One of the wonderful things this NBA offseason has offered is basketball action featuring the biggest stars. Often, the only time fans get to see their favorite players in action is at NBA games. And while there are plenty of those across the season, some cities and people who can’t afford tickets end up not being able to watch their favorite players anywhere other than on TV.
The Pro-Am leagues have changed that this summer. LeBron James and DeMar DeRozan appeared in the Drew League, Dejounte Murray made quite a few appearances of his own in various games, and Jamal Crawford’s CrawsOver league in Seattle saw Bron and Tatum team up.
And Jamal Crawford has a very altruistic intention behind making these games happen by recruiting these stars. He shared his thought process on ESPN’s NBA Today, explaining that he does it for the children of Seattle.
On NBA Today, Jamal Crawford explained that because kids in markets like Seattle often only get to see their favorite NBA players on TV, “I ask the kids who they want to see and I try to go get ‘em. And it’s free.” He did that in a big way today @thecrawsover. Very cool to see. pic.twitter.com/mPaDHRj4TQ
— Malika Andrews (@malika_andrews) August 20, 2022
“Honestly, lot of kids in this area specifically, have only seen their favorite players on TV or in video games or on ESPN. To see their favorite players, right there in person, you can touch them. And they may have an interaction with you. And if you’re a kid, working to get better and dreaming about being on that level, that makes your dreams more realistic.
“So for me, I try to bring everyone I can to Seattle. The biggest stars out there. I ask the kids who they wanna see, I try to get them, and it’s free for everybody. It’s a community event.”
As the differences between players and normal people continue to increase, it’s easy to think of them as detached heroes of some sort. But Crawford’s league gives kids a chance to see those heroes in person, hopefully inspiring them to think that they can do it too. It’s a very heartening trend and one that can only be good for basketball in the country and the world.
