Trump takes on NBA star Lebron

NBA star Lebron James (L) and US President Donald Trump. [Photo: Courtesy]

US President Donald Trump has taunted US basketball player Lebron James and suggested that he prefers Michael Jordan.

It came after the LA Lakers star accused Mr Trump of being divisive in a CNN interview.

The president responded on Twitter by saying: “Lebron James was just interviewed by the dumbest man on television, Don Lemon.

“He made Lebron look smart, which isn’t easy to do.”

The president implied that he preferred basketball star Michael Jordan, perhaps a reference to the debate over whether Jordan or James were the better player.

In his interview with Don Lemon, James said that sport had offered him the opportunity to meet people of different backgrounds and race, adding: “Sports has never been something that divides people. It’s always been something that brings people together.

Police brutality

“He (Mr Trump) is dividing us and what I noticed over the last few months that he’s kinda used sport to divide us and that’s something I can’t relate to, because I know sport was the first time I was ever around someone white.”

Mr Trump has taken a harsh stance on the ongoing debate over players in the National Football League (NFL) who refuse to stand for the national anthem in protest against racial injustice and police brutality.

He has repeatedly said that anyone who kneels during the anthem should be fired.

During the interview, James also discussed a new school he has opened for underprivileged children in his home town in Ohio, which offers free meals and bikes to students, as well as job placement assistance for parents and an on-site food bank. Meanwhile, Russian police detained around 25 gay rights activists who took part in an unsanctioned rally in St Petersburg yesterday, according to Reuters witnesses.