Trump Attends NBA Finals in New York, Receives Hostile Reception from Crowd

On the night of June 8, 2026, President Donald Trump sat in a heavily secured private suite at Madison Square Garden, flanked by Knicks owner James Dolan and his eldest granddaughter Kai Trump, watching his hometown New York Knicks face the San Antonio Spurs in Game 3 of the NBA Finals [1]. When his image appeared on the arena's Jumbotron during the national anthem, the crowd's reaction was unambiguous: a chorus of loud, sustained booing that echoed through the 19,812-seat venue [2].

Trump became the first sitting U.S. president to attend an NBA Finals game [3]. He left with a Knicks loss — 115-111, with Spurs star Victor Wembanyama scoring a game-high 32 points — and a public reception that immediately became the dominant storyline of the series [4].

What Happened at Madison Square Garden

As singer Avery Wilson performed "The Star-Spangled Banner," chants of "U-S-A! U-S-A!" initially rang through the arena — a refrain familiar from Trump's own rallies [5]. But when cameras turned to Trump and his image filled the Jumbotron, the chants gave way to loud jeers. Multiple reporters and attendees described the booing as "thunderous" [6]. Video clips circulated online showed the broadcast cutting away from Trump within seconds as the reaction intensified [7].

Trump, who saluted during the anthem, later told reporters: "It was, I think, mostly cheers. It was loud, and it was very enthusiastic" [1]. Conservative media, including Fox News, highlighted the earlier "USA" chants as evidence of patriotic support, while critics pointed to the booing that followed as the dominant crowd response [5].

Later in the game, video emerged appearing to show Trump with his eyes closed in his suite, sparking a secondary wave of social media mockery. Critics said he had "screwed over Knicks fans just to nap," while supporters dismissed the clips as cherry-picked moments [8].

The Security Lockdown and Its Fallout

The presidential visit transformed the blocks surrounding Madison Square Garden into what Fox News described as a "fortress" [9]. The Secret Service, TSA, and NYPD established a security perimeter spanning one to two blocks around the Midtown Manhattan arena. A strict no-bag policy was enforced, magnetometers were installed at every entry point, and ticketed fans were advised to arrive at least two hours before the 8:30 p.m. tipoff [9].

The most consequential disruption: the Knicks' planned outdoor watch party — a gathering point for thousands of fans without tickets to their team's first Finals home game in 27 years — was canceled outright [10]. NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch confirmed the cancellation was a direct result of the security perimeter [10].

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani responded by arranging an alternative watch party in Bryant Park, while team-sanctioned events were held at Wollman Rink in Central Park and Brooklyn Bowl [4]. The cancellation became a flashpoint: fans on social media accused Trump of prioritizing his own attendance over the experience of ordinary New Yorkers [11].

Even Ann Coulter, an early Trump supporter, publicly condemned the decision. "Of all the selfish, narcissistic things Trump has done, attending Madison Square Garden to see the Knicks play in person Monday night is the absolute worst," she wrote on X, arguing that the president could simply have watched on television instead of inconveniencing 20,000 people and requiring thousands of additional law enforcement officers at taxpayer expense [12].

Why Trump Went — and What He Was Thinking

Trump attended as the personal guest of James Dolan, the Knicks' owner and a longtime friend who has donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to Trump's presidential campaigns [3]. Trump has described himself as a lifelong Knicks fan, and his history with the franchise stretches back decades — he was reportedly part of a 2010 recruiting effort organized by Dolan to persuade LeBron James to join the Knicks [13].

The White House framed the visit as a hometown fan supporting his team during a historic playoff run. But the political calculus was difficult to ignore. Trump chose to appear in a city where he received roughly 30% of the vote in 2024 — a significant improvement over his 23% in 2020 and 18% in 2016, but still a commanding Democratic stronghold [14]. In Manhattan specifically, where Madison Square Garden sits, Trump received just 17% of the 2024 vote [15].

Source: NYC Board of Elections / AP

Data as of Nov 5, 2024CSV

ESPN's Stephen A. Smith, himself a prominent New York sports personality, had publicly urged Trump not to attend, saying before the game: "If it causes the New York Knicks to lose tonight, I'm blaming him." Smith later clarified his comments were not political but rooted in concern about the disruption to the fan experience [11].

A Long History of Presidents Getting Booed

Trump is far from the first president to face a hostile crowd at a major sporting event. The tradition stretches back at least to Herbert Hoover, who was booed at a football game in 1931 during the Great Depression [16]. Harry Truman was booed at a Yankees-Senators game in 1951. Richard Nixon faced jeers during Vietnam-era appearances [16].

More recently, George H.W. Bush was booed at the 1992 MLB All-Star Game. Barack Obama received boos at the 2009 All-Star Game, and First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden were booed at a NASCAR event in 2011 [17]. George W. Bush was booed at a Washington Nationals game in 2008 [16].

Trump's own history with sporting-event receptions is extensive. At Game 5 of the 2019 World Series at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C., he was met with sustained booing and chants of "Lock him up" — a reversal of his own rally refrain directed at Hillary Clinton [18]. He was also reportedly booed at the 2025 U.S. Open [16].

The MSG reception was consistent with this pattern but carried additional weight: the NBA Finals is a larger national stage than a regular-season game, and Madison Square Garden — self-branded as "The World's Most Famous Arena" — amplified the symbolic stakes. No sitting president had previously attended an NBA Finals game, making this a first without precedent for direct comparison [3].

