SAS talked about the logistics and security nightmare that will happen if Trump attends Game 3.
U.S. President Donald Trump has confirmed he will watch Game 3 of the NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden in New York and said he might attend Game 4 there as well.
Born in Queens, Trump is a confessed New York Knicks fan and has been documented attending high-profile Knicks games, including Game 3 of the 1994 NBA Finals, long before he became the most powerful person on the planet. With the Knicks’ owner recently inviting him to watch arguably the most anticipated game in the franchise’s history, Trump accepted the invitation.
However, while the Knicks’ owner can’t be more excited to have the POTUS as his guest for the Finals, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith said he does not want Trump at The Garden for any game in the current NBA championship series.
“He’s coming to Game 3 of the Finals, and I don’t want him there. He’s coming to Game 4 of the NBA Finals, and I don’t want him there. It has nothing to do with politics, policy, or anything like that. It has everything to do with him disrupting and contributing at the same time to the chaos that’s going to be existing at Madison Square Garden. If it were Barack Obama coming to the Garden, I would say, ‘Stay home.’ Stay at the White House,” said Smith on his self-titled show.
Having the president will be a security nightmare
Given how long Knicks fans have waited for another NBA championship game in their city, Monday in New York is expected to be one of the most challenging days in recent memory, with traffic congestion and crowd management most likely the biggest issues.
With so many people expected to be on the streets for watch parties as well, and given how rowdy the New York crowds were in previous such events, it’s going to be a sure nightmare for law enforcers.
Now that the expected problem will even be so much bigger if Trump makes good on his promise to watch his favorite basketball team on Monday night. No sitting U.S. president has ever watched an NBA Finals game in person at a stadium, and it’s likely because of the reasons Smith enumerated. However, if Trump insists, it will be something we’ve never seen before.
WATCH: https://x.com/thenbabase/status/2062980387488596461?s=46
“I have been covering sports for over 30 years. And I’m telling you right now, come Monday, for Game 3 of the NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden, I expect to see an environment I have never seen in my entire career covering sports,” said Smith.
