US PRESIDENT DONALD Trump became the first sitting US president to attend – and fall asleep – at an NBA Finals game on Monday night.

Tightened security due to Trump’s presence causes huge queues for the highly anticipated game – where the San Antonio Spurs ultimately beat the New York Knicks.

During the national anthem at Madison Square Garden Trump was loudly booed by basketball fans, which appeared to cause the president to stop clapping.

The 79-year-old who was seated in a private box with Knicks owner James Dolan and his granddaughter Kai Trump, was later caught on camera appearing to have nodded off during the game.

US Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez reshared a clip of the president at the game and bluntly said “WAKE TF UP”.

The anti-Trump Lincoln Project meanwhile described the incident as “the most expensive taxpayer funded nap”.

Tickets for the third NBA Finals were steep at $4,711 (€4,000) - and the usual watch party with large screens showing the game outside the stadium was cancelled due to the added security. 

President Trump booed during National Anthem of NBA Finals Game 3 pic.twitter.com/bimQuNGgIX

— New York Post (@nypost) June 9, 2026

Trump has been caught struggling to keep his eyes open at important events before, most recently at a coal industry announcement in the Oval Office on 4 June.

After footage of the president appearing to sleep at an Oval Office meeting with health representatives in November, Trump told the Journal that he wasn’t dozing, just relaxing.

“I’ll just close. It’s very relaxing to me,” he said. “Sometimes they’ll take a picture of me blinking, blinking, and they’ll catch me with the blink.”

The San Antonio Spurs had a 115-111 victory over the New York Knicks in game three of the NBA finals, with 22-year-old French player Victor Wembanyama playing a starring role.

President Donald Trump appears to have fallen asleep at the NBA Finals 💀😭

(via @CalltoActivism) pic.twitter.com/1Kp7ms2iqa

— Basketball Forever (@bballforever_) June 9, 2026

Wembanyama scored 32 points and grabbed eight rebounds to spark a San Antonio win that pulled them within 2-1 in the best-of-seven series, which continues on Wednesday.

The player, who worked with monks during the off-season, said he escaped the mental tensions of the Finals by leaving the hotel hours before game three and making a drawing of a statue in a park.

“Really tried to relax,” he said. “The playoffs, it’s like a whirlwind. It’s hard to put your head out of the water.

“I need some time off, let my brain cool down, recover as much for the body as for the mind.”

Spurs coach Mitch Johnson was pleased with the aggressive play from his big man at Madison Square Garden.

“I’m sure Victor has numerous sources of motivation,” Johnson said. “I don’t think any of us are surprised or expect anything different than a strong performance and him being on his front foot in terms of being in attack mode.”