ATLANTA -– The Atlanta Hawks Basketball Club announced their nomination of Coach Joe LeVan of Chatham Academy (Savannah, Ga.) as the club’s Jr. NBA Coach of the Year during Sunday’s game vs. New Orleans. Each year the Hawks, along with participating NBA and WNBA teams, nominate a Jr. NBA Coach of the Year, who is making a positive impact on children by demonstrating outstanding integrity, character and leadership.
“We are honored to recognize Coach LeVan for the positive impact he is making in the community through the sport of basketball,” said Hawks’ Vice President of Basketball Development Jon Babul. “His passion for teaching student-athletes basketball fundamentals, life skills and the importance of education is championship caliber.”
LeVan has been coaching basketball at Chatham Academy for more than 20 years. Chatham Academy is dedicated to meeting the educational needs of children with learning disabilities, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and similar learning differences. LeVan’s program offers opportunities for students to learn, develop and compete on the journey to reaching their full potential on the court and in the classroom.
Each participating NBA and WNBA team-nominated, local coach is automatically entered into the national Coach of the Year selection process. The Jr. NBA and Positive Coaching Alliance will conduct a screening process to narrow the pool of nominees to eight (8) national semifinalists that will be announced in April. From the pool of eight, an executive panel of judges, along with a fan vote via social media, will determine the top three finalists and national Jr. NBA Coach of the Year winner.
To read more about the Jr. NBA Coach of the Year Award, visit jr.nba.com/coachoftheyear.
To learn more about the Hawks’ efforts in the community, visit hawks.com/community.