Trump and the NBA: A Fractured Relationship

The relationship between Trump and the NBA has been contentious since at least 2017. That September, Trump publicly attacked NFL players who knelt during the national anthem and rescinded a White House invitation to Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry. "Going to the White House is considered a great honor for a championship team," Trump tweeted. "Stephen Curry is hesitating, therefore invitation is withdrawn!" [19]

LeBron James responded with a tweet that began "U bum," writing: "@StephenCurry30 already said he ain't going! So therefore ain't no invite. Going to White House was a great honor until you showed up!" [20] The exchange became one of the most prominent athlete-president confrontations in modern sports history.

At NBA media days following the controversy, players across the league voiced frustration with what they described as divisive rhetoric from the White House [21]. The NBA's largely Black player workforce — and its relatively progressive fanbase compared to other major U.S. sports leagues — positioned it as a recurring foil for Trump's cultural messaging.

The irony of Trump's MSG visit is that his earlier relationship with LeBron James was cordial. In 2012, Trump tweeted congratulations to James after the Miami Heat's NBA championship, writing: "Lebron's time is now!" [13] The transformation from booster to antagonist tracked with Trump's broader political evolution.

The Demographics of the Crowd

Madison Square Garden holds 19,812 for basketball. The question of who was actually in the building on June 8 matters for interpreting the reaction. NBA Finals tickets at MSG reportedly commanded prices well above $1,000 on the secondary market for upper-level seats, with courtside seats reaching five figures [2].

Trump watched from a private suite surrounded by bulletproof glass, accompanied by Dolan and other guests [8]. NBA arenas typically allocate a portion of tickets to corporate suites, sponsors, and league partners — audiences that skew wealthier and, in some cases, more politically moderate or conservative than general-admission fans.

Yet the booing was loud enough to register clearly on television broadcasts and in multiple independent video recordings. Manhattan's political lean — 82% for Kamala Harris in 2024 [15] — suggests that even an arena crowd filtered by ticket prices and corporate allocations would tilt heavily against Trump.

The View from the Other Side

Not everyone condemned Trump's attendance. The "USA" chants that preceded the booing were cited by supporters as evidence that a meaningful segment of the crowd welcomed the president [5]. Trump's own characterization — "mostly cheers" — reflected a framing that his supporters embraced online.

There is also a substantive argument for the visit that goes beyond fandom. A sitting president attending an NBA Finals game — a league whose players and fanbase are disproportionately Black — could be read as a form of cultural engagement that previous Republican presidents have avoided. The NBA has not had a team visit the White House during a Trump presidency; Trump's physical presence at the Finals, whatever the reception, placed him in a space he has largely been absent from [3].

Whether this constitutes meaningful outreach is debatable. No prominent Black athletes or public figures were reported to have publicly praised Trump's attendance. The visit occurred in the context of ongoing federal disputes with New York City, including sharp disagreements between the Trump administration and Mayor Mamdani over immigration enforcement — Mamdani issued an executive order in February 2026 to protect NYC residents from what he called "abusive immigration enforcement" by the Trump administration — and housing funding [22].

New York vs. Trump: The Broader Context

The crowd's reaction at MSG cannot be separated from the specific political geography of New York City in 2026. Trump's approval rating in New York state stood at 34% approve to 64% disapprove as of a spring 2026 poll, with the city itself likely more unfavorable still [14].

Despite Trump's improved 2024 vote share in the city — gaining 7 percentage points over 2020, with notable gains in the Bronx (from 16% to 27%) and Queens (37%, the highest Republican share since George H.W. Bush) [14] — the dominant political reality remained: New York City is among the most Democratic jurisdictions in the country.

The federal-city relationship has been marked by escalating tensions. Trump publicly attacked Mamdani, accusing him of "destroying New York" — a reversal from a reportedly cordial Oval Office meeting in November 2025 [22]. The Department of Homeland Security demanded that New York hand over "7,113 criminal illegal aliens" it alleged the city was holding, a demand Mamdani's administration rejected [22]. Disputes over a proposed $21 billion federal housing grant further strained relations [22].

For many in the MSG crowd, booing Trump was not merely a sports-arena tradition but an expression of specific local grievances compounded by broader national disapproval.

The Ratings and the Aftermath

The 2026 NBA Finals between the Knicks and Spurs was already drawing significant viewership before Trump's appearance. The Knicks-Cavaliers Eastern Conference Finals averaged 7.4 million viewers on ESPN/ABC — the most-watched East Finals since 2023 [23]. The Spurs-Thunder Western Conference Finals averaged 10.8 million viewers, the most-watched Conference Finals in 24 years [23].

Source: Sports Media Watch / Nielsen

Data as of Jun 8, 2026CSV

Early estimates suggested Game 3 ratings received a bump from the presidential-visit storyline, though the Knicks' first Finals home game in 27 years was already guaranteed to draw a massive audience regardless of Trump's presence.

The social media impact was immediate and massive. Clips of the booing, the apparent napping, and the security disruptions dominated platforms for the following 24 hours [7][8]. Whether this translates into measurable political consequences — polling movement, fundraising spikes, or shifts in sentiment — remains to be seen. Historical precedent suggests that sporting-event receptions rarely produce lasting political effects: Trump's 2019 World Series booing did not measurably damage his standing with his base, and the incident faded from the news cycle within days [18].

What It Means

The booing at Madison Square Garden was neither surprising nor, in the sweep of presidential history, unprecedented. Presidents have been jeered at sporting events since at least the 1930s, and Trump himself has been booed at multiple prior appearances [16].

What distinguished this night was the convergence of factors: the historic nature of a first presidential visit to an NBA Finals, the cancellation of a beloved fan event, the security apparatus that disrupted an entire neighborhood, and the political backdrop of an administration locked in multiple disputes with the host city. The Knicks lost. The president said the crowd loved him. New York disagreed. The series — both basketball and political — continues.