During the All-Star weekend, the NBA is set to pledge more than $3 million towards the aid of black colleges and universities which have been severely affected due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The dreadful pandemic massively impacted not only basketball and almost all other sports across the globe, but it also dealt some major blows to the communities which belong to people of colour.
The NBA, which has been actively supporting and toiling towards the betterment of the communities of color, has decided to come forward and financially aid the black educational institutions which have been heavily affected during the pandemic.
NBA aims to raise over $3 million towards HBCUs through the All-Star game
On 3rd March, the league announced that they will pledge north of $3 million during the festivities taking place during the All-Star weekend in Atlanta, which will be distributed to Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU).
“During the past year, public health data has made clear that the cumulative effect of historic racial and economic inequities in our country have worsened the impact of the pandemic on communities of color and predominately Black institutions,” the official announcement from the NBA read.
ALSO READ: Zion, Edwards, Lillard pull out of slam dunk, 3-point contests
Coached by Jazz’s Quin Snyder, Team LeBron will be representing the Thurgood Marshall College Fund, which is comprised of 47 publicly-supported HBCUs. Meanwhile, Team Durant, which is going to be coached by 76ers chief Doc Rivers, will play for the United Negro College Fund.
Both groups will receive $500k in scholarship each before the All-Star game kicks off. The winning team will receive $150k and the end of the first three quarters, summing up to $450k at the end of Q3. $300k will be donated to the team that wins the All-Star Game.
$1.25 million will be raised through the NBA Skills Challenge and 3-Point Contests which will take place before the All-Star Game, as well as the famed Slam Dunk Contest which will be hosted during halftime. The participants will be representing the HBCU schools.
Anfernee Simons, Cassius Stanley and Obi Toppin, the three players who will be participating in the AT&T Slam Dunk contest, will be representing one HBCU each. Before the contest starts, each HBCU will be donated $50k and the winner will earn an additional $100k.
The Taco Bell Skills Challenge will see Robert Covington, Luka Doncic, Nikola Vucevic, Domanta Sabonis, Julius Randle and Chris Paul being paired with six HBCUs, with a $35k donation up front, added with $40k for the winner.
Stephen Curry, Devin Booker, Donovan Mitchell, Jaylen Brown, Zach LaVine and Jayson Tatum will be starring in the MTN DEW 3-Point Contest. Every single “Moneyball” shot of the contest will be worth $3,500 in donation.
