NBA star Rudy Gobert has voiced his approval of Donald Trump’s appointee for health secretary ahead of the president-elect’s return to the White House.
As the clock ticks down to his inauguration on January 20, Trump has already begun to rapidly fill the spots up for grabs in his cabinet and the West Wing. And, amid the slew of appointments, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has become one of the most influential men in health.
The Trump rival-turned-endorser has been named as the president-elect’s pick for Secretary of Health & Human Services.
The announcement sent shockwaves through the public health sector due to Kennedy’s controversial stances on health.
However, amid the criticism of his appointment, Kennedy, the nephew of JFK, could find support in the NBA.
Gobert, a center for the Minnesota Timberwolves, came out in support of the anti-vaxxer on social media.
Rudy Gobert (left) has voiced his approval of Donald Trump’s nomination of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (right) for Secretary of Health & Human Services
Gobert, a center for the Minnesota Timberwolves, came out in support of the anti-vaxxer
‘Let’s go @RobertKennedyJr,’ the French player posted to Elon Musk’s X, formerly known as Twitter, along with a praying emoji.
The post sparked a liberal meltdown among basketball fans online with many slamming Gobert for his endorsement.
‘i knew i hated you for a reason,’ one furious NBA fan replied, while another added, ‘Boy, are you dumb.’
Some outraged NBA fans were left astounded by Gobert’s backing of Kennedy – a renowned anti-vaxxer – given the hoops star’s own headline-grabbing Covid-related stunt.
In March 2020 at the start of the pandemic, Gobert, a four-time Defensive Player of the Year award-winner, jokingly touched every microphone following a press conference.
A few days after the gaffe, Gobert, who played for the Utah Jazz at the time, tested positive for the virus.
The NBA then halted all games on March 11 as the virus spread across the country and the world and Gobert faced an onslaught of criticism for his reckless antics.
‘You were literally NBA patient zero,’ one fan hit back in response to Gobert’s support of Kennedy, while another echoed the sentiment, sharing, ‘Maybe sit this one out patient 0.’
In March 2020, the NBA center jokingly touched every microphone in a press conference before testing positive for Covid-19 just days later
‘NBA COVID patient 0 endorses RFK Jr. pick. A glowing endorsement,’ a third sarcastically quipped.
‘The guy who started the COVID outbreak in the NBA bubble is endorsing RFK,’ another stunned fan posted.
‘Covid super spreader being an RFK fan. I mean the jokes write themselves,’ one chimed in.
Others referenced the December 2023 altercation that occurred between Gobert and Draymond Green when the Warriors star put Gobert in a headlock during a game between Golden State and Minnesota.
‘I knew Draymond Green hated you for a reason,’ one social media user claimed, while another posted, ‘draymond didn’t do enough.’
‘@Money23Green we’re asking for you to do Gods work again ……Not during the game tho,’ a third wrote, directly calling on Green.
The cabinet-level HHS appointment of RFK Jr. immediately sent shockwaves through the public health sector – as Kennedy is a prominent anti-vaxxer and has pushed conspiracy theories about a number of health-related topics.
While Kennedy might be a tough sell for confirmation through the Senate due to his staunch anti-vaccine stance , a slew of potential tough sells have emerged over the past few days – like Tulsi Gabbard, Pete Heckseth and Matt Gaetz – that might make him hard to turn down for the Republican-controlled new Senate.
The Frenchman’s post sparked a liberal meltdown among basketball fans online
Kennedy said the weekend before the election that Trump had ‘promised him’ control of the ‘public health agencies.’
‘The key, which President Trump has promised me, is control of the public health agencies, which is HHS and its sub-agencies, CDC, FDA, NIH and a few others,’ RFK Jr. said on a Zoom call with supporters.
One of his first policies, Kennedy said, would be to advise all public water systems in the US to remove fluoride from its water.
At his rallies, Trump has touted Kennedy’s focus on healthy food – RFK Jr. recently took a shot at the president-elect’s propensity for fast food like McDonald’s – and said he would let the former independent presidential candidate ‘go wild’ with his oversight.
Kennedy, a former Democrat who is the son of the late U.S. attorney general and Sen. Robert F. Kennedy and the nephew of President John F. Kennedy, who were both assassinated in the 1960s, had been touted for various Health-leading roles in the new administration.
