BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Cheers of excitement filled Frederick Law Olmsted PS 64 in Buffalo as students received a special visit from the Cleveland Cavaliers Academy.
"I think there are a lot of parents that look at the news and wonder why their kid is all fired up about the Cavs and basketball…guilty…that was all of us,” Scott MacDonald, the senior director of youth sports partnerships for the Cleveland Cavaliers, said.
The inspiration for this visit to Buffalo came from an unlikely source, fourth grader TJ McAlister.
"I wanted my friends to experience who the Cleveland Cavaliers are," McAlister said.
“TJ and his dad were at a game recently, and they were driving home, [after] I showed them around and TJ tells his dad ‘How do I do this for all my buddies and friends back in Buffalo?’” MacDonald said.
"I'm proud he wanted to share that experience with his peers," said TJ’s dad Todd, who also serves as Buffalo's E-District Chief of Police. "It's something they'll never forget."
During the event, the Junior Cavs introduced the kids to the fundamentals of basketball through dribbling drills and shooting practices. The event concluded with friendly competitions where the students faced off against their teachers and E-District police officers. The kids ultimately came out on top.
"In Western New York, it is Bills Mafia, but it is [also] Cavs Nation," MacDonald said.
The interactive pep assembly not only entertained the students but may have grown the Cavaliers’ fanbase by a few hundred kids.
