President Donald Trump disinvited the 2017 NBA-champion Warriors from the White House and didn’t bother to invite repeat-champion Golden State the following year.
Will the Raptors get invited?
There’s a mixed record of Canadian teams visiting the White House after winning in baseball or hockey. But the biggest factor is the divisive Trump.
Steven D’Souza of CBC:
Full Donald Trump quote on inviting Raptors to White House: "They played phenomenal basketball. I watched a little bit of it. They were really terrific. (looks over at Justin Trudeau) "Congratulations by the way, That was a great job by a great team, so we'll think about that"
— Steven D'Souza (@cbcsteve) June 20, 2019
Trump’s presidency, among many other things, is exhausting. I miss the simplicity of championship teams visiting the White House, the president glad-handing and team members enjoying the special access. I never cared for the photo-op of a politician trying to associate himself with himself with winners, and I didn’t mind any athletes not participating in the charade. But at least, if the president were going to show respect for these major-sport champions, he did it consistently. There wasn’t that pettiness from the highest office.
Really, Trump’s decision is transparent: If he believes the Raptors would come, he’ll invite them. If he believes they’ll reject the invitation, he won’t.