Victor Oladipo's generosity has a pattern: he wins something, and someone else ends up holding the prize. From cancer research to children with hearing loss to a survivor driving home in his award car, his giving is personal, specific and aimed at people's health and dignity.
Dunk Cancer
Appearing in the 2015 Slam Dunk Contest, Oladipo turned his winnings into donations for three cancer centers close to his story: breast cancer research at Indiana University's Simon Cancer Center, pediatric cancer care at Children's National in Washington, D.C., near where he grew up in Maryland, and the Florida Hospital Cancer Institute in Orlando, the city that drafted him.
$35,000 for Children With Hearing Loss
Oladipo donated $35,000 to the University of Central Florida's center serving children with hearing loss, funding services for families and a one-week summer camp for the children. The gift was part of a season of giving that earned him the NBA Cares Community Assist Award for December 2015.
A Car and a Fresh Start
That same season, Oladipo donated a car and money to a single mother and her young daughter to help them move out of an Orlando women's shelter. The mother had been commuting two hours a day by bus to support her child; the gift was meant to give the family solid ground to stand on.
His Award Car, Given Away
As the NBA's Most Improved Player, Oladipo received a brand-new Kia. Months later, during a Pacers home game in Indianapolis, he surprised Renita Hills, a domestic violence survivor who works with the Julian Center supporting other survivors, with the keys to that car, calling her an inspiration to so many people.
The Oladipo Foundation
Through his foundation, Oladipo has continued to support education and wellness causes in the places that shaped him, from Maryland to Indiana to Florida. His stated philosophy is simple: he has called giving back a duty, and something he intends to keep doing.
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