- US President Donald Trump was booed at Game 3 of the NBA finals between the New York Knicks and the San Antonio Spurs.
- The 79-year-old Republican leader downplayed the incident and said he mostly heard people cheering for him.
- The Knicks lost the game 115-111.
Donald Trump's attendance at the third game of the NBA finals between the San Antonio Spurs and the New York Knicks got a negative reaction from the spectators, with many booing the US President. However, Trump has downplayed the incident, calling the sounds “mostly cheers”.
Footage from the game shows the crowd booing Trump as Avery Wilson sang the national anthem. The president was joined by special envoy Steve Witkoff, his granddaughter Kai Trump and Madison Square Garden CEO James Dolan at the event.
However, the US President appeared to dismiss the matter, calling the sounds “mostly cheers” and “very enthusiastic”.
“I thought it was very good. It was certainly amazing. I think mostly cheers. It was loud. And it was very enthusiastic,” Trump told reporters after the game, as per Daily Beast.
The 79-year-old received a cold welcome at Madison Square Garden, with multiple critical signs and several rude gestures directed at the presidential motorcade in addition. The president's motorcade was also booed as it drove towards the venue.
Trump's plan to attend Game 3 of the NBA finals was met with criticism since it was announced last week. Some Knicks fans were worried that the leader's presence could disrupt their team from continuing what had been the second-longest unbeaten playoff game streak in NBA's history.
That discontent grew when game watch parties around MSG were cancelled due to Trump's presence at the venue. The New York Police Department put up a broad security perimeter in the nearby blocks.
The Knicks lost their first game of the finals, 115-111. They now lead the Spurs 2-1.
This wasn't the first time Trump faced negative reactions at a major sports event. When he attended the US Open 2025 men's final in Queens, the New York City borough he grew up in, boos were heard from the audience, Variety reported.
Trump, who first rose to fame as a Manhattan real estate developer, is highly unpopular in New York City, CNBC reported.
In the 2024 presidential election, Trump got less than 839,000 votes in NYC, compared with Democratic nominee and then-vice president Kamala Harris' 1.9 million votes.
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