Jimmy Kimmel Doesn't Hold Back Joke About President Trump Attending NBA Finals

Jimmy Kimmel has made it known time and time again that he's not fond of President Donald Trump, that's for sure.

Trump let the world know on Thursday that he'll attend Game 3 of the Finals between the New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs. He's been rooting for the Knicks throughout the postseason and even tried to attend a game during the Eastern Conference Finals.

After the Knicks took a 2-0 series lead over the Spurs on Friday night, Kimmel offered his thoughts on Trump attending Game 3.

Unsurprisingly, Kimmel isn't thrilled about Trump making a brief stop in New York for a sporting event.

"A lot of celebrities are expected to be at the Garden on Monday, including the biggest celebrity of all," Kimmel said sarcastically. "President Trump said he's planning to go to New York. This would be the first time Trump has appeared at a court in New York since he was convicted of 34 felonies. He's a fan of the Knicks. ... You'd think Trump would be rooting for the Spurs. It's what got him out of Vietnam."

Some people aren't thrilled about Trump attending Game 3.

ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith has already made it known that he doesn't want Trump at Madison Square Garden.

"He's coming to Game 3 of the NBA Finals, and I don't want him there," Smith said. "It has nothing to do with politics, policy, or anything like that. It has everything to do with him disrupting and contributing at the same time to the chaos that's going to be existing at Madison Square Garden.

Hakeem Jeffries, the House minority leader, claims Trump is going to ruin the Game 3 experience for Knicks fans.

"Why does Donald Trump always have to ruin a good thing? The Knicks haven't been in the NBA Finals for 27 years, the city is trying to celebrate this, we've embraced this team, and this guy has to inject himself," Jeffries said. "Seriously? Give us a break. Why doesn't he just focus on trying to improve the quality of life for American people."

Game 3 is set to begin at 8:30 p.m. ET on Monday.

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This story was originally published June 6, 2026 at 9:29 AM.