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| - San Antonio Spurs guard Patty Mills of Australia received a community charity award Wednesday while Phoenix Suns part-owner Jahm Najafi, an Iranian-American businessman, pledged $10 million to the NBA Foundation. Mills received February's NBA Cares Community Assist Award to recognize his efforts to empower Indigenous youth and advance social justice in his homeland. Mills founded Indigenous Basketball Australia (IBA) in February to provide pathways for Aboriginal Australians to play basketball. The Indigenous Community Basketball League for players 14-and-under tipped off in eight locations across Australia, combining cultural celebrations, basketball development and life skills education. The NBA and Junior NBA partnered with Mills on next month's National Indigenous Basketball Tournament on the Gold Coast for 48 boys and girls. Last year, Mills donated the remainder of his 2019-20 season salary after the restart from a Covid-19 shutdown to social justice organizations. He helped launch the "We Got You" campaign with other Australian athletes to eliminate racism and discrimination in sport and organized $750,000 in donations from Australian NBA players for those in need in the wake of last year's devastating Australian bushfires. "Basketball as a sport has brought me happiness, joy, education and a real sense of purpose," Mills said. "However, not everyone has had the same opportunities as I have, which is why I'm so dedicated to using my platform, my profile and my voice to develop innovative programs like IBA, which will allow my people to really own their story." Najafi, a vice chairman of the NBA Suns, will contribute $1 million annually for the next decade to boost the NBA Foundation mission to empower black communities through employment and career advancement. js/
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