Warriors respond to report about declining White House visit

Although previous reports said the Warriors were not going to attend the traditional White House ceremony, Golden State released a statement Tuesday that said the team hasn’t been invited to the White House yet.

“Today is all about celebrating our championship,” a statement from the team said. “We have not received an invitation to the White House, but will make those decisions when and if necessary.”

Earlier Tuesday, several reports surfaced that the Warriors had “unanimously” decided not to go to the White House and be honored by President Donald Trump, including one from CNBC reporter Josh Brown.

If the Warriors did decide to not attend the White House ceremony, it would come to little surprise as multiple members of the Warriors’ franchise have expressed dislike toward the president, including head coach Steve Kerr, guard Stephen Curry and forward David West.

Kerr went on a rant in November about the election and said: “the man who’s going to lead you has routinely used racist, misogynist, insulting words.”

It’s tradition that championship teams visit the White House and are honored by the president. Trump hosted Clemson’s football team on Monday and honored the Tigers for defeating Alabama in the National Championship game back in January.

If the Warriors decided not to go to the White House, they wouldn’t the first athletes to skip the White House ceremony. Several New England Patriots decided not to attend White House ceremony in April after winning Super Bowl LI. Quarterback Tom Brady, tight-end Martellus Bennett and wide-receiver Danny Amendola are some of the Patriots who decided to stay home rather than meet Trump.

After winning the World Series in November, there was a push for the Cubs to visit the White House before former President Barrack Obama left office.

Monday’s win over the Cavaliers gave the Warriors their second championship title in three years. Golden State defeated Cleveland 129-120 in Game 5 of the series. Kevin Durant was named Finals MVP after averaging 35.2 points on 55.6 percent from the field and 47.4 percent from three during the Finals.

Last year, Cleveland won in thrilling Game 7 fashion after the Warriors blew a 3-1 lead.