Jalen Brunson pushes back on James Dolan’s White House visit claim
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New York Knicks owner James Dolan may have been in a hurry when he said his championship-winning team would go to the White House.
Days after the team won its first championship in 53 years, Dolan announced that the team had “received the championship trophy.”[d] “We accepted an invitation from the White House.”
Dolan said at the time: “We still need to work out the details, but yes, of course I invited the president to the game, right? He’s my friend. I’ve known him for 30 years and I’m very proud to bring the team to the White House.”
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Jalen Brunson of the New York Knicks holds up the Bill Russell NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award after defeating the San Antonio Spurs in Game 5 of the NBA Finals at Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Texas. (Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
Jalen Brunson holds the horses.
“This is something we haven’t really discussed as a team.” Brunson told Variety in a recent interview. “And frankly, people are making assumptions and saying all sorts of things, but we haven’t discussed it together yet. So when we get to that point, we’ll cross the bridge.”
One note that Brunson found “interesting” was that the Knicks would be the first NBA team to visit Trump either way.
President Donald Trump attended the Knicks’ Game 3 against the San Antonio Spurs at Madison Square Garden. This was the only loss for the Knicks, who won the NBA Finals in five games.
President Donald Trump attends Game 3 of the NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden. (Getty Images)
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Trump criticized the NBA for being “highly political” in 2020. NBA players were given the option to wear social justice messages on their jerseys, and many players kneeled for the national anthem. During his trip to the finals, Trump said basketball was “a little left-wing” but “great fun.”
Knicks star Josh Hart has criticized Trump in the past.
Dolan and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani got into a verbal fight over watch parties during the Finals. Dolan later took shots at Mamdani during the team’s victory celebration at City Hall and did his best to toughen him up for a photo shoot.
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Dolan-Mamdani beef is hardly new. The controversy began during the election cycle when Mamdani used the Knicks logo for his campaign and the team issued a cease and desist letter. “Trump is Your President,” the White House said, using the Knicks logo in a post shortly after last year’s election. The Knicks contacted the White House and subsequently removed the post.
President Donald Trump attends Game 3 of the NBA Finals between the San Antonio Spurs and New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on June 8, 2026 in New York City. Trump was joined by his grandson Kai Trump, Knicks owner James Dolan, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images)
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“The Knicks remain neutral on political matters,” the team said in a statement at the time. “We hope all of our elected officials, whether current or recently elected, do a great job in their roles.”
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