The president attended Game 3 at the invitation of Knicks owner James Dolan
Jun 9, 2026
at
12:56 pm ET
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1 min read
President Donald Trump is not expected to attend Game 4 of the 2026 NBA Finals, according to ESPN. Trump, a longtime Knicks fan and New Yorker, frequently attended games at Madison Square Garden in the 1990s, but had not attended since he was initially elected president in 2016.
Trump attended Game 3 of the 2026 Finals at the invitation of Knicks owner James Dolan, a longtime friend and donor. He watched Game 3 from Dolan’s suite at Madison Square Garden, and his presence required a number of security precautions for everyone else in attendance.
The Knicks told fans to arrive at Game 3 two hours before tipoff, though lines started far earlier on Monday. There were multiple security checkpoints, and fans were not allowed to bring bags to the game. Several blocks surrounding Madison Square Garden were blocked off from public use, and the watch party that had been held outside of Madison Square Garden for prior playoff games was canceled. Media was not permitted to enter locker rooms before Game 3, and even players had to deal with the increased security, with Spurs guard De’Aaron Fox calling Trump’s presence “inconvenient on everybody else.”
Trump is reportedly skipping Game 4 on Wednesday because of scheduling conflicts and obligations. On Sunday, he will host UFC Freedom 250, which will take place in an arena built on the South Lawn of the White House. It is not clear at this time if Trump plans to try to attend Game 6 of the NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden if the series between the Knicks and Spurs extends that far.
Trump was the first sitting U.S. president to ever attend an NBA Finals game. However, many presidents have attended NBA Finals Games and even regular-season games either before or after their presidencies. George W. Bush attended the 1999 NBA Finals between these same Knicks and Spurs while serving as governor of Texas, for example, and after his presidency ended, Barack Obama attended Game 2 of the 2019 NBA Finals between the Toronto Raptors and Golden State Warriors.
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