BOSTON (WHDH) - Hundreds of students got the chance to play basketball with the pros on Saturday when the Celtics and New England Baptist Hospital teamed up to host the Junior Celtics Tip-Off Clinic.
The clinic, held in Boston, aims to help kids learn skills they can use on and off the court.
The third through sixth-grade students, representing 17 local communities, worked on their skills with the help of Celtics players and staff.
“It’s always fun,” Celtics forward Daniel Theis said. “Just to do a little basketball playing with the kids, come out here, show them maybe the first steps of basketball, what it’s about.”
Theis led defensive, dribbling and shooting drills.
“We start off with defensive drills but you could see the concentration on defensive drills wasn’t that high,” Theis said. “So we start dribbling and shooting, everybody was more excited, more focused on those things.”
Theis says helping the next generation of basketball players is rewarding but giving back to the community is even better.
“Just giving some high-fives, it’s like it means the world for them, for me the same,” he said. “Just come here and give something back.”
Middle school students at the clinic also learned about the 2019 Junior Celtics Academy, where they can improve their skills and get a chance to win Celtics prizes and exclusive experiences at upcoming games.
(Copyright (c) 2024 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)