Muhammad Ali's ex-wife says Donald Trump is wasting his time if he's considering pardoning the legendary boxer ... telling TMZ Sports he should focus his energy on the LIVING!
We spoke with Khalilah Ali -- who was married to Muhammad from '67 to '76 -- and she was shocked when she watched Trump tell the media he was considering pardoning Ali ... presumably for his conviction for resisting the draft in 1971.
That conviction was overturned by the Supreme Court ... so, as Khalilah pointed out, "There's no necessary need for a pardon."
"I think [Trump] probably was a fan of Ali and he thought he would say something positive about him. That might be it ... but it's a little too late."
Khalilah says if Trump really respects what Ali stood for ... he would "pardon" the NFL players who knelt during the national anthem -- and by that, she means Trump should stop trashing them for standing up for what they believe in.
"If you're willing to say its okay for Muhammad Ali to be pardoned for his freedom and standing up his rights and standing up for not going to the army ... then you're telling me that you're ready to pardon everybody that has done that in the same manner as Muhammad Ali has."