4. Barack Obama
No president has ever held more clout in the NBA than Barack Obama coming in part from his basketball knowledge, and in part from his hip-hop knowledge as these two cultures will always be associated. Obama knows his NBA and can hoop it up himself as has been inferred by the stories of his legendary games hosted inside the White House that even Magic Johnson attended.
Players were thrilled to go to the White House to meet him and it showed as he could talk hoops like a veteran player. However, growing up in Chicago no NBA player had an impact on Obama quite like Michael Jordan.
What is truly amazing is that after being inspired by him and his greatness, he presented Jordan with the Presidential Medal of Freedom while being able to recite all of Jordan’s greatest moments and when they happened like a little kid looking up to his hero. Playing on the cliché of people always saying they are, “The Michael Jordan of…,” he called Michael Jordan, “The Michael Jordan of greatness,” because of how incredible it is that everyone knows how good he was.
It will be fascinating to see President 44 take a deep dive into discussing one of his heroes in a more basketball-oriented capacity.