Even though long removed from the presidency, former POTUS Barack Obama is still among the most noble men in America. He is often seen as the silhouette of a model citizen. But when he served his term as the President, while his speeches captivated fans and peers, outside of it, he indulged in the sport that may have shaped his identity. The White House’s tennis court was squashed and in place came a basketball court where he would host his legendary pick-up games.
The stores are well known at this point. NBA icons and members of the parliament would join the court besides Obama, who everyone perceives as the ‘facilitator’ on the hardwood. Among his highest esteemed groups include an array of NBA giants, such as LeBron James and Magic Johnson. However, even without NBA stars, Barack Obama’s pickup games didn’t stop. And there was one rule, nobody could go easy.
The consequence of doing so would be the former POTUS not extending an invitation ever again. As such, the line was always thin. But on the court, he wasn’t the President, but a hooper. His respectful demeanor changed to trash-talking. “I would talk about them after I beat them and they would get mad,” he reveals.
And one such instance turned into a horrific injury for Obama. During a possession, he got hit with an elbow, leaving “blood all over,”. It required 12 stitches. But even though the injury led to discomfort during a Thanksgiving speech, Barack Obama mentioned how he turned it into a priceless memory for the person responsible for landing the accidental blow. Just a hint, he obviously didn’t ask the Secret Service to take any drastic measures.
“The photographer caught a sequence of me getting bowed… I had it printed out and I sent it to the guy who was just some staffer on CapitalHill. I had it framed and I signed it to him, ‘To the only guy who ever got away with assaulting the president’,” he told Tyrese Haliburton on the Young Man and The Three podcast.
The man, Rey Decerega spoke about the incident not long after it took place in 2010. “I learned today the president is both a tough competitor and a good sport,” he said about the 44th POTUS. While that was true, Obama’s drive on the court did force him to make a security change.
Barack Obama switches from basketball to golf
To Barack Obama, basketball has always been his escape. He not only feels it helped him make close friends, but it also reflected on his personality. Playing predominantly in Hawaii as a youth, the passion carried over for years. He would attend basketball games, and host NBA players, and even to them no mercy would be shown.
Joakim Noah, a former center for his favorite time, the Bulls recalled the incident when the former POTUS berated his jumper during one of his presidential pickup games. However, with age as well as the ramifications of the intensity these games could reach, Obama needed to make a vital decision.
53 at the time, he understood that his body doesn’t recover the same. For that whole year, he didn’t even host a presidential basketball game.
Hence, he found solace in the greens. Barack Obama made the switch to golf. It didn’t suspend his competitive instincts though. Having shared the course with Michael Jordan, the Bulls legend praised the former POTUS for his incredible golfing skills. Finding the recreational anecdote was vital for Mr. Obama. “I get so much politics I don’t want to be inundated with a bunch of chatter about politics during the day,” he said about the same.
Although it’s not full-court contests anymore, he still loves to talk and at times shoot a few jumpers. His passion for the sport is one that won’t fade away anytime soon.
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