MUMBAI – The National Basketball Association (NBA) today announced that five-time NBA Champion Ron Harper will visit India from Jan. 25-30 as part of the league’s continued efforts to grow the game of basketball in the country.

Harper will first stop in Mumbai on Jan. 25, where he will engage with youth at the NBA Basketball School at the St. Stanislaus School.  On Jan. 26, Harper will make a live television appearance on SONY TEN 1’s NBA wraparound show ‘Around The Hoop’ to discuss the ongoing season.  The following day, Harper will tip off the Reliance Foundation Jr. NBA program at the Ghatkopar YMCA.  Harper will then travel to Chandigarh through Delhi to attend the Reliance Foundation Jr. NBA program at DAV Senior Public School, Chandigarh on Jan. 30 to engage with the coaches as a part of the NBA Coaches Academy.

The 2020 Reliance Foundation Jr. NBA program tipped off on Jan. 17 in Trivandrum, Kerala with the NBA Coaches Academy.  Returning for the seventh consecutive year, the program is expected to engage more than seven million youths and 8,000 physical education instructors from 8,000 schools across 34 cities nationwide.

“I am excited to return to India to be a part of the NBA’s initiatives to grow and celebrate the game of basketball,” said Harper.  “There’s so much excitement around the game coming off The NBA India Games 2019 and I look forward to seeing how far the game has come since my last visit in 2013.”

Harper, a 6-6 shooting guard from Dayton, Ohio, was selected 8^th overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 1986 NBA Draft.  Harper is a five-time NBA Champion, part of the Chicago Bulls’ three-peat (1996-1998) then twice with the Los Angeles Lakers (2000 & 2001).

Since 2006, more than 35 active and retired NBA and WNBA players have visited India with the NBA, including Bruce Bowen, Muggsy Bogues, Chris Bosh, Swin Cash, Tamika Catchings, Seth Curry, Pau Gasol, Dwight Howard, Brian Shaw, Robin Lopez, Jason Richardson, Kevin Durant, Brook Lopez, Rashard Lewis, Tim Hardaway Sr., Robert Horry, Harrison Barnes and Kevin Martin.

The Reliance Foundation Jr. NBA program has reached more than 10 million youth from over 13,000 schools across 34 cities and has trained more than 13,000 physical education instructors nationwide, since its launch in 2013.  The NBA launched NBA Basketball School, a network of tuition-based basketball development programs around the world open to male and female players ages 6-18 from outside the U.S., in April 2017.  The first NBA Basketball Schools launched in New Delhi and Mumbai as part of a multiyear agreement with India On Track (IOT), one of India’s leading sports management, marketing and development companies.  There are currently 27 active NBA Basketball Schools in nine cities across India.

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About the NBA
The NBA is a global sports and media business built around four professional sports leagues: the National Basketball Association, the Women’s National Basketball Association, the NBA G League and the NBA 2K League.  The NBA has established a major international presence with games and programming in 215 countries and territories in nearly 50 languages, and merchandise for sale in more than 100,000 stores in 100 countries on six continents.  NBA rosters at the start of the 2019-20 season featured 108 international players from 38 countries and territories.  NBA Digital’s assets include NBA TV, NBA.com, the NBA App and NBA League Pass.  The NBA has created one of the largest social media communities in the world, with 1.6 billion likes and followers globally across all league, team, and player platforms.  Through NBA Cares, the league addresses important social issues by working with internationally recognized youth-serving organizations that support education, youth and family development, and health-related causes.