Clifford Ray learned what a locker room full of teammates can do. Now his team is PE teachers, parents, and neighbors — and this one's playing for something bigger than a trophy.
Clifford Ray played center for the Chicago Bulls and Golden State Warriors, anchoring the Warriors' 1975 championship team. When he was done playing he stayed in the game, spending decades as an NBA assistant coach teaching footwork, patience, and how to be part of a team.
After the playing days and the coaching days, he kept walking into school gyms — and kept seeing the same thing. A gym that's also the cafeteria. A teacher buying balls out of pocket. Kids waiting for a turn. One school showed him a trailer parked out back and told him that was the gym. The foundation exists to fix that: the gear first, then the places to use it, one school at a time.
Full bio and Coach Ray's own words coming soon.
"One's zip code shouldn't determine whether a child gets to play."— Coach Clifford Ray
A kid-sized story about a very tall teammate, written by Coach Ray for the classrooms he visits. He never leaves a school without a few copies staying behind — and every one that sells buys another ball for a gym that needs it.
Get the bookPhotos from every school visit and every delivery, as they happen.
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