Chansky's Notebook: The Big Loser

Posted by Art Chansky | Aug 3, 2023 | Sports, Sports Notebook

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The athletes and coaches who supported Trump abandoned him long ago.

Although the 45th president retains a strong majority of support in his own party, the backing he had in celebrity circles was gone even before he lost in 2020 and propagated the Big Lie. Maybe friends were good prognosticators.

A story by the independent Intelligencer from August of 2020, almost three months before the last presidential election, outlined those athletes and coaches who had already left Trump’s tent or were just texting him good luck.

Aside from Dana White, his lifelong friend and UFC president, and billionaire buddies like NFL owners Bob Kraft, Jerry Jones and Stephen Ross, those who still support him are mostly notable nobodies. One is journeyman relief pitcher Sean Gilmartin, who was and still is married to former Trump flack Kayleigh McEnany, and others are wackos like Dennis Rodman and hardcore right-wingers Curt Schilling and Mike Ditka.

Former Indiana basketball coach Bobby Knight was a one-time strong Trump supporter who was also close to Dean Smith but never asked his advice on politics. However, links to The General’s relationship with the wannabe general take you to blank pages these days.

Even Tom Brady once had a MAGA cap in his Patriots locker but got rid of it before he lost some love in liberal New England. TB12 also did not attend visits to the White House after his last two Super Bowl wins. Bill Belichick, whose endorsement letter Trump once read at a rally, is now a hoodie ghost.

Reputed dummies like Herschel Walker, whom Trump talked into moving from Texas to Georgia to arouse his Dawg fanbase and run for senate, and ex-football coach/now Senator Tommy Tuberville are still with the Trumpsterfire.

Other publicly neutral pro athletes coming out to support Black Lives Matter, etc., have become Kryponite for The Donald. Stephen Curry and his entire family were on stage supporting Joe Biden at the 2020 DNC, among the many athletes against Trump. They and the 4 million kids who turn 21 every year have made his odds longer for reelection. They may be shorter for a federal conviction.

Rotund golfer John Daly, who has had his own scrapes with the law, showed up at his New Jersey golf club to tape a YouTube video endorsement. Boy, that was a biggie.

Back in the spring of 2020, the Intelligencer wrote, “Now would seem like the time for the Trump fans to speak up . . . there’s been nary a peep beyond the Dana Whites and Dalys, and that seems unlikely.”

And now more likely, the guy who lost a suit against the NFL for not letting him buy a team could become the biggest loser of all time.

Featured image via Associated Press/Evan Vucci

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