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How’d Obama Pick His Players? By Their Level Of Support

Capping off a star-studded birthday week that included dinner with Oprah, President Obama reportedly played ball in front of wounded soldiers at Fort McNair with some of the most talented basketball players in the world, past and present. The press wasn’t allowed inside because, according to Press Secretary Robert Gibbs, the president “just wanted to play.” Yet some of the invited players may surprise you. So how did he choose who would participate in the afternoon hoops?

He rewarded his supporters, naturally. Here, a rundown of the stars who joined Obama on Sunday and their prior links to the president:

Etan Thomas: “There isn’t a Wizards player more politically active than injured forward-center Etan Thomas, who worked on Obama’s campaign,” reported The Boston Globe in January 2009. Thomas was Obama’s guest at Howard University’s 2007 Convocation and served on a grassroots campaign to register young voters. He attended last year’s White House Correspondents’ Dinner, read Obama’s Dreams From My Father to kids at an NBA-sponsored event, and stumped for Obama at events and rallies. Thomas and fellow players Alonzo Mourning and Dwyane Wade have been to Obama barbecues before.

Alonzo Mourning: Mourning’s been donating to Obama, hosting fundraisers, and speaking at rallies since 2007, “but the longtime NBA center couldn’t have imagined Obama would actually win the presidential nomination,” reported the Orlando Sentinel in January 2009.  He reportedly brought a busload of kids to Obama’s inauguration. Most recently, Mourning was invited to attend the president’s State of the Union address and is working with an organization rebuilding homes in Haiti.

LeBron James: James and Jay-Z hosted a rally for Obama in October 2008. Prior to that, James had attended a rally for Obama and contributed $20,000 to the presidential nominee. After Obama’s win, LeBron told the AP that it was an “unbelievable feeling.” The president, and Obama both appeared in a back-to-school television special last year. Their kinship led Obama to lobby for LeBron to choose his hometown Chicago (to no avail) this offseason.

Magic Johnson: During Obama’s campaign, Johnson, encouraged people at an event to vote for Obama. “The man has a plan. He’s a visionary. He’s a man of action,” Johnson said. When Obama won, Johnson said he “cried all night” out of joy. Appearing at the president’s inauguration ceremony, he called it an “incredible” experience.

Grant Hill: Hill said that after delivering a five-minute introduction for Obama at a 2007 fundraiser he was hosting, the president began his comments by saying, “We’ve got to get that boy in politics.” Hill, who called Obama “inspiring,” said that on inauguration night he tried to keep tabs of the election results during his NBA game. “I will always remember playing against Jersey on Nov. 4, 2008,” he said.

Chauncey Billups:  Billups introduced Obama at a rally in June 2008 and told The New York Times “it was just like talking to a regular dude from around the way.” So it must have been a huge compliment when Denver coach George Karl this year compared Billups’ selection to the Western Conference all-star squad to Obama’s presidential win.

Derek Fisher: During the Lakers White House visit this past winter, Obama singled out Fisher, Pau Gasol, and Jordan Farmar for their Haiti relief contributions. Fisher attended the Democratic convention in Denver and spoke at least two Obama events in 2008. Fisher has personal similarities to Obama as well. “Fisher is so often mentioned as a man of character — [Kobe] Bryant, only half-jokingly, refers to him as ‘Derek Obama,’” reported SI.com in March 2008.

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