Basketball fans greeted US President Donald Trump with a chorus of loud boos on Monday, as the Republican became the first sitting US President to attend the NBA Finals at Game 3 of the championship series between the New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs.
Attending as a guest of Knicks president James Dolan, Trump stood in a luxury box at Madison Square Garden, the self-styled “World’s Most Famous Arena,” smiling as the sell-out crowd jeered and booed when he appeared on the Jumbotron during the national anthem.
“I thought it was amazing, actually,” Trump told reporters as he prepared to depart from JFK airport in New York.
“You mean, when they had the camera on me? I thought it was very good.”
The incident marked the latest chapter in Trump’s complicated relationship with his former hometown, where fuming fans waited in lines that snarled around the sidewalks of Midtown Manhattan with extraordinary security measures in place for the presidential visit.
With New York commanding a 2-0 head start in the best-of-seven series against the San Antonio Spurs, the Knicks’ first home Finals game in 27 years was the hottest ticket in the five boroughs, with fans shelling out thousands of dollars to enter the American sports cathedral.
But a formidable security presence slowed entry to the arena for ticket-holders, as commuters and tourists navigated a maze of black metal fencing that restricted pedestrian traffic around the venue.
“I wish he wasn’t here. He’s not a real fan, and he’s just making things awful,” said Errol Ismail, a Brooklyn resident and owner of a fitness company, who tried multiple entrances to get into the venue. “We’ve waited a lifetime for this, and he’s made it about himself, like everything else.”
Trump’s approval rate held near the lowest levels of his political career, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll completed on Monday, with some 35% of respondents saying they approved of Trump’s performance.
