Los Angeles Lakers forward Brandon Ingram made a meteoric rise from high school basketball in Kinston, North Carolina to college ball at Duke and finally to the NBA. As a rookie, Ingram had a tough go of things early, but picked up his game after the All-Star break and ultimately earned a spot on the All-Rookie second team.
Ingram’s home town is not wealthy area, and with his NBA success, he has taken it upon himself to give back to the community.
With the school year approaching, Ingram handed out back packs and other school supplies to children in Kinston and spoke about why it is such an important endeavor for him, as reported by Courtney Allen of WNCT News:
“It’s just like something that came out of my heart, something I wanted to do for my community, the less fortunate, people that don’t have, or even people that do, a chance to give back….It’s a dream come true for me just to have these these guys and kids look up to me like this and having a opportunity to do something positive for this community and for my hometown is it’s like nothing else,” Ingram said.
It’s great to see Ingram giving back to his home town and giving kids school supplies that they can really use. Some things are simply bigger than the game of basketball, and Ingram is using his celebrity status to better the lives of others. Just as the Lakers will look for him to grow into a leadership role on the court, he is also becoming one off of it with endeavors like this.
The Lakers have made an effort to bring in high-character players that will help take the next step forward in the rebuild by maturing as individuals and as a team, and it all signs point to Ingram being a perfect fit in that regard.