Chicago Bulls bring youth and police together for a basketball tournament

For years, the Chicago Bulls and their players have worked to help reduce the amount of violence in the city. From Joakim Noah’s commercials, to donations and more, the Bulls have been a proactive force in the community. Recently, they once again used their resources to help spark change in the community by bringing together youths, police officers and their players for a basketball tournament. As the video the Bulls posted on Twitter on Tuesday shows, things seemed to go well.

There are many important, serious things going on in this video.

First, and most importantly, is the impact the trip had on the participants. Just listen to the kid at the end of the video. For him to speak about how the trip made him realize there is a future beyond his neighborhood is huge. While we can’t pretend that there are easy solutions or that basketball tournaments are the answer, hearing that kid talk in that manner gives hope that all stakeholders are willing to help figure it out.

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Moments like those show the trip was more than just meeting NBA players. Sure, the reaction that one of the teens had when meeting Dwyane Wade was very cool. But listening to Wade speak about how he can relate to these kids thanks to being from Chicago was too. It isn’t a surprise to see Wade take over Noah’s role of leading charitable efforts in the city, but it is always cool to see a player talk about how much those efforts mean to them.

It was also wonderful to see how many Bulls players showed up to the event. Rajon Rondo may be a frustrating player to some but by all accounts he is an incredibly intelligent and articulate guy. Having him at these type of events is a great thing. Jimmy Butler faced a situation many kids in Chicago do as he bounced from home to home as a youngster. Bobby Portis dealt with poverty and domestic violence and made it as a first round pick. Having those players around to help show youth that making it is possible, and that they don’t have to be defined by their circumstances is great. Having them there to mediate in a surely tense discussion with police is even better.

So let this serve as a reminder to plenty of people out there. Sports and sports teams can serve purposes outside of entertainment. The Chicago Bulls aren’t the only one. They were just one of the ones that showed us. And today, of all days, everyone should take some time to watch the video and feel good about things again.