To Magic Fans: Vote Tobias Harris for Season-Long NBA Cares Community Assist Award

Magic forward Tobias Harris has been named one of 10 finalists for the season-long NBA Cares Community Assist Award as a result of receiving the NBA Cares Community Assist Award for the month of March, the NBA announced today. The winner of the Season-Long Community Assist Award will be selected by an NBA panel of judges and through fan voting. Fans can vote for their favorite nominee starting today through April 27 via Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using #NBACommunityAssist and #PlayerFirstNameLastName.

The season-long nominees, in addition to Harris, include past monthly winners Anthony Davis, Ben McLemore, Joakim Noah, Chris Paul, Klay Thompson and Russell Westbrook, and three additional nominees selected by the NBA, Tyson Chandler, Pau Gasol and Damian Lillard.  The NBA and Kaiser Permanente will donate $25,000 to the winner’s charity of choice. The award recognizes an NBA player each month who best reflects the passion that the league and its players share for giving back to their communities. Fans can find additional details at http://www.nba.com/communityassist.

Harris received the March NBA Cares Community Assist Award in recognition of his charitable contributions and efforts to motivate youth in schools throughout the Orlando community. The NBA honored Harris for his dedication to mentoring children in Orlando.  This season, Harris created “Adopt-A-School” programs in three local schools to encourage high academic achievement and positive behavior. In February, he spent quality time with students at each school, urging them to improve their grades and remain dedicated to their education.  Harris also began a book club with his mentees at Howard Middle School to engage them in regular reading.  Harris has made helping underserved youth a season-long priority by investing in local food drives and sponsoring kids to attend games.

“I love the Orlando community and feel blessed to be part of it as both a basketball player and a role model to these kids,” said Harris.  “Giving back and guiding them towards educational success is very important to me.”