First-ever NBA game in India to be played in front of youth from Reliance Foundation Jr. NBA program
MUMBAI, Sept. 12, 2019 – NBA India today announced that the first-ever NBA game in India will be played in front of 3,000 boys and girls from more than 70 schools under the Reliance Foundation Jr. NBA program.
Reliance Foundation is a non-profit organization that supports various philanthropic initiatives of Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) and has partnered with the NBA on the Reliance Foundation Jr. NBA program in India since 2013.
The NBA India Games 2019, which will feature the Sacramento Kings and Indiana Pacers playing two preseason games Friday, October 4 and Saturday, October 5 at the Dome, NSCI, SVP Stadium in Mumbai, will mark the first games that teams from a North American sports league will play in India. The NBA India Game on October 5 will be open to fans who have purchased tickets.
As part of Reliance Foundation’s Education and Sports for All (ESA) initiative, the NBA will invite 3,000 boys and girls from more than 70 participating Reliance Foundation Jr. NBA schools in Mumbai to attend “The NBA India Games for Reliance Foundation ESA” on October 4.
“We are proud to provide young Indian boys and girls under the Reliance Foundation Jr. NBA program with the opportunity to experience the first-ever NBA game in India,” said NBA Deputy Commissioner and Chief Operating Officer Mark Tatum. “We share Reliance Foundation’s belief in the transformative power of sport and its ability to capture a child’s imagination, and these historic events will inspire youth across the country for years to come.”
In addition to the games, the league and its partners will host interactive fan activities, Jr. NBA events, an NBA Academy India development camp for women, and NBA Cares community outreach efforts benefiting fans of all ages across Mumbai.
The Reliance Foundation Jr. NBA program is a comprehensive youth development initiative that aims to develop the game at the grassroots level and apply the core values of basketball – teamwork, respect, determination and community – to positively impact the lives of boys and girls in India. Since its launch in 2013, the program has reached more than 10 million youth from 10,000 schools across 34 cities and has trained more than 10,000 physical education instructors nationwide. Ten boys and 10 girls from the Reliance Foundation Jr. NBA program represented India in the second Jr. NBA Global Championship, a youth basketball tournament for top 13- and 14-year-old boys and girls teams from around the world on Aug. 6-11, 2019 at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex near Orlando, Florida.