By Joseph Phillips
Sports Editor
The National Basketball Association in collaboration with Under Armour, RISE, Chicago Police Department and Union League Boys & Girls Club, will look to host their fourth installment of the “NBA Voices Building Bridges Through Basketball” program on Friday, February 14, from 6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. at the Chicago’s Union League Boys & Girls
Club, 2157 W 19th St.
“Thirty youth participants ages 13-18 from past Building Bridges Through Basketball programs and CPD officers will participate in a series of basketball rotations,” said the NBA League Office via press release. “Which include(s) a three-point contest, skills challenge as
well as an All-Star scrimmage, all led by NBA players and legends.”
According to the NBA League Office, the ten-week program is designed to break barriers, build trust and bridge divides in the community.
The program is also designed to bring together youth and law enforcement from the Humboldt Park, Pilsen and Englewood neighborhoods for basketball clinics, facilitated conversations and RISE leadership activities to explore concepts such as identity, diversity and stereotyping and teach skills such as empathy, conflict resolution and teamwork.
The program will begin its weekly sessions on March 10, engaging youth in 2.5-hour sessions that combine oncourt basketball training with RISE’s leadership and cultural competency curriculum focused on themes such as perspective taking, privilege and community building.
The event will feature former NBA players and NBA Cares Ambassador Felipe López, former NBA Legend and champion Caron Butler, RISE CEO Diahann Billings-Burford, Chicago Police Department Deputy Chief Ernest Cato, Commander Patricia Casey of the Juvenile Intervention and Service Center, 9 Chicago Police Department Officers and 30 youth from
Union League Boys and Girls Clubs.
NBA Voices is the league’s initiative to address social injustice, uplift voices and bridge divides in our communities.
As part of this effort, the NBA family has brought together more than 13,000 youth and members of law enforcement since 2016. The seven previous multi-week Building Bridges Through Basketball programs have taken place in Charlotte, Los Angeles, New Orleans and Detroit.
For more information on NBA Voices, visit and share their social media tags @: #NBACaresAS20 #NBAVoices #ULBGC #100yearsofbuildinggreatfutures @NBACares @RISEtoWIN @underarmour.
Photo credit: nba
For more information on weekend events, click here.
