NBA world unites to donate 1 million dollars to help with Coronavirus outbreak

Last week, the NBA suspended their 2019-20 season amidst the coronavirus outbreak after Rudy Gobert tested positive for COVID-19. As the suspension came sooner than expected, many part-time workers at arenas were without jobs. To help these workers and the community during the coronavirus outbreak, various NBA players made various donations after the NBA suspension. 

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NBA players like Kevin Love, Zion Williamson, Karl-Anthony Towns make donations for the community to help with the coronavirus outbreak 

Karl-Anthony Towns donation

Giannis Antetokounmpo donation amidst coronavirus outbreak

Zion Williamson donation

 

 

 

 

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The people of New Orleans have been incredibly welcoming and supportive since I was Drafted by the Pels last June, and some of the most special people I have met are those who work at smoothie King Center. These are the folks who make our games possible, creating the perfect environment for our fans and everyone involved in the organization. Unfortunately, many of them are still recovering from long term challenges created by Katrina, and now face the economic impact of the postponement of games because of the virus. My mother has always set an example for me about being respectful for others and being grateful for what we have, and so today I am pledging to cover the salaries for all of those Smoothie King Center workers for the next 30 days. This is a small way for me to express my support and appreciation for these wonderful people who have been so great to me and my teammates and hopefully we can all join together to relieve some of the stress and hardship caused by this national health crisis. This is an incredibly resilient city full of some of the most resilient people, but sometimes providing a little extra assistance can make things a little easier for the community.

A post shared by Zion Williamson (@zionwilliamson) on Mar 13, 2020 at 2:24pm PDT

Kevin Love was the first NBA player to reach out and donate for the workers after the NBA season was cancelled, after which KAT, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Stephen Curry, Zion Williamson followed. Rudy Gobert, too, donated $500,000 for the cause. Out of that amount, $200,000 has been given to part-time workers at the Vivint Smart Arena in Salt Lake City, helping workers whose jobs have been affected after the NBA suspended the 2019-20 season.

Along with the arena, $100,000 has been donated to research facilities in Utah and Oklahoma City to support coronavirus-related research. Rudy Gobert even donated $111,000 (approx) to his home country France. In his statement, Rudy Gobert expressed gratitude towards people working on the virus and stated that he wanted to give back to his home in Utah and France, including his Utah Jazz family. 

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Kevin Love and Rudy Gobert donation will help Cleveland Cavaliers during the coronavirus outbreak

The Cleveland Cavaliers forward offered to donate $100,000 to help the staff members and workers at the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland. He had informed everyone of his intentions through the message and stated that the entire situation is definitely overwhelming. Love also hoped everyone else who can donate comes forward and helps the community, asking everyone in the NBA to join and contribute. 

Also read | Rudy Gobert donation: pledges $500,000 to help with relief, NBA shutdown

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