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| Elite players get Spoelstra treatment; Heat coach off to San Pablo for sentimental journey (08/12/2010) |
| The Miami Heat head coach who has both the enviable and daunting task of coaching the big troika of Dwayne Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh when the NBA season opens in October speaks from the heart. He is eager to share his blessings with the community, the Filipino community most especially. Today the first Filipino-American head coach in the NBA as well as the first Filipino-American head coach of any North American professional sports team, is motoring to his mother’s hometown of San Pablo, Laguna to look in on family and relatives, some of whom he is meeting for the first time. While there “Coach Spo” will be welcomed by local officials at the San Pablo College gym where he will conduct special NBA warm up drills and teach passing, dribbling and shooting skills to local aspiring basketball players. He will also deliver a motivational talk to the kids and teach them about proper values. “Basketball is a beautiful sport, and when you start playing it at a young age, it will help mold and develop you as a person. You don’t just learn skills, you also learn about sacrifice and the value of working together – values that you can bring with you for real life,” he tells young groups he has worked with on NBA FIT, an initiative under the NBA Cares umbrella, which is the league's comprehensive health and wellness program that encourages physical activity and healthy living for children and families through programs, events, and products. Yesterday, Spoelstra brought the gospel of fitness and basketball performance to 80 selected young athletes from the premiere collegiate leagues – 40 boys and 40 girls -- in the NBA FIT Development Camp presented by Gatorade at the Araneta Coliseum. The young competitors learned about the physical, mental and emotional dimensions of the game from the 39-year old mentor who has coached the Heat to 90 wins and two playoff runs in his two years as coach. Jed Salaveria of the Jose Rizal Heavy Bombers said he liked the advanced training and NBA-type of coaching that he learned from the camp. “It’s both exciting and scary to be part of this camp because it’s a once in a lifetime opportunity to learn basketball skills and rills from a well-respected coach from the NBA.” Adamson U standout Alex Nuyles said he takes pride in being a part of the camp. “This is a different training experience. I like the high-intensity workout that we underwent.” Co-organized by RunRio, the NBA FIT Fun Run will take place on Aug. 14 with 3K, 5K and 10K distances. It is open to participants of all ages and a total of 2,000 spots are available on a first-come, first-serve basis. Registration will be held at RUNNR, Bonifacio High Street at The Fort, and at Fitness First, SM Mall of Asia branch, with registration fee of PESO 300. Each participant will get a special NBA Fun Run Running Singlet and the top finishers will win special prizes including NBA basketballs autographed by Coach Spoelstra, one-month membership provided by Fitness First, and other premiums sponsored by the NBA FIT Week event partners. Official partners of the NBA FIT Week are Gatorade, Head & Shoulders, and Summit Drinking Water. Media partners are Basketball TV, Men’s Health Magazine, Yahoo! Philippines and Wave 89.1. Partners in sport include Fitness First, Run Rio and University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP). Venue partners are SM Malls, Marriott Manila and Araneta Coliseum (for NBA FIT Development Camp presented by Gatorade). Community partners such as the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI) under the Department of Science and Technology, and UNICEF are also endorsing the program. For more information about NBA FIT Week, please log on to www.nba.com/philippines About the NBA The NBA, founded in 1946, is a professional sports league and global business that features 30 teams in the United States and Canada. During the 2009-10 season, NBA games will reach 215 countries and territories in 41 languages. The league’s worldwide reach is also displayed in the 79 international players from 35 countries and territories on NBA rosters. NBA merchandise is sold in more than 100,000 stores in 100 countries on six continents. NBA.com averages more than 26 million page views per day, with more than 50 percent of the site’s visitors coming from outside of North America. Through NBA Cares, the league, its teams and players have donated more than $140 million to charity, provided more than 1.1 million hours of hands-on service to communities around the world, and created more than 484 places where kids and families can live, learn, or play, including 85 places in 21 countries on five continents internationally. Media Contacts: NBA Asia
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