Some preconceived notions from some odd sources are causing division in America.

The anti-Donald Trump fervor so obvious in the mainstream media may also be present in the sports media and even among some coaches, if a recent interview of Villanova basketball coach Jay Wright by Maggie Gray of Sports Illustrated is any indication.

For some obscure reason, Gray feels compelled to ask Wright if would take his team back to the White House again if Villanova were to repeat as national champions in the NCAA tournament this year (click on video below).

Straight out of left field, she leads off the interview with a comment about some “divisive election” results and controversy on “college campuses where we’re seeing a lot of people speaking out about Donald Trump. What’s the role of a college basketball coach with all this going on? What kind of discussions are you having with your team?”

Wait. What? Was that a serious question? From an objective interviewer? A neutral observer would have to immediately conclude the reporter was dead set on driving a political agenda.

Amateur hour in full effect.

Even more disturbing that Jay Wright takes the question seriously, saying he’s had a lot of conversations with his players. “We did go to the White House to meet President Obama who was, for many reasons, just a great role model.” 

“How are your kids feeling about it (Trump’s election)?” she asks, again, almost with a straight face.  

To which Wright responds, “I think scared. I think a lot of them are very concerned about the direction of the country. African American kids are very concerned about their own culture, their own people.

“Someone asked me, ‘If you won it (again), would you go to the White House?’ It’s something we would have have a long talk about as a team. I would suggest that out of respect for the tradition of our country and the office of the President that we should go.”

After some posturing, Wright finally concludes that deciding whether his players should go to the White House would be a good problem to have, meaning that Villanova would have won second national championship.

What’s really troubling, however, is that some people who are supposed to be objective, who should respect the individual serving as President to tackle America’s enormous problems, and who should value differing opinions are so closed-minded.

Maggie May needs to stick to sports, Jay Wright to basketball.

 

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By Charlie Springer

Charlie Springer is a former Louisville editor and sportswriter, a public affairs consultant, a UofL grad and longtime fan.

11 thoughts on “Villanova’s Jay Wright would think twice about going back to the White House”
  1. Charlie,
    You are wrong. All Jay Wright said is he would talk to his team about going to the White House.
    He said he thinks they should go out of respect to the Presidency. In my opinion Trump does not deserve the respect of a president, with the behavior he displayed before or after he was elected. He is a joke and an embarrassment . If people like you want to continue to blame other people for our presidents bad behavior go for it. You have 3 years and eight months. You said Jay Wright should just coach basketball (he is doing that very well). You should keep sticking up for the poor white men in this country that want us to go back to the 1950’s.

    Todd Tovey

    1. For Jay Wright to take the question seriously was out of line. Nobody wants to go back to the Fifties, but most of us white guys want to quit being blamed for everything, especially the self-imposed stuff some groups have done to themselves.

  2. I will assure everyone that when Louisville wins this year, he and his entire team will proudly go to the White House if asked to come.

    1. Join me, Steven Wilkerson, in spreading the word. This is our country and we need for it to be great again, so we all should share in creating solutions instead of more problems. Thank you for your support.

  3. Remember when we could read about and watch sports to get away from politics? I was a Sports Illustrated subscriber for nearly 25 years but canceled last year because of their decrease in quality original content and increased incidents of throwing their politics at readers. Not exclusive to SI either, it’s become increasingly difficult to find any non-game content on ESPN where they aren’t doubling down on alienating approximately half of their audience.

  4. Thanks for your comment, Gene. We may already gone down a dangerous road from which it may be difficult to recover, no matter who was elected this time around. These are strange times when so many moral compasses seemed be pointed in the wrong directions. A large usually silent portion of America was heard during the most recent election, giving us some reason for optimism.

    1. I totally agree Charlie Springer, our country is on the verge of self discovery. It is time for everyone, regardless of political affiliation to offer a positive voice for the betterment of our country. I have little or no use for people who think the loudest voice and meanest spirit wins the race. Time to grow up and take action.

  5. We can continue to spread the hate or we can get together and do something positive. Anyone who thinks that the country is in danger because of the President should remember that our greatest fear is misinformation and partisan politics. If you disagree with the President, attempt to get his attention by doing something that makes a positive impact on the country instead of acting like a spoiled child. Rioting is against the law, looting and causing civil disobedience is against the law. Try acting like an adult and do something that makes your protest seem worthy of notice. All we have seen so far are whiners and losers destroying other people’s property.

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