NEW YORK — The National Basketball Association (NBA) and the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) today announced New York Knicks center and NBPA Vice President Karl‑Anthony Towns as the NBA Cares Bob Lanier Community Assist Award winner for February. Towns is being recognized for his impact in the community, including leading a digital coat drive to support local families in need, investing in youth development initiatives in the Dominican Republic, and serving as a consistent advocate for social justice and underserved communities. In honor of his efforts, the NBA and the NBPA Foundation will donate $20,000 to Dominican Women’s Development Center.
This winter, Towns hosted a digital coat drive campaign to provide coats to families in need across New York. In partnership with Operation Warm, Towns donated 500 coats valued at $12,500, with an additional 162 coats contributed through his partnership with Target. All coats were donated to the Garden of Dreams Foundation partner SCO Family of Services. Ahead of the Knicks’ Celebrating the Black Experience game on Feb. 10, Towns met with youth from SCO Family of Services who received the coats earlier in the year, further reinforcing his hands‑on approach to community engagement.
Beyond his work in New York, Towns has continued to demonstrate a deep commitment to global youth development and his Dominican heritage. Towns played a leading role in securing a $3 million investment for a state-of-the-art basketball facility in the Dominican Republic in partnership with Go Ministries to provide training and recreational opportunities for young athletes across the region. In 2024, he pledged $1 million to help break ground for the facility, and ahead of the current NBA season, Towns traveled to the Dominican Republic, where he met with President Luis Abinader to fundraise an additional $2 million in contributions towards the facility.
Towns has also remained an active leader and ambassador for social justice initiatives. He is a committed board member of the National Basketball Social Justice Coalition (NBSJC) and has played a prominent role in the 2025 – 2026 NBA/NBPA Pioneer’s campaign – honoring the first Black NBA players – that includes former New York Knick Nathaniel “Sweetwater” Clifton. As part of his engagement, Towns contributed to digital storytelling content highlighting the legacy of the NBA pioneers and participated in a special meet‑and‑greet with a recipient of the Knicks’ Sweetwater Clifton City Spirit Award.
“Giving back to the community is very important to me and partnering with the Dominican Women’s Development Center in New York City will provide daycare for the mothers and kids as well as mental health and healthcare support to new moms and their children,” said Towns. “I am incredibly grateful to receive this award.”
Additionally, while on a road trip in December, Towns hosted a special community event in Minnesota, organizing a private movie screening for more than 100 youth from HopeKids, an organization that supports families with children facing cancer and other life-threatening medical conditions. The event underscored Towns’ continued commitment to maintaining meaningful relationships in the communities he’s played in throughout his career.
This marks the second Community Assist Award of Towns’ career, having previously earned the honor in November 2021. Towns was also named the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Social Justice Champion in 2024. The NBA Cares Bob Lanier Community Assist Award honors NBA legend and Hall of Famer Bob Lanier, an NBA League Office executive and NBA Cares Ambassador for more than 30 years. He had an enormous influence on the NBA family and young people globally, traveling the world to teach the values of the game and making a positive impact through his kindness and generosity. The legacy he built will continue to live on through the NBA Cares Bob Lanier Community Assist Award, which recognizes the next generation of players’ commitment to positively impacting their communities throughout the NBA season. Each NBA season has an offseason winner followed by seven monthly award winners. The offseason winner receives the Bob Lanier trophy, and each monthly winner receives the David Robinson trophy. The NBA and the NBPA Foundation also make a donation to the charity or foundation of the player’s choice. To learn more, please visit communityassist.nba.com.
