President Donald Trump says he should have left three UCLA basketball players accused of shoplifting in China in jail.

Mr Trump's tweet comes after the father of player LiAngelo Ball minimized the president's involvement in winning the players' release in comments to ESPN.

"Who?" LaVar Ball told ESPN on Friday, when asked about Mr Trump's involvement in the matter.

LaVar Ball has down played Donald Trump's roll in freeing his son. (AAP)

LiAngelo Ball. (AAP)

"What was he over there for? Don't tell me nothing. Everybody wants to make it seem like he helped me out."

Mr Trump has said he raised the players' detention with Chinese President Xi Jinping during the leaders' recent meeting in Beijing.

The players returned to the US last week. They have been indefinitely suspended from the team.

Mr Trump was quick to fire back.

UCLA basketball playera Cody Riley, left, LiAngelo Ball, center, and Jalen Hill during a news conference in LA. (AAP)

The younger Ball, along with fellow freshmen Jalen Hill and Cody Riley, aren't with the rest of the No. 23 Bruins, who are in Kansas City to play in the Hall of Fame Classic this week. The trio isn't allowed to suit up, be on the bench for home games or travel with the team.

The players were arrested and questioned about stealing from high-end stores next to the team's hotel in Hangzhou, where the Bruins stayed before leaving for Shanghai to play Georgia Tech.

UCLA athletic director Dan Guerrero said last week that the players stole from three stores.

"As long as my boy's back here, I'm fine," LaVar Ball told ESPN.

"I'm happy with how things were handled. A lot of people like to say a lot of things that they thought happened over there. Like I told him, 'They try to make a big deal out of nothing sometimes.'

"I'm from LA. I've seen a lot worse things happen than a guy taking some glasses. My son has built up enough character that one bad decision doesn't define him. Now if you can go back and say when he was 12 years old he was shoplifting and stealing cars and going wild, then that's a different thing.