NBA players continue to step up to help out those impacted most by the coronavirus outbreak. On Monday, Brooklyn Nets star guard Kyrie Irving announced that he donated the amount of $323,000 and launched a campaign to help distribute meals to those in need throughout the greater New York area. New York has been hit especially hard by COVID-19, as cases continue to rise.
Irving, a New Jersey native, made the announcement on his 28th birthday and selected the total sum of his donation because of the date of his birthday (3/23). The amount may also be an ode to the late Kobe Bryant. Irving also encouraged others to join him in donating, and released the following statement via Instagram:
Thank you all for the birthday love, I'm extremely grateful for the support. Seeing the effects of COVID-19 reach our loved ones, our schools, our jobs, and access to food has really impacted me. I am excited to partner with Feeding America and Lin Eagle Logistics to launch the Share A Meal campaign to help marginalized communities get the food resources they require during this time, and to work with our local partner City Harvest NYC to distribute 250k meals to my neighbors in need across the NY area. In addition to that I am donating $323k to Feeding America and Lin Eagle Logistics will match $200k of what we raise together. I am asking my fans, friends, family and partners to join me in helping our communities by donating at the link in my bio. Thank you to everyone on the front line working to keep all of us safe, healthy, and fed. Together we can change the world one small gesture at a time.
It's nice to see Irving -- and others -- step up in this tough time. A plethora of NBA players and teams have also vowed to help out arena workers that will be negatively impacted financially by the league's current suspension. Last week, Warriors superstar Steph Curry and his wife, Ayesha, revealed that they would be donating to the Alameda County Community Food Bank to help serve the displaced students, through their foundation, Eat.Learn.Play.
The coronavirus may not have a huge financial impact on the NBA players making millions of dollars, but it has the potential to be disastrous for those who work in or around the league in a non-basketball capacity. Clearly, the players recognize this and are doing what they can to use their resources to help others.
