NEW YORK, NY, May 13, 2022 - The National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) Foundation is pleased to announce more than $600,000 in matching player grants over the last two months. In March and April, the NBPA Foundation partnered with 32 current and former players to match their charitable giving and philanthropy in their communities.  

Through the NBPA Foundation’s matching grants program, current and former players have an opportunity to partner with the NBPA Foundation to receive a matching grant designed to amplify charitable giving and philanthropic efforts in their communities.

The areas of investment include: 

• Youth Sports

• Education Access

• Social Justice & Civic Engagement 

• Humanitarian Relief

• Research/Health and Wellness

“Our matching player grants highlight the dedication of our players to use their platform to give back and create meaningful change,” said Lyzz Ogunwo, Acting Executive Director of the NBPA Foundation. “It's always inspiring to see the wide array of initiatives our players engage in to positively impact communities around the world.”

The NBPA Foundation provided matching grants to the following players:

Youth Sports

Bradley Beal: Grants will be used to support the renovation of an outdoor basketball court at the Banneker Recreation Center in Washington, DC.

• Organization: Hoop For All Foundation

Robert Covington: This grant will be used to support free basketball camps in Chicago, Illinois, and Nashville, Tennessee as well as provide unrestricted scholarships for local youth. 

• Organization: Allergic to Failure (ATF) A Robert Covington Foundation

Goran Dragic: Grants will be used to renovate two basketball courts in Slovenia's capital city of Ljubljana. Once the courts have been renovated, the Goran Dragic Foundation plans to host inaugural basketball camps and clinics for local youth. 

• Organization: Goran Dragic Foundation

Kevin Durant: Grants will be used to partner with the Trust for Public Land and local artists to refurbish a basketball court at PS 107X, a public elementary school in the Bronx, New York.

• Organization: Kevin Durant Charity Foundation

Joe Harris: This grant will be used to support Joe Harris Basketball and their summer basketball camps including purchasing uniforms and equipment as well as providing academic scholarships to youth in their programs to attend a four-year college.

• Organization: Joe Harris Basketball

Lauri Markkanen: This grant will be used for ongoing basketball camps and mentorship/tutoring programs for underserved youth in and around the city of Jyväskylä, Finland.

• Organization: HoNsU Juniorit ry

Mike Miller: Grants will be used to support the operational costs of Hoop City Basketball Club during the season including the cost of travel, uniforms, and equipment, and subsidizing the cost for team members who may not be able to participate without financial aid. 

• Organization: Youth Athletic Foundation

E’Twaun Moore: This grant will be used to support the programs of the E’Twaun Moore Foundation and a partnership with Project Backboard and the city’s parks and recreation department to renovate a court in East Chicago, Indiana.  

• Organization: E’Twaun Moore Foundation

Jermaine O’Neal: Grants will be used to support the Drive Nation Foundation’s basketball programs for low-income youth as well as its ongoing educational series on mental health, nutrition, and financial literacy.

• Organization: Drive Nation Foundation

Jakob Poeltl: This grant will be used for ongoing basketball camps and mentorship/tutoring programs for underserved youth in and around the city of Vienna, Austria.

• Organization: Vienna D.C. Timberwolves

Tomas Satoransky: This grant will be used to host up to five (5) youth basketball camps in Prague, Czech Republic which includes Tomas’ annual summer camp. 

• Organization: Brose Bamberg e.V.

Amar’e Stoudemire: Grant will be used to support the operating costs of the Amar’e Stoudemire Foundation’s boys 17U team, including the cost of travel, tournament fees, and equipment/uniforms.

• Organization: Amar’e Stoudemire Foundation

Terry Rozier: This grant will go to Hoop Bus, a nonprofit focused on activating basketball players of all skill levels. Hoop Bus works to renovate indoor and outdoor courts across the United States and hosts ongoing activations throughout the year to bring together the local basketball community with professional players. 

• Organization: Hoop Bus

Justise Winslow: Grants will be used to host the Robin’s House Family Foundation’s annual D.R.E.A.M Showcase, which encourages youth to engage in physical activity and also includes a basketball invitational, highlighting the basketball skills and talents of youth involved in its programs.

• Organization: Robin’s House Family Foundation

Education Access

Nassir Little: Grants will be used to support the Nassir S. Little Youth Foundation scholarship program, which provides unrestricted dollars to support youth pursuing their passions. This includes covering music lessons or fees for art courses, providing youth sports equipment, and purchasing technology to aid learning for students. 

• Organization: Nassir S. Little Youth Foundation

Wesley Matthews: This grant will go to the Madison Public Schools Foundation to support Wesley’s newest initiative in the city to increase access to youth sports and play in Madison, Wisconsin. 

