Jimmy Kimmel standing on stage in suit and tie; Donald Trump with eyes closed in seat at NBA Finals game
Jimmy Kimmel on 'Jimmy Kimmel Live'; Donald Trump at 2026 NBA Finals.
Donald Trump appeared to doze off during the New York Knicks vs. San Antonio Spurs game on Monday.
In an episode recorded ahead of time, Jimmy Kimmel predicted that Trump would fall asleep during the game.
Kimmel said the president is "as popular in New York as pineapple on pizza."
President Donald Trump must have thought he was watching Steph Curry on Monday evening, because he appeared to go night, night.
Trump attended game 3 of the NBA Finals at Madison Square Garden between the New York Knicks and San Antonio Spurs on Monday, where he was greeted with a shower of boos — though he is somehow now describing the reaction as "amazing." But, during the close and intense matchup, the president appeared to be caught napping in his seat. And Jimmy Kimmel will not be surprised to hear it.
While Monday's episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live aired after the game, it was recorded beforehand, and in his monologue, Kimmel didn't predict the winner, rather that there likely would be a sleepy Donald there.
"It was pretty late for the president to be out," Kimmel said. "Fortunately, he was able to squeeze in a nap during every one of his meetings today."
Kimmel pointed out that Trump previously declared himself too busy with the war with Iran to attend the recent wedding of his son Donald Jr., but "had no problem carving out time to swallow nachos at the Knicks game." Keeping the food talk going, Kimmel expected the boos, saying, "We don't know what happened or who won, all we know for sure is that Trump is about as popular in New York as pineapple on pizza."
Trump became the first sitting U.S. president to attend an NBA Finals game, and his presence required extra security and bullet-proof glass for his box. Fans attending the event were extremely vocal in expressing their displeasure in the resulting longer wait times for entry.
Among the other celebrities on hand Monday night were a group of die-hard Knicks fans who are Madison Square Garden regulars, including Mariska Hargitay, Ben Stiller, Tina Fey, Tracy Morgan, and Timothée Chalamet.
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"This would be the first time Trump has appeared at a court in New York since being convicted of 34 felonies," Kimmel said last week, referring to the president's May 2024 conviction on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in New York.
Additionally, he mocked Trump rooting for his local team.
"You'd think Trump would be rooting for the Spurs, right? It's what got him out of Vietnam," Kimmel joked, referring to Trump having been given a medical exemption to fighting in the Vietnam War because of bone spurs.
Game 4 of the NBA Finals is on Wednesday, and after Trump's appearance coincided with the end of the Knicks' 13-game winning streak, New Yorkers are hoping he decides to nap from home.