CNN
—
The president, who has always embraced hoops and made changes, enshrines his love of basketball in the Presidential Library.
The Obama Presidential Center in Chicago's Jackson Park will include an athletic facility with a full-size court, which the former president explains in a new podcast. Its unconventional installation at the presidential library complex highlights how President Obama's love of gaming has been an important part of his image, an appeal to young voters, and a useful political tool. Dew.
“This is the first presidential center to host multiple All-Star Games,” President Obama said on his new podcast “Ways to Win,” hosted by his brother-in-law Craig Robinson and University of Kentucky coach John Calipari. There is,” he said. .
But the youngest living former president likely won't lace up his shoes himself once the court is in session. The shot clock can run out on anyone, even a former commander-in-chief. President Obama, 62, confessed on a podcast that he no longer plays the competitive pick-up game he used to blow off steam during his presidency, after watching friends his age flip their Achilles heels. did.
“I hung up,” Obama said. “I played the entirety of the president's term,” he said, before adding, “The last time I played was in November 2016, just two months before I left office. Man, I played great that day. When it was raining threes, I won with this spin move, this finger roll. I was just firing on all cylinders.”
John J. Kim/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service/Getty Images
Vehicle traffic passes through the Obama Presidential Center construction site on South Stony Island Avenue in Chicago on August 8, 2023.
president and sports
Almost all recent presidents, including Mr. Obama, enjoy playing golf. Former President Donald Trump had criticized his predecessor for the amount of time he spent on the links, but stuck to his own course during his tenure. And President Joe Biden is said to be one of the best presidential golfers, along with President John Kennedy, although he has kept his love of golf a little more modest. President Bill Clinton, on the other hand, was a famous jogger.
However, it is unusual for a president to play a team sport. And since the current president is 81 years old and the likely Republican nominee is 77 years old, it is unlikely that this will happen again anytime soon.
These days, Obama's most public connection to the game he loves is through his March Madness bracket, which has garnered a huge post-presidential audience on social media. Ahead of this year's tournament, which begins Thursday, the former president has picked UW to beat Kentucky in the men's final, while South Carolina is scheduled to beat Caitlin Clark's Iowa State in the women's final.
“The first time we did this was in 2009, right? I was taking the oath, and I chose North Carolina. … And they won,” President Obama said. “And my brackets were beautiful and people were very impressed. They thought, 'Look at the president of the United States.' He is in the top 4% of all people who publicly enter brackets. 'And I kind of felt that, and I was like, 'You know what, I think this happens every year.' ”
President Obama added: “Since then, I'm sure I've lost every year. So I haven't necessarily picked a winner.”
Mandel Gunn/AFP/Getty Images
President Barack Obama shoots a basket as his friend Mike Ramos looks on during the annual Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn of the White House on April 1, 2013.
His playing days may be over, but as his bracket picks show, basketball has always been for Obama even before he ran for president, serving as a conduit to a broader audience that adds coolness to his persona. It becomes.
Early in his political career, Obama thought of himself as something like the star of an NBA team who could sink big shots under great pressure. It was bold and perhaps arrogant. But it was intimidating to up-and-coming politicians.
“I'm LeBron, baby. I can play at this level. I'm competitive,” Obama said at the 2004 Democratic National Convention in Boston, which catapulted him into political rock star status. He spoke to journalist David Mendel before the speech.
From the beginning, Mr. Obama's love of basketball, and the fact that he was healthy and young enough to play basketball, formed an image of an energetic and athletic candidate, emphasizing the idea of handing over the torch to Mr. Obama. It was used in his campaign as a way to A new political generation. It has become widely known that he plays basketball with his inner circle while awaiting the results of the primary against Democratic rival Hillary Clinton. The then-senator was on a tour of the Middle East to prove he could handle foreign policy when President Obama fired a long-range gun in front of a gymnasium full of U.S. military personnel in Kuwait. Subsequent television coverage featuring his victory did him no harm.
Upon arriving at the White House, Obama converted the White House tennis court to be used as a basketball court. Some of his favorite events seem to be the annual reception for NBA champions. For example, in 2010, the 44th president met with the late Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers at the White House and presented them with yellow jerseys with his name on the back.
President Obama's physical pickup basketball games with Cabinet members and aides invited to make up the numbers quickly became one of the hottest tickets in Washington. They often took place on military bases or government buildings near the White House. Sometimes they played on a court in the backyard of the presidential palace. In one infamous incident in 2010, the notoriously sharp-elbowed president suffered an injury so bad that an encounter with his adversary, a Capitol Hill aide, left him with stitches in his mouth.
But even the confident Obama sometimes missed his shots. The former president was once embarrassed when he was seen hitting the rim continuously while playing on the basketball court on the South Lawn of the White House, to the laughter of reporters. He continued his efforts until he finally made a basket.
The then-president occasionally coached his daughter's school basketball games. In 2012, he used March Madness as a diplomatic backdrop, taking British Prime Minister David Cameron to a game in Dayton, Ohio. According to Prime Minister David Cameron's memoirs, while returning to Washington on Air Force One, President Obama offered a tired guest the use of the presidential bed in the nose of the plane, saying, “President Roosevelt would never do that for Churchill.'' I'm sure he never did,” he said. On another occasion in November 2011, President Obama celebrated Veterans Day at a Michigan State vs. North Carolina basketball game on the deck of an aircraft carrier docked in the Port of San Diego.
Even if he's no longer seen on the hardboard, Obama still has a game to play. While he was campaigning with Biden in Michigan in 2020, he made a walk-off 3-pointer in the gym and was clearly delighted. That's my job. ”
On the “Ways to Win” podcast, the former president drew some parallels between his experience at the highest levels of politics and the basketball coaches trying to motivate college teams this week.
“When things are going well, don't get too high. When things aren't going well, don't get too down. I think that's what's right for me from a leadership standpoint,” President Obama said.
This is the advice he should give to Mr. Biden as he faces a tough re-election race. Biden appeared together at a virtual campaign rally this weekend to promote the Affordable Care Act, which is celebrating its 14th anniversary.
