Silver on Trump flap: I greatly admire LeBron's intelligence and business acumen

Asked about President Donald Trump's tweet attacking LeBron James, NBA commissioner Adam Silver Saturday heaped praise upon the face of his league.

"LeBron is one of the all-time greatest NBA players and one of the most accomplished athletes," Silver said in a statement to USA TODAY's Sam Amick. "He runs a very successful media company. He's sent hundreds of students to college and just opened a school in Akron where at-risk students will receive free tuition, meals, and transportation. I greatly admire his intelligence and business acumen and have enormous respect and admiration for what he does in his community."

Trump took issue with James on Twitter late Friday regarding the superstar's interview with CNN's Don Lemon earlier in the week. Trump punctuated the tweet with "I like Mike" in reference to Michael Jordan. On Saturday, Jordan issued a terse response on the matter, saying through a spokesperson "I support LJ".

Reaction also came from Trump's wife Melania, whose spokesperson said the First Lady would be open to visiting James' new public school in Akron, Ohio.