• Organization: Madison Public Schools Foundation

Jalen McDaniels: Grants will be used to purchase tablets and electronic books written by Black authors for participants in the organization’s after-school tutoring program.

• Organization: A Better World

Khris Middleton: Grants will be used to support the Khris Middleton Scholarship Program at the Porter-Gaud School in Charleston, South Carolina. The program provides tuition assistance and hands-on mentorship for student-athletes. 

• Organization: Porter-Gaud Foundation

Eric Paschall: This grant will go to Eric Paschall’s alma mater, St. Thomas More School, to support a scholarship fund available to low-income students to aid in tuition costs for the academic year.

• Organization: St. Thomas More School

Jordan Poole: Grants will be used to provide unrestricted scholarships for youth to cover tuition fees or purchase laptops.

• Organization: Jacarrie Kicks for Kids

Juan Toscano-Anderson: The grant will provide general operating support for the Journey to Achieve Foundation to start its programming and scholarship fund. Its programs include a Mother’s Day event focused on financial literacy for single parents; basketball camps and clinics in East Oakland, California, and Cabo San Lucas, Mexico; and scholarships for college students who are from single-parent households.

• Organization: Journey to Achieve Foundation

Mario West: This grant will go to the Douglas County Education Foundation to support Mario in formally establishing his scholarship program for graduating seniors that are attending public high schools in Douglasville, Georgia.

• Organization: Douglas County Education Foundation

Social Justice and Civic Engagement 

Jeremy Lin: This grant will be used to support Jeremy’s nonprofit, the Jeremy Lin Foundation, in re-granting to Asian and Pacific Islander (AAPI) youth development organizations in New York City. Each local nonprofit is focused on leadership development, grassroots organizing, educational programs tailored for youth organizing for social justice, and sports for youth in AAPI communities.

• Organization: Jeremy Lin Foundation

Tyrese Maxey: This grant will go to Youth Services Inc. to provide basic supplies and workforce development resources to housing insecure youth in Philadelphia. 

• Organization: Youth Services Inc.

Humanitarian Relief

Danilo Gallinari: This grant will go to the World Central Kitchen to support the organization's ongoing efforts in Ukraine. This grant will be used to continue to provide meals for refugees who are seeking support and resettlement in neighboring countries as well as in Ukraine.

• Organization: World Central Kitchen

Alex Len & Svi Mykhailiuk: These matching players grants will go to Alex Len’s nonprofit Len-D A Hand, to support ongoing relief efforts in Ukraine as well as for Ukrainian refugees. Funds will be used to purchase medical supplies in and around medical centers near Len’s home region in Central Ukraine, purchase and distribute basic supplies for families in Central Ukraine or that have fled to neighboring countries, and facilitate youth basketball camps for youth refugees in Latvia. 

• Organization: Len-D A Hand

Rajon Rondo: This grant will be used to support ongoing disaster relief efforts in Kentucky following the tornadoes in December 2021. These funds will help purchase basic supplies and clothing for affected families as well as support the rebuilding of homes that have been damaged. 

• Organization: Rajon Rondo Assisting Youth Foundation

Ben Simmons: This grant will be used to support Ben Simmons’ partnership with Operation Warm to distribute over 1,800 brand-new coats to underserved children across Philadelphia.

• Organization: Operation Warm

Research/Health and Wellness

Marc Gasol: The grant will support Marc and Pau Gasol’s family nonprofit, the Gasol Foundation, in continuing its programs focused on health and wellness for underserved communities across Los Angeles, California. The foundation hosts bilingual educational and recreational programs in English and Spanish with a focus on engaging families to be more physically active and maintain a healthy diet.

• Organization: Gasol Foundation

Raul Neto: This grant will go to the Happy Tooth Foundation which aims to provide free dental resources to underserved individuals and families by engaging dentists in making donations including equipment/materials and services such as root canals. Dollars will be used to support building its network of dentists in Salt Lake City, Utah as well as developing a mobile app, which will be the hub for individuals to book the free dental services. The long-term goal of the foundation is to also bring the app to Neto’s home country of Brazil.

• Organization: Happy Tooth Foundation

Ricky Rubio: The grant will go to The Giving Back Fund, to expand its One Month One Cause program in Indianapolis, Indiana. The program is focused on engaging local nonprofits that support individuals and families that have been affected by lung cancer. 

• Organization: The Ricky Rubio Foundation

All media inquiries should be directed to communications@nbpa.com.

About the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) Foundation:

Established in 1997, the National Basketball Players Association Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to preserving the legacy of its members and providing support and assistance to persons, communities and organizations throughout the world that seek to improve the lives of those in need. Through grants that match players’ philanthropy and charitable giving, the Foundation highlights and accelerates the real and collaborative work that basketball players do worldwide to build their communities and create meaningful change.

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