2017 NBA Champion Golden State Warriors forward Kevin Durant received the Alvin Attles Community Impact Award in recognition of his efforts to make a positive impact on the lives of underserved youth around the world, it was announced today. The award, named in Warriors Legend Alvin Attles’ honor, celebrates Attles’ long-time commitment and dedication to the community and recognizes a current Warriors player who goes above and beyond to support local underprivileged youth.
To honor Durant for his continued commitment to giving back, the Warriors Community Foundation is donating $15,000 to a charity of Durant’s choice, the Oakland Elizabeth House, which offers residence to women and children who have experienced homelessness, violence or addiction.
“I’m grateful to give back in so many ways,” said Durant. “It means a lot to have played a small part in people’s lives.”
Warriors Legend Alvin Attles, Warriors Community Foundation President of the Board Nicole Curran and Vice President of Community Relations and Executive Director of the Warriors Community Foundation Joanne Pasternack will present Durant the Alvin Attles Community Impact Award prior to tonight’s game.
Throughout the 2017-18 season, Durant committed over $13 million to support children and families in need around the world. His contributions include the following:
- In February, Durant announced a $10 million commitment over 10 years to College Track to bring its college pipeline program to his native Prince George’s County in Maryland. The funds will be used to create the Durant Center, an educational and leadership facility that will host College Track’s comprehensive 10-year program, which helps students from underserved communities overcome barriers to college attainment and prepares them to succeed in the twenty-first-century economy.
- Also in February, Durant pledged to support four Boys & Girls Club of the Peninsula’s Youth of the Year nominees with scholarships to help pay for their college tuition. Additionally, Durant served as a judge for the program and attended the celebration event.
- Durant and his Warriors teammates hosted 60 youth from Durant’s hometown of Seat Pleasant, Maryland, in February for a field trip National Museum of African American History and Culture to tour the exhibits together. The following day, Durant and the Warriors hosted 40 guests from Seat Pleasant at their game vs. the Washington Wizards, including a postgame meet-and-greet with Durant.
- In January, Durant announced $3 million donation to the University of Texas’ basketball programs and its Center for Sports Leadership and Innovation (CSLi). In addition to renovations to his alma mater’s various athletic facilities, the donation will be used by CSLi to further its mission to encourage character development, leadership skills and promote the long-term well-being of student athletes and coaches.
- Also in January, Durant became the first of 10 celebrities to contribute to Colin Kaepernick’s “10 for 10” campaign, matching his $10,000 donation and directing the funds toward Silicon Valley De-Bug, a Bay Area organization that aims to impact the political, cultural and social landscape of the area through community-based justice work.
- In December, Durant continued his support of Oakland Elizabeth House and Larkin Street Youth Services, visiting both organizations over the holidays and donating $12,500 to each to support their wellness, education and career services for women and youth facing homelessness, violence, addiction and poverty.
- In August, Durant made a $100,000 donation to the American Red Cross to aid with recovery efforts related to Hurricane Harvey.
- In honor of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Durant invited 10 breast cancer survivors to a Warriors game and gifted them with his KD10 “Aunt Pearl” shoes, which honor his beloved late aunt who passed away from lung cancer in 2000.
- Following the devastating fires in northern California in October, Durant joined his Warriors teammates to donate game-worn and signed items from Opening Night to assist with relief efforts.
- Working with Make-A-Wish, Durant granted the wishes of three boys facing life-threatening illnesses, bringing each to Oakland for the Warriors game against the New York Knicks in January and providing a special one-on-one experience with him and his teammates.
- As part of the Kevin Durant Charity Foundation’s BUILD IT AND THEY WILL BALL Courts Renovation Initiative, Durant helped refurbish four courts throughout the season: two at the Ramjas School in Deli, India, one at New York East Side Community High School and another at the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Peninsula in Redwood City.
- Throughout the 2017-18 season, Durant welcomed 860 children and their families to Warriors home games through his purchase and donation of season tickets.
A list of previous winners include Harrison Barnes, Draymond Green and Klay Thompson.
Warriors Legend Alvin Attles is in his sixth decade with the franchise, having served tirelessly as a player, coach, executive and civic leader. Attles’ current stint with the same team represents the longest active streak in the NBA. Attles is one of only six players in Warriors history to have his jersey retired (#16) and remains one of the most publicly recognizable sports figures in the Bay Area. His endless contributions locally as a player, executive and civic leader resulted in his much-deserved induction into the Bay Area Sports Hall of Fame in 1993 and with the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame’s John R. Bunn Lifetime Achievement Award in 2014. Additionally, in the summer of 2006, the newly refurbished outdoor basketball court at Lincoln Square Park in downtown Oakland was permanently named “Alvin Attles Court” in honor of the local legend and longtime Oakland resident. In the latter stages of the 1969-70 NBA campaign, Attles was named head coach of the Warriors, where his 30-game stint as head coach to end that season proved to be the start of the longest head coaching run in Warriors franchise history, a 13-plus year tenure which produced, among other highlights, the lone NBA Championship in the club’s West Coach history (1974-75). Attles completed his coaching career in 1982-83 to become the Warriors General Manager, heading the team’s basketball operations for three years.
About the Warriors Community Foundation
The Warriors Community Foundation supports education and youth development to promote thriving students, schools and communities. The Foundation makes grants to improve educational equity in Alameda and San Francisco Counties, refurbishes public basketball courts around the Bay Area, and donates thousands of tickets each season to local schools and nonprofits. Established in 2012 under the new Lacob and Guber ownership group, the Foundation extends the team’s impact locally and continues a longstanding tradition of community involvement. It is sustained by generous contributions from Warriors owners, players, partners and fans. To learn more, visit warriors.org.
For more information on the Warriors 2018 NBA playoffs, presented by Kaiser Permanente, visit warriors.com.