Sioux City, Oct. 23 (askanews) – Donald Trump attacked NBA champion LeBron James and two women's basketball teams, the Atlanta Dream and the Golden State Valkyries, accusing them of disrespecting the national anthem. “This seems like a huge scandal to me. What the hell was he doing?” he said, referring to the Philadelphia 76ers player who, during the final game against the New York Knicks, warmed up during the American anthem, miming a basket shot and also a golf swing, a gesture that Trump imitates on stage. Then, the attack on the women's basketball players. “They'll self-destruct before they even start, just when they were starting to do well,” he said, referring to the fact that during the WNBA finals, both teams left the court before the anthem.
"What does all this mean? The NFL did it for a while, then they stopped because people stopped watching, so I think you should do the same thing with women's basketball," said the US president. In reality, the WNBA players' exit from the court is part of their usual pregame routine; the gesture isn't controversial; their league simply isn't expected to remain on the court during the anthem.
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