President Trump declined to criticize China’s handling of a free speech dispute with the N.B.A. on Wednesday, instead opting to blast two basketball coaches who have spoken out against the president in the past.

“They have to work out their own situation,” Trump said of the escalating dispute between the league and China, where two exhibition games were in danger of being canceled because of the country’s anger over a tweet from a Houston Rockets executive who expressed support for pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong.

The issue touches on a familiar situation for American businesses trying to prosper in China: working with a government that does not tolerate dissent. When asked about the situation, Trump instead called out Golden State Warriors Coach Steve Kerr and San Antonio Spurs Coach Gregg Popovich, both of whom have been highly critical of Trump throughout his presidency.

“I watched this guy, Steve Kerr, and he was like a little boy who was so scared to be even answering the question,” Trump said, referring to the fact that Kerr declined to take a stance on an issue that could threaten the N.B.A.’s business in China, where the Warriors are the most popular team. “He couldn’t answer the question. He was shaking. ‘Oh, I don’t know. I don’t know.’ He didn’t know how to answer the question. And yet he’ll talk about the United States very badly.”