‘obama-basketball’
courtesy of ‘senorglory’
There are many perks with being the leader of the free world, especially around your birthday. With the Mrs. out of town, 44 chose to celebrate his 49th by hosting a pretty star-studded pickup basketball game held on behalf of wounded veterans and members of the White House mentoring program. President Obama was joined on court with several active and retired NBA stars, including Grant Hill, Shane Battier, Magic Johnson and LeBron James.
It is no surprise that Obama threw together such a headlining basketball game as he has often professed his fandom of hoops. Obama has made several appearances at the Verizon Center to catch a game (including just last week, when he took Sasha to see the Mystics), and he even did a little renovation to the White House upon moving in to make sure he had a place to practice his jump shot. As the Post noted, Obama installed a basketball court on the grounds where tennis courts had once been, and the President was hoping to host a star event once the court opened:
In June 2009, when the basketball court was being built, the president told Bloomberg News that he was itching for some professional competition. “As soon as we get the basketball nets up, we’re going to have some of these guys over for a game,” he said of pros such as James. Asked by Bloomberg whether he would be playing, Obama said: “Of course. It’s my court.”
With the wife – and congress – back in DC, Obama now returns to his scheduled executive and fatherly responsibilities. For one weekend, why can’t the guy have a little fun?
