LeBron James has been one of several players and coaches in the NBA to voice strong opinions on the 2016 presidential election, and now James is backing that up with actions.
James, along with a few teammates, will not stay at the Trump SoHo hotel with the rest of the team in Manhattan when the Cavaliers face the Knicks this week, according to ESPN, even though Donald Trump no longer holds any equity in the establishment.
According to Cleveland.com, the hotel accommodations at Trump SoHo were booked prior to the 2016 election and the team cooperated in arranging different accommodations for the players who did not want to stay in the hotel. General manager David Griffin said potentially more than half the team will not stay in Trump SoHo.
In October, James publicly endorsed Hillary Clinton for president. Although ESPN and other publications did not reveal any names other than James among the faction not staying at Trump SoHo, some of his teammates have spoken out against Trump previously, namely J.R. Smith, Iman Shumpert and Richard Jefferson.
Shumpert said he would not visit the White House next year should the Cavs repeat as NBA champions.
Smith made an emotional Instagram post fearing for his daughter’s future the day after the election.
Last month, ESPN reported that the Bucks, Grizzlies and Mavericks would stop staying at Trump hotels to avoid any association with the president elect. Warriors coach Steve Kerr, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich and Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy separately expressed their disgust with Trump’s platform following the 2016 election.
[ESPN | Cleveland.com]
