Accompanied by two students from Ron Brown College Preparatory High School (RBHS), Wizards guard Bradley Beal humbly accepted the 2018-19 NBA Cares Community Assist Award during the NBA Awards Show telecast on Monday night. Beal will receive $25,000 for the charity of his choice, a donation from the NBA and Kaiser Permanente.
Beal was presented the award by his Wizards teammate John Wall, recipient of the 2015-16 NBA Community Assist Award. Since its inception following the 2014-15 season, the Wizards are the first team to have two winners of the award. In Beal’s acceptance speech, he urged his peers to give back.
"We all have a platform… Please, please let's give back to the youth. They need us, they're the future… It's way bigger than basketball." #DCFamily | @RealDealBeal23 pic.twitter.com/yc4u1g3g5m
— Washington Wizards (@WashWizards) June 25, 2019
Beal had a career year both on and off the court during the 2018-19 season, highlighted by his unique relationship with RBHS. He was extremely committed and dedicated to building and fostering relationships as a mentor to their students and basketball players, checking in with them multiple times a month to make sure they were on the right track in both athletics and their academic studies.
“Mr. Beal was looking to build a relationship with the school and what better school than Ron Brown High School,” RBHS Principal Dr. Benjamin Williams said. “Brother Beal is an agent of change. Adopting our school shows he is invested in the improvement of young people.”
In September, Beal served as principal for the day, participating in a variety of school activities as the students began the new school year. The two-time All-Star held a private advance screening of CREED II for local community groups and students from RBHS in November. In preparation for the holiday season, Beal surprised the RBHS basketball teams after a practice and presented each player and coach with two pairs of shoes (one basketball and one lifestyle).
During Black History Month, he took 10 students from RBHS on a private tour of the National African-American History and Culture Museum. In early May, Beal hosted a mentoring discussion with the students, followed by an end of school year bowling party. Along with the relationship with RBHS, Beal has donated game tickets to various community groups and provided toys to the Salvation Army to help spread cheer to local youth during the holiday season.
Chosen by fans and an NBA executive panel, the seasonlong award honors a player’s strong commitment to positively impacting his community through sustained efforts over the course of the season.
Along with Beal, the other nominees for the award were Jarrett Allen (Brooklyn), Mike Conley (Memphis), Tobias Harris (Philadelphia), LeBron James (L.A. Lakers), Damian Lillard (Portland), Khris Middleton (Milwaukee), Donovan Mitchell (Utah), Dwight Powell (Dallas), and Pascal Siakam (Toronto). The ten nominees included the offseason winner, six monthly winners and three additional players (including Beal) selected by the NBA for their exceptional community work.