Taking on the NFL and football’s Super Bowl champs Brendan Langley Jersey , President Donald Trump gave the boot to a White House ceremony for the Philadelphia Eagles on Tuesday and instead threw his own brief ”Celebration of America” after it became clear most players weren’t going to show up.

Both sides traded hot accusations about who was to blame.

Trump tried to turn the fracas into a referendum on patriotism and tie it to the dispute over players who have taken a knee during the national anthem to protest racism and police brutality. However, Eagles players never knelt during the ”Star-Spangled Banner,” throughout the 2017 season and their march to the Super Bowl.

The White House accused Eagles team members of pulling a ”political stunt” and abandoning their fans by backing out at the last minute. Indeed, few apparently were going to come, though some expressed disappointment that they’d been disinvited and complained Trump was unfairly painting them as anti-American.

Through it all, Trump appeared to revel in fanning the flames of a culture war that he believes revs up his political base.

Trump had long been leery of the Eagles’ planned visit to the White House, in part because the team’s owner, Jeffrey Lurie, has been a Trump critic, and because several players have been vocal critics of the league’s new policy that requires players to stand if they’re on the field during the national anthem or else stay in the locker room.

White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the team notified the White House last Thursday that 81 people, including players, coaches, managers and others would be attending the Super Bowl celebration. But she said the team got back in touch late Friday and tried to reschedule, ”citing the fact that many players would not be in attendance.” The Eagles proposed a time when Trump would be overseas.

Eagles officials declined comment on the White House version of events, sticking with a simple earlier statement: ”We are truly grateful for all of the support we have received and we are looking forward to continuing our preparations for the 2018 season.”

No one connected with the team said the players’ reluctance to attend had anything to do with the national anthem, as Trump tried to portray the situation. And comments by star players in the current pro basketball finals indicated it’s not about football.

”I know no matter who wins this series, no one wants the invite anyway. So it won’t be Golden State or Cleveland going,” said LeBron James of the Cleveland Cavaliers. There was no disagreement from Stephen Curry, who angered Trump last year when he said he wouldn’t go to the White House after the Warriors’ NBA triumph, leading the president to disinvite him and his team.

Trump, furious about the small number of Eagles who were coming Domata Peko Jersey , scrapped Tuesday’s visit, believing a low turnout would reflect poorly upon him. He had told aides last year he was embarrassed when Tom Brady, star quarterback of that season’s champion New England Patriots, opted to skip a White House visit.

Instead, the president held what he dubbed a ”patriotic celebration” that was short and spare. A military band and chorus delivered the Star-Spangled Banner and God Bless America, with brief Trump remarks sandwiched in between.

”We love our country, we respect our flag and we always proudly stand for the national anthem,” Trump said.

The White House crowd of roughly 1,000, mostly dressed in business suits, was light on Pennsylvanians and heavy on administration and GOP Party officials. Several in attendance blamed the players, not the president, for torpedoing the Eagles event.

John Killion, a lifelong Eagles fan who now lives in Florida and traveled to Washington to see his team, said he was ”devastated and infuriated” by a breakdown he blamed on the Eagles owners.

”I waited my whole life for the Eagles to win the Super Bowl and they were going to be congratulated at the White House. And I don’t really care who you like or dislike, it shouldn’t be about that,” he said.

Bill Fey, a Republican state committeeman from southern New Jersey and an Eagles fan, called the decision ”a black eye as far as I’m concerned with the NFL. I think that everyone should come to the White House. This is the peoples’ house.” Still, he said, ”I think the Eagles did what they thought was necessary. I don’t blame anyone.”

Trump’s own patriotic event was not without its controversy. Following the playing of the anthem Ameer Abdullah Jersey , a heckler shouted from the audience: ”Stop hiding behind the armed services and the national anthem!” prompting boos. A Swedish reporter posted video of a man kneeling as the anthem was played.

In a statement Monday, Trump placed the blame on Eagles players he said ”disagree with their President because he insists that they proudly stand for the National Anthem, hand on heart, in honor of the great men and women of our military and the people of our country.”

Besides the fact that none of the Eagles had taken a knee during the anthem in 2017, defensive end Chris Long said the NFL anthem policy change and Trump’s reaction to it were not even discussed by the players in meetings about making the visit.

Those deciding to stay away had various reasons beyond Trump’s opposition to the protests, including more general feelings of hostility toward the president, one official said.

Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins, who had planned to skip the ceremony ”to avoid being used as any kind of pawn,” said in a For a team that had been 0-23 when trailing at halftime in road playoff games, the Toronto Raptors sure went about ending that drought and advancing in the playoffs in an usual way: The second unit, led by Fred VanVleet, created the comeback.

Using a tremendous effort at both ends of the court from reserves, and 24 points from Kyle Lowry, the Raptors came back to beat the Washington Wizards 102-92 in Game 6 on Friday night and end their Eastern Conference first-round series.

”Those guys have some ugly possessions, but most of the time, they figure it out,” Toronto coach Dwane Casey said about his bench players, who overwhelmed Washington’s in points, 21-6, and rebounds, 15-3 Zach Laskey Jersey , in the second half. ”We trust them. We trusted them all year.”

Toronto fell behind by 12 points in the first quarter and by 53-50 at the end of the second.

The Raptors’ first lead did not come until the third quarter, and they were back down by five points entering the final period.

Never in franchise history had the Raptors won after trailing at halftime in a postseason away game, the team said, citing the Elias Sports Bureau.

”It’s a different year. It’s a different team,” VanVleet said. ”We’ve just got to keep our composure going forward and leave the past in the past.”

With star guards Lowry and DeMar DeRozan, who had a personal series-low 16 points, resting to begin the fourth, VanVleet steered the turnaround, and the Raptors outscored Washington 29-14 in the last quarter. Bothered by a bad right shoulder, VanVleet had played a total of three minutes in the series until Friday, but he was just what Toronto needed in this game, with five points, four assists and four rebounds.

”On the road, in a hostile environment, I just wanted to be another support guy out there, that can ease the starters a bit,” VanVleet said. ”You know, me running the team and playing defense and stuff, I can do those things in my sleep.”

It allowed DeRozan to play only 33 1/2 minutes total, and Lowry 31 1/2, compared with more than 40 each for Washington’s All-Star guards Trey Hopkins Jersey , John Wall and Bradley Beal, who looked tired by the end.

”It was great to have our full bench back. Freddie back out there with the guys,” DeRozan said. ”Just a testament to what they did all year.”

Pascal Siakam had 11 points and eight rebounds and used his length to hound Wall, while VanVleet was a pest to Beal.

Jakob Poeltl and C.J. Miles each scored seven. It was VanVleet’s 3-pointer with center Marcin Gortat in his face that tied the game at 78, and Miles’ 3 with about 8 1/2 minutes remaining that gave Toronto its first lead of more than a single point, at 84-80.

”I’m still looking for that manual that says you can’t play that second unit. They’re too young. They’re too this. They’re too that,” Casey said. ”They closed it out for us tonight.”

The home team had won each of the first five games, but the Raptors were finally able to break that road hex. The East’s No. 1 seed will face LeBron James’ Cleveland Cavaliers or the Indiana Pacers next. The Pacers forced a Game 7 on Sunday by avoiding elimination with a 121-87 victory over the Cavs on Friday night.

Asked whether he has a preference for the upcoming opponent, DeRozan answered with one word: ”No.”

This marks the Raptors’ third consecutive trip to the second round of the playoffs; they last failed to get that far in 2015, when they were swept in the opening round by the Wizards.

But this time, Washington bowed out earlier than it was hoping when the season began with grandiose talk of a run to the conference finals. Instead, the Wizards were without Wall for 41 games and wound up with the No. 8 seeding.

Wall had 23 points and eight assists in Game 6; Beal scored 32. But none of that mattered to the fans who started heading to the exits early as the Wizards’ run of eight home playoff wins in a row came to a close.

”We got some looks,” said Wall, whose entire team had only 12 assists. ”We just missed them.”

TIP-INS

Raptors: After averaging 18.5 turnovers in Games 3 and 4 at Washington, Toronto had only seven in Game 6.

Wizards: Were without starting SF Otto Porter Jr., who had a medical procedure Friday to prevent permanent muscle damage because of compartment syndrome in his left leg. … Kelly Oubre Jr. started in place of Porter and hit his first 3-point attempt, before missing all six other shots he took.

UP NEXT:

Toronto will host Games 1 and 2 in the second round, no matter the opponent. The Raptors lost to the Cavaliers each of the past two seasons – swept in the second round a year ago, and beaten in six games in the conference finals in 2016.

—

Deandre Ayton Jersey ,