Curry responds to Trump uninviting Warriors to White House
Stephen Curry commended his colleagues in the NBA for speaking out against Donald Trump after the United States president uninvited the Golden State Warriors from visiting the White House.
It was reported in June that Warriors players had unanimously voted against accepting a White House invite after their NBA Finals win over the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Outspoken and controversial leader Trump rescinded the invitation on Saturday, sparking backlash from around the league.
Cavs star LeBron James led the way, labelling Trump "a bum" after uninviting the Warriors and two-time MVP Curry was grateful on Saurday.
"It was amazing to see all of these guys [NBA players] rally around each other. That’s what this about," Curry told the Washington Post. "I commend and applaud everyone that’s spoken up. That’s what we are supposed to do. It’s really important."
"I laughed because I've heard that said in pickup games a lot, it's a bold statement," Curry said of James, adding it was courageous for anyone to speak up like he did, "let alone with someone with as much to lose as him."
Curry told reporters during the Warriors' media day on Friday that if it were up to him, a decision on whether or not to visit the White House would be a "short conversation."
"By not going, hopefully that will inspire some change in terms of what we tolerate in this country," Curry said Friday.
"My stance is the same as yesterday [Friday], and maybe cemented even further," Curry said on Saturday. "I've played golf with President Obama. I don’t think I’ll be getting a tee time with this administration, to say the least."
The Warriors also issued a statement in which they said the president "had made it clear" they're not invited to the White House.
"President Trump has made it clear that we are not invited. We believe there is nothing more American than our citizens having the right to express themselves freely on matters important to them," the statement read. "We're disappointed that we did not have an opportunity during this process to share our views or have open dialogue on issues impacting our communities that we felt important to raise.
"In lieu of a visit to the White House, we have decided that we'll constructively use our trip to the nation’s capital in February to celebrate equality, diversity and inclusion — the values that we embrace as an organisation."