The Boston Celtics are expected to travel to the White House to celebrate the 2024 NBA championship on Thursday afternoon. That’s according to the Office of Massachusetts Treasurer Deborah B. Goldberg, who is scheduled to attend the event.
Goldberg’s public schedule lists her attending the Celtics’ championship celebration at the White House at 4:30pm ET on Thursday. The visit has not been officially announced by the Celtics or the White House, but it was also reported by Massachusetts’ State House News Service.
It’s customary for U.S. professional sports teams to visit the White House in the months after winning an NBA championship. But, the visit doesn’t always take place.
The Denver Nuggets, the 2023 NBA champions, never visited the White House due to a scheduling conflict. The previous year, the Golden State Warriors did visit the White House after winning the 2022 NBA championship.
For the Celtics, this is a conveniently-timed visit — they are off on both Wednesday and Thursday, and will face the Washington Wizards in DC on Friday evening, so no additional travel is required.
Both the Warriors and the Cleveland Cavaliers were outspoken about not wanting to visit the White House under President Donald Trump, with Steph Curry and LeBron James being particularly vocal on the matter. In fact, no NBA team visited the White House during the Trump administration — the Toronto Raptors’ Danny Green said it was a ‘hard no’ in 2019. This visit will be the last under President Joe Biden, given that Trump will once again take office in January.
The White House visit will also be the Celtics’ organization’s first since September of 2008, when the ‘08 championship team was welcomed by President Bush. The White House visit is the last step of the celebration for the Celtics, who raised Banner 18 on October 23rd.
This story will be updated as more information is made available.
