The Oklahoma City Thunder, the reigning 2025 NBA champions, will not visit the White House for the traditional championship celebration due to a timing conflict with their scheduled game against the Washington Wizards on Saturday evening.

A team spokesperson stated that discussions had taken place with White House officials. "We have been in touch with the White House, and we are appreciative and grateful for the communication we have had, but the timing just didn’t work out," the Thunder said in a statement obtained by The Associated Press.

The Thunder are an NBA franchise based in Oklahoma City, competing in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference.^[1]

It was unclear whether a formal invitation had been issued to the team. Fox News Digital contacted the White House for comment.

The White House has hosted visiting championship teams from major U.S. sports leagues for decades as part of a long-standing tradition.^[2]

Teams have previously declined such visits. In 2017, President Donald Trump withdrew an invitation to the NBA champion Golden State Warriors after forward Stephen Curry expressed reluctance to attend.^[3]

Sources

1. NBA.com. "Oklahoma City Thunder". Accessed October 2024. https://www.nba.com/thunder
2. White House Historical Association. "Sports Teams Visit the White House". Accessed October 2024. https://www.whitehousehistory.org/sports-teams-visit-the-white-house
3. ESPN. "President Donald Trump rescinds White House invitation to Golden State Warriors". September 16, 2017. https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/19423909/president-donald-trump-rescinds-white-house-invitation-golden-state-warriors