Tyler ButlerEVENT REMINDER: MEMPHIS GRIZZLIES TO HONOR MUGGSY BOGUES, ELVIN HAYES AND ALLAN HOUSTON AS PART OF TEAM’S 20TH ANNUAL MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. DAY CELEBRATION GAME
— Limited Tickets Still Available for MLK Celebration Game —
— Tip-Off Scheduled for 2:30 p.m. CT, Monday, January 17 —
— Side-by-side Telecast on Bally Sports Southeast and TNT —
Memphis, Tenn. — On Monday, Jan. 17, the Memphis Grizzlies, National Civil Rights Museum, City of Memphis and Shelby County will host the 20th Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day Celebration Game, presented by Ford and your Mid-South Ford Dealers. The MLK Celebration Game vs. the Chicago Bulls will tip off at 2:30 p.m. CT in a side-by-side telecast, broadcasting regionally on Bally Sports Southeast and nationally on TNT. Limited tickets are available for purchase by calling (901) 888-HOOP or by going online to tickets. Local channel listings can be found here.
Memphis Grizzlies Scholars and National Civil Rights Museum Representatives will present the honorees with the Sports Legacy Award before tip-off. In addition, Monday’s game will feature a National Anthem performance by 2021 season runner up of The Voice and Memphis native, Wendy Moten. A special halftime performance presented by Ford and your Mid-South Ford Dealers will feature a special tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King Jr by Grammy nominated R&B artist Angie Stone, along with The Voice’s Wendy Moten, and Grammy nominated Queen of Memphis Soul, Carla Thomas. They will be joined by special guests including vocalist Stefanie Bolton, the Royal Horns and the legendary Grammy nominated Hi Rhythm Section Band.
All events are in an effort to continue the ongoing conversations with the Memphis community and Mid-South youth to remember, celebrate and act on Dr. King’s legacy. Associate MLK Celebration Game sponsors include FedEx, Verizon and Hyde Family Foundation. Fans can visit grizzlies.com/MLK for a full list of this year’s 20th Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day Celebration events, as well watch past symposiums and discussions from previous years.
National Civil Rights Museum Sports Legacy Award Honorees
Honorees of the 17th Annual National Civil Rights Museum Sports Legacy Award, presented by Ford and your Mid-South Ford Dealers, feature NBA greats Muggsy Bogues, Elvin Hayes and Allan Houston. The honorees will be celebrated on game day during the Earl Lloyd Sports Legacy Symposium, presented by the Hyde Family Foundation. The symposium will be broadcast live on Bally Sports Southeast on Jan. 17 at 1 p.m. and will recognize Bogues, Hayes and Houston for their dedication and significant contributions – in the spirit of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. – to civil and human rights, the social justice movement and for laying the foundation for future leaders through their careers in sports.
Discussions and Community Impact
The Grizzlies will continue their celebrations by hosting multiple events throughout the weekend. A full list of events is as follows.
In honor of the Grizzlies 20th Annual MLK Day Celebration game, the Grizzlies will host Amplifying Youth Voices: Driving the Dream spoken word contest presented by Verizon. The top three finalists will receive scholarship money to further their craft and the first-place winner will be featured in-game during the Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration game against the Chicago Bulls.
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This afternoon, the Memphis Grizzlies will host its annual MLK High School Classic presented by Nike. Varsity boys and girls’ teams from Holcomb and Neely High Schools, both of Missouri, will compete on the Grizzlies’ main court and then attend tonight’s game against the Mavericks. Also, this evening, the Martin Luther King Jr. NBA Coaches’ Forum will be held in the Draft Room at FedExForum from 7-8:30 p.m. The program will feature presentations from the Positive Coaching Alliance and a special guest panel including former Grizzlies player and current LeMoyne-Owen head coach Bonzi Wells. The forum, moderated by Grind City Media’s Mike Wallace, will discuss using sports to overcome bias. For more information visit https://MemGrizzYouth.com/.
On Saturday, Jan. 15, the Grizzlies will host the Martin Luther King Jr. “Play Like The Pros” Showcase presented by Nike. The daylong slate of youth basketball games will take place at FedExForum and features elementary and middle school teams from Tennessee, Mississippi and Alabama of the Tennessee Valley Basketball Association.
The celebration continues when the Memphis Grizzlies and National Civil Rights Museum host, virtually, The Intersection of Race & Sports, premiering at 6 p.m. on grizzlies.com/MLK and the Memphis Grizzlies YouTube Channel. To subscribe and receive notifications from the Memphis Grizzlies YouTube page click here. The virtual discussion, hosted by Grind City Media’s Michael Wallace, is focused on issues affecting Black Athletes with The Undefeated’s Marc Spears, Executive Director of the National Basketball Social Justice Coalition James Cadogan and WNBA star A’Ja Wilson. The virtual discussion will feature opening remarks from Memphis Grizzlies Director of Player Support, former Grizzlies player and Grizzlies Prep Mentor Elliot Perry and National Civil Rights Museum President Dr. Russ Wigginton.
The event lineup will continue with the annual Earl Lloyd Sports Legacy Symposium, presented by the Hyde Family Foundation, from 1-2 p.m. in the Grizzlies Built Ford Tough Training Facility at FedExForum. The symposium, hosted by Grizzlies television play-by-play announcer Pete Pranica, will feature Bogues, Hayes and Houston, who will share stories of their community work and experiences through their career in sports, in the spirit of Dr. King. The symposium will feature opening remarks from National Civil Rights Museum President Dr. Russ Wigginton. The symposium will be broadcast live on Bally Sports Southeast. While admission is free to the symposium with the purchase of a ticket to the Grizzlies vs. Bulls game, space is limited. Doors open at 12:30 p.m.
MENTOR Memphis Grizzlies affiliates will have information tables inside FedExForum to recruit mentors for their respective programs before the Martin Luther King Jr. Day Celebration Game against the Chicago Bulls. Themed Driving the Dream Through Mentoring, the Recruitment Fair will be active until the start of the third quarter and will be located on the Plaza Level.
Tune-in Monday, Jan. 17 at 2:30 p.m. to the MLK Celebration Game vs. the Chicago Bulls in a side-by-side telecast, broadcasting regionally on Bally Sports Southeast, presented by FanDuel Sportsbook and nationally on TNT. Fans will want to tune in early at 2 p.m. to catch Grizzlies LIVE presented by Ford and your Mid-south Ford Dealers featuring Pete Pranica, Brevin Knight, Rob Fischer and Chris Vernon. Local channel listings can be found here.
Fans who want to support the Memphis Grizzlies and purchase single game tickets, including the MLK Celebration Game, can do so now by calling (901) 888-HOOP or by going online to grizzlies.com/tickets. Season Tickets are the best way to guarantee seats to the top matchups at the lowest prices all season long. For more information on the Grizzlies, visit grizzlies.com, ‘like’ Memphis Grizzlies on Facebook or follow on Twitter and Instagram (@memgrizz).
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Alise Robinson
