NEW YORK – Detroit Pistons center Andre Drummond has received the February NBA Cares Community Assist Award presented by Kaiser Permanente in recognition of his extraordinary efforts to empower youth with special needs and give back to the Detroit community, the NBA announced today.  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.

Kaiser Permanente and the NBA are honoring Drummond for his dedication to making a difference in the lives of youth.  During NBA All-Star in Toronto, Drummond served as an honorary coach during the fifth annual NBA Cares Special Olympics Unified^® Basketball Game.  He also took part in NBA Cares All-Star Day of Service, helping repack 110,000 pounds of food donations benefiting more than 30,000 Canadians in need.

Last month, Drummond and teammate Stanley Johnson surprised children at the Boys & Girls Club of Auburn Hills with a Jr. NBA basketball clinic.  He also ensured that special-needs organizations benefited from his contribution to the Pistons Charity Ticket program, which helps 250 local youth to attend Pistons games.

As part of a larger team initiative, Drummond supported the FlintNOW fund that works to provide clean water, health screenings and other relief services to the community of Flint, Mich.  FlintNOW (www.FlintNOW.org) provides private-sector support for immediate relief efforts during the water crisis in Flint and for long-term programs focused on economic development, nutrition and health care for residents of the city.

“Making an impact in the community has been a goal of mine since entering the NBA,” said Drummond.  “At an early age, my mother taught me to do whatever you can to help those in need.  I’ve tried to use her lessons to make a real difference in as many people’s lives as possible.”

Before Detroit’s home game tonight against the Charlotte Hornets, NBA Cares Ambassador Bob Lanier, President and CEO of Palace Sports and Entertainment and Pistons Dennis Mannion, and Kaiser Permanente Vice President National Accounts Joe Scheidler will present Drummond with the award during an oncourt ceremony.  The award honors the standard set by NBA Legend David Robinson, who improved the community piece by piece.  In addition, Kaiser Permanente and the NBA will donate $10,000 on Drummond’s behalf to Special Olympics Michigan.

To learn more, please visit http://www.nba.com/communityassist/.

About Kaiser Permanente

Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care.  We are recognized as one of America’s leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans.  Founded in 1945, our mission is to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve.  We currently serve more than 10 million members in eight states and the District of Columbia.  Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal physicians, specialists and team of caregivers.  Our expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the-art care delivery and world-class chronic disease management.  Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education and the support of community health. For more information, go to: kp.org/share.