A years-old clip of Donald Trump invoking LeBron James in a joke about transgender athletes has found fresh attention online. The footage is circulating again as arguments over eligibility rules in women’s sports intensify.
The clip has also gained fresh relevance after WNBA star Sophie Cunningham took a firm stance on transgender participation in women’s sports.
An old clip of Donald Trump joking about LeBron James has resurfaced online as the debate over transgender athletes competing in women’s sports continues to dominate headlines.
The remarks were made during the America First Agenda Summit in July 2022, when Trump criticized transgender women competing in women’s sports before using the NBA superstar as the punchline to illustrate his point.
“I’d be the greatest women’s basketball coach in history,” Trump told the audience. He then contrasted LeBron James with Michael Jordan, saying he preferred the Chicago Bulls icon before joking that he’d ask James whether he had “any desire to be a woman” so he could play on his hypothetical women’s team.
Trump continued the bit by claiming his team would “never lose” and that opponents wouldn’t come “within 70 points” of beating them.
Donald Trump Also Voiced Support For Riley Gaines
After the joke, Trump returned to the broader issue, arguing that people were reluctant to speak out against transgender athletes in women’s sports because they feared being “shunned” or “canceled.” He said that the climate needed to change so people could discuss the topic openly.
The remarks came at a time Trump was repeatedly voicing support for former University of Kentucky swimmer Riley Gaines.
Gaines became a national figure after competing against University of Pennsylvania swimmer Lia Thomas at the 2022 NCAA Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships. Thomas, who previously competed on Penn’s men’s team before transitioning, became the first openly transgender athlete to win an NCAA Division I title in any sport.
In the 200-yard freestyle, Gaines and Thomas tied for fifth place, but she later said Thomas, rather than both swimmers, was presented with the fifth-place trophy during the awards ceremony. Trump continued championing Gaines in the months that followed. He invited her onstage during a CPAC event in August 2022, praising her stance on the debate.
Sophie Cunningham Reignites The Trans Athletes Debate
3Four years after Trump’s remarks, Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham has thrust the issue back into the national conversation.
The seven-year WNBA veteran recently sparked widespread debate after telling ESPN she believes women’s sports and female spaces should be protected from transgender participation.
Cunningham rejected claims that she harbors hatred toward the transgender community, saying she wanted to “extend love” while also standing up for biological women and girls. She doubled down days later, telling reporters she would “never falter” in those beliefs and arguing Title IX exists to safeguard women’s sports.
3Cunningham’s comments divided opinion, with support pouring in from figures including Gaines herself, author J.K. Rowling, and tennis legend Martina Navratilova. However, this was also matched by equally vocal criticism as the debate spilled beyond social media and into WNBA arenas.
Opposing rallies formed outside multiple Indiana Fever games, with demonstrators carrying signs reading “Protect trans women” and “Trans kids belong in sports.” Inside the arenas, Cunningham was repeatedly booed whenever she touched the ball.
As The Blast reported, Minnesota Lynx head coach Cheryl Reeve also made her position clear, wearing a “Trans Kids Belong” shirt during a game against the Fever. While the pair spoke briefly at midcourt before tipoff, Reeve later said they agreed on the importance of educating people despite holding different views.
Seattle Storm center Stefanie Dolson, who publicly came out as LGBTQ+ in 2016, also weighed in by wearing a “Trans Rights Are Human Rights” shirt before facing Indiana.
Donald Trump’s White House Backs Cunningham
The controversy has also caught the attention of Trump’s White House. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters the president had been following coverage of Cunningham’s remarks and agreed with her stance that transgender women should not compete in biological women’s sports.
“We want to protect women and girls,” Leavitt said, adding that Cunningham was speaking “the truth” and criticizing the backlash she had received.
The administration also amplified Cunningham on social media. The U.S. Department of Education shared an image of the WNBA player wearing a crown alongside the caption, “Common sense prevails,” while the White House had previously posted a video comparing Cunningham’s viral finger-pointing celebration to a similar gesture by Trump.
Cunningham, meanwhile, distanced herself from partisan labels. She told ESPN she considers herself politically “in the middle,” saying she agrees and disagrees with positions on both sides and believes people too often make assumptions about her views.