Presented by: FedEx

In commemoration of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy, the Memphis Grizzlies have partnered with FedEx to host a community basketball clinic for 100 youth from community centers across Memphis as a part of the Grizzlies’ MLK Day of Service on Wednesday, January 8th.

Community centers have played a vital role in empowering and uplifting the next generation of Memphis and the MLK Day basketball clinic draws inspiration from several pivotal moments in the city’s history, including the Black Monday Protest.

The Black Monday Protest of 1969 was one of the largest education-focused protests in Memphis. On five consecutive Mondays, thousands of parents kept their children out of school in solidarity with the NAACP’s 15 demands for equality and justice to the Memphis school board. Community centers and churches became makeshift classrooms during this time, ensuring students continued to learn while advocating for change. These centers have long been pillars of resilience, providing safe spaces for youth to grow, learn, and thrive.

In the spirit of these efforts and Dr. King’s vision of investing in youth and community-driven progress, Grizzlies players and coaches will work alongside FedEx employee volunteers as coach mentors during the MLK Day basketball clinic to guide and support participants throughout the day. Volunteers will also assemble school supply kits and snack bags to be distributed to community centers.

The Grizzlies Foundation and the Community Engagement Department will collaborate and engage with local youth artists to showcase Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr’s. legacy through art.

Local youth artists will participate in two activities on Tuesday, January 14th.

1. Five members of the MENTOR Memphis Grizzlies Youth Advisory Council will give “Teen Talks”. Teens will share with community partners and families how Dr. King’s legacy and “I Have a Dream” speech has impacted them.

2. 30 local high school artists from Contemporary Arts Memphis and Memphis Brooks Museum of Art will paint basketballs based on the “Teen Talks,” and a speech from by Dory Learner, museum educator at the National Civil.

The painted basketballs will be displayed in FedExForum on MLK Day through the end of Black History Month.

In partnership with Positive Coaching Alliance, the Memphis Grizzlies and National Civil Rights Museum will host Junior Grizzlies Coaches and League Directors for an afternoon of introspection and discussion on how to support the Mid-South youth participating in the Junior Grizzlies League. There will be a panel discussion featuring Cheryl Miller, Grizzlies Head Coach Taylor Jenkins and Grant Hill, a former Sports Legacy Award Honoree.