Ned Dishman/Getty Images The Golden State Warriors visited former President Barack Obama during their trip to the nation's capital. Per ESPN's Nick Friedell, Warriors' staff member Tony Banks posted a picture of the team with Obama, and Logan Murdock of the Mercury News tweeted it: The Warriors, who were in town to face the Washington Wizards on Thursday, also visited Obama after their 2014-15 championship season. However, they have not returned to the White House since the beginning of Donald Trump's presidency despite winning the title in 2017 and 2018. They toured the National Museum of African American History and Culture last season, per Connor Letourneau of the San Francisco Chronicle, before the visit with Obama this year. American sports teams have regularly visited the White House after championships since the Ronald Reagan administration, per Thomas Neumann of ESPN.com. The Clemson football team most recently did so. In September 2017, Warriors guard Stephen Curry told reporters he was not interested in attending a White House ceremony with Trump in the Oval Office. "I don't want to go," Curry said. "That's kind of the nucleus of my belief…[But] it's not just me going to the White House. If it was, this would be a pretty short conversation." As the Associated Press noted, Curry "has remained vocally critical over President Trump regarding his policies and his rhetoric." Video Play Button Videos you might like Curry also said the following, per the AP: "Basically the things he said and the things he hasn't said at the right times, we won't stand for it. By acting and not going, hopefully that will inspire some change when it comes to what we tolerate in this country and what's accepted and what we turn a blind eye to." One day later, Trump revoked an invitation to visit. Prior to the 2018 NBA Finals, Curry said neither the Warriors nor the Eastern Conference champion Cleveland Cavaliers would attend a White House ceremony should they be invited.<doc-sep>WASHINGTON (KGO) -- The Golden State Warriors and former President Barack Obama reunited in the nation's capital nearly two years after their first visit.The Dubs reportedly spent about an hour with the 44th President of the United States in Washington, DC.The meeting took place Thursday at Obama's office before the defending NBA champs beat the Wizards 126-118.Our sister network, ESPN says a member of the Warriors' staff, posted a photo of the group on Instagram that has since been deleted, but a reporter for The Mercury News posted the photo on Twitter A team official told ESPN's Ramona Shelburne that the Warriors' visit was arranged through Stephen Curry, who has become friendly with the former president over the years, but Curry played coy about how the meeting came about.of 2016 when the Warriors celebrated their 2015 NBA championship at the White House.The Warriors have not visited the White House during Trump's presidency. President Donald Trump withdrew his invitation after Curry and other players made it clear they did not want to go to the White House to celebrate their 2017 win<doc-sep>WASHINGTON (AP) — The Golden State Warriors spent about an hour with former President Barack Obama. The meeting took place Thursday at Obama's office in Washington before the defending NBA champs beat the Wizards 126-118. Players and coach Steve Kerr were reluctant to talk about it. Steve Kerr “happy” the Warriors players met with President Obama. But Kerr declined to talk any further pic.twitter.com/YQYNcq8nHi — Mark Medina (@MarkG_Medina) January 25, 2019 Stephen Curry said he had no idea where the idea came from. All-Star forward Kevin Durant said it was amazing, and forward Draymond Green called it a "good private team meeting." The Warriors celebrated their 2015 NBA championship with Obama at the White House in 2016. President Donald Trump tweeted that he withdrew a White House invitation to celebrate the team’s 2017 championship after Curry and some other players said they would not go.<doc-sep>
With the Warriors not visiting for the White House for a second straight year, they visited a former president instead. Golden State players met with District resident Barack Obama on Thursday, prior to their 126-118 win against the Washington Wizards. Per the San Francisco Chronicle, the meeting featured only players and not coaches. Looks like the Warriors paid a visit to President Barack Obama during their visit to Washington DC. pic.twitter.com/D5PSwjc3Gl — Logan Murdock (@loganmmurdock) January 25, 2019 Warriors forward Draymond Green posted the picture on his Instagram with the caption, “Whole gang with the 44th president of the United States today. 🙌🏽” After the game, players offered little details about how the meeting with Mr. Obama came to be, insisting privacy. “It was amazing,” star Kevin Durant said. The Warriors had their invitation to the White House rescinded last year after players Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant made critical remarks of President Trump. Before the cancelation, Durant and Curry said they had planned to skip the visit. In 2018, the Warriors spent their trip in the District touring the National Museum of African American History and Culture with students from Durant’s hometown of Seat Pleasant, Maryland. Teams are typically invited to the White House for winning a championship, though Trump canceled visits from the Warriors and the Philadelphia Eagles. The Warriors were not invited this year. The Warriors previously met with Obama in 2016 when they visited the White House for winning the 2015 NBA title. With his youngest daughter still in school, the former president and his family remained in Washington after his last term. Sign up for Daily Newsletters Manage Newsletters Copyright © 2021 The Washington Times, LLC. Click here for reprint permission.