after the 2017 White House controversy involving the Golden State Warriors, and posted “U bum” on social media after Trump rescinded a White House invitation. In 2018, Trump also attacked James over a CNN interview, reviving a pattern in which sports criticism and political disagreement merged into direct personal attacks.
Reuters and other coverage framed the July 24 remarks as part of Trump’s broader history of criticizing high-profile athletes who opposed him politically. CNN noted that James later endorsed Joe Biden in 2020 and backed Kamala Harris in the 2024 election. That political history helps explain why a question about the Jordan-James comparison produced an answer centered on loyalty and personal grievance instead of on on-court performance.
For readers, the factual takeaway is that this episode is best understood as a continuation of an established feud, not a standalone sports comment. Trump’s statement added a new line to that record, while James’ 24th season ensured the exchange landed during a major NBA news cycle. As of July 25, no new official response from James was confirmed in the referenced reporting, leaving Trump’s remarks as the latest documented development in a rivalry that has repeatedly crossed from sports into politics.