Opinion | Could the Toronto Raptors snub US president Donald Trump and visit Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau instead?
- Head coach Nick Nurse did little to quell rumours his squad will pass on visiting the White House, and chances are they might not even get invited by Trump anyway
- Nurse did say he is in touch with Trudeau’s reps to visit Parliament Hill in Ottawa
It’s never good to read into comments too much, but Toronto Raptors head coach Nick Nurse just dropped a juicy one.
Asked on a Canadian radio sports station whether he’s received invitations from Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau, or Donald Trump’s White House, Nurse only confirmed he’d spoken with Trudeau’s camp about setting up an official meeting. Of course, he added what many would call a slight, a dig, or maybe he was just thinking out loud.
“I’ve heard nothing about the White House,” said the 51-year-old Iowa-native who took Canada’s only NBA team to their first championship in history. “We’re Canada’s team anyway, right?”
Nurse, who was an assistant coach with the Raptors before taking over the top role in 2018, was then asked if he would accept an invitation from Republican Trump.
“I don’t know,” he answered, which was followed by a few seconds of word stumbling. “I, I, don’t, I don’t ... well I think, you know, we’re here, let’s go see Trudeau in Ottawa, we’re Canada’s team.”
