NBA China will host its first NBA Fan Appreciation Day on Oct 13 at the Oriental Sports Center in Shanghai to thank fans for their support of the NBA China Games 2012.

The event will feature a variety of basketball and entertainment elements, including open team practices, which will allow fans to watch the reigning NBA champion Miami Heat and the Los Angeles Clippers prepare for the China Games and the 2012-13 season. NBA legends, dance teams, mascots and dunkers will also participate in the event.

Gatorade, Sprite and China Mobile are sponsors of the inaugural NBA Fan Appreciation Day. As the official sports drink partner of Fan Appreciation Day and the "Shoot a Million Hoops" finale, Gatorade will educate fans about the importance of proper hydration during exercise and will provide the on-court participants with drinks throughout the event.

Sprite, the official soft drink partner, will team with LeBron James to unveil the three winners of the "Uncontainable" campaign on center court in a celebration of basketball and music.

China Mobile will use its mobile platforms to engage fans looking to be a part of the excitement surrounding the event.

NBA Fan Appreciation Day will include appearances from NBA legends Alonzo Mourning, Tim Hardaway, Bruce Bowen, Glen Rice and Steve Smith. The NBA Fan Patrol, the Heat Dancers, Heat xtreme, Heat mascot Burnie, and the Clippers' dunk team will entertain fans throughout the event.

Fans will also witness a historic moment, counting down the last 10 shots of the "Shoot a Million Hoops" campaign, which will begin on Oct 9 in hundreds of schools and communities across Shanghai. The final 10 shots will be taken by a line-up of NBA legends, Heat and Clippers players and Shanghai citizens on center court. The campaign is a joint initiative between the NBA and the Shanghai Sports Bureau to promote active and healthy lifestyles through mass sports participation as part of the inaugural Shanghai Citizens' Games, which were launched in June.

Following NBA Fan Appreciation Day, the Miami Heat will host an NBA FIT clinic for kids, also as part of the partnership with the Shanghai Sport Bureau for Citizen Sports Campaign. Heat players, along with head coach Erik Spoelstra, will lead young fans through a variety of fitness drills and basketball competitions encouraging them to lead healthy lifestyles.

Tickets to NBA Fan Appreciation Day will be free to the public and made available through a variety of fan and interactive promotions from NBA Digital and NBA media partners. In addition, the Shanghai Sports Bureau will select thousands of basketball fans from the public school system to attend this once-in-a-lifetime event. For more information on how and where to get tickets to the NBA Fan Appreciation Day, please log on to the official NBA China Games 2012 website: china.nba.com/chinagames2012.

China Games 2012 will boast unprecedented support from marketing partners including adidas, Dongfeng Fengshen, Harbin, Mengniu, SAP, Sprite, China Mobile and Gatorade. A complete roster of marketing partners will be announced closer to the event.

NBA China Games 2012 marks the sixth edition of NBA China Games and the first time the reigning NBA champion will compete in the event. The competing teams feature 11 players who have been NBA All-Stars, three NBA Finals Most Valuable Players, and six Olympic gold medalists. The Heat's roster includes three-time NBA MVP James, 2006 NBA Finals MVP Dwyane Wade, seven-time NBA All-Star Chris Bosh and 2008 NBA champion Ray Allen. The Clippers' roster includes Blake Griffin, winner of the 2011 Sprite Slam Dunk competition, five-time NBA All-Star Chris Paul, 2004 NBA Finals MVP Chauncey Billups, and two-time NBA champion Lamar Odom.

In 2004, the NBA became the first American professional sports league to play games in China, with two clashes between the Houston Rockets and the Sacramento Kings in Shanghai and Beijing.

(China Daily 09/29/2012 page15)