Milwaukee Bucks point guard Malcolm Brogdon is expanding his commitment to the clean water crisis by creating Hoops2o and launching the program alongside four other NBA players, collectively known as the ‘Starting 5.’'

Starting 5 members:

• Justin Anderson, Atlanta Hawks

• Malcolm Brogdon, Milwaukee Bucks

• Joe Harris, Brooklyn Nets

• Garrett Temple, Memphis Grizzlies

• Anthony Tolliver, Minnesota Timberwolves

The mission of Hoops2o is to leverage the NBA platform to unite fans and players with a goal of raising funds and awareness to provide clean water to East African communities in desperate need. The Starting 5 have set the goal to raise $225,000 to fund five wells, one for each of the Starting 5 teams, by the end of the 2018-2019 NBA season.

Hoops2o emerged via the successful Waterboys initiative that was started by two-time Super Bowl Champion and Eagles defensive end Chris Long, and has flourished through the commitment of 29 NFL players since its founding in 2015. The collective impact model leverages the power of professional sports to more quickly and effectively address the world water crisis.

After traveling to Ghana and Malawi as a child and seeing the effects of poverty, Brogdon has been driven to make a difference in Africa and use his platform to provide solutions for suffering communities.

“I saw from a very young age the value of clean water in communities in Africa,” said Malcolm Brogdon, founder Hoops2o. “I made a promise to myself that once I reached a time and place in my career where I could do more, I would. When I learned about Chris’ Waterboys initiative and saw their accomplishments by working as a team of players to inspire action, I knew I wanted to expand his vision into the NBA and address our ultimate shared goal to save more lives faster and transform communities.”

To kick off the Hoops2o program, the Starting 5 are asking fans to get involved by participating in the “Ballin’ for Buckets” campaign. Fans are encouraged to pledge a dollar amount per stat line for one of the Starting 5 players for the month of November on PledgeIt.org with the goal to raise $45,000 and fund the first Hoops2o well. Brogdon and each member of the Starting 5 has made an individual financial pledge to support Ballin’ for Buckets and their performance on the court. Player stat tracking will begin on November 1, but fans can make a pledge now. Whether its points per game or 3-pointers, when a Starting 5 player performs on the court, it results in lives being changed. To learn more and make a pledge, fans are encouraged to visit www.hoops2o.org.

“I’ve always known that Waterboys had the potential to be bigger than any one league,” said Waterboys Founder Chris Long. “I’m honored that our work is expanding into the NBA and I couldn’t be more excited about what this will mean for our neighbors who lack access to a fundamental resource. I’m confident that working together as a united front, the NFL’s Waterboys and the NBA’s Starting 5 will bring us one step closer to providing water to one million people.”

All funds raised through the Hoops2o program will go towards the building of solar paneled, sustainable deep borehole wells in communities in East Africa. Each well comes with a price tag of $45,000 and provides water for up to 7,500 people, meaning that a donation of as little as six dollars can save a life.

To learn more about the Hoops2o mission to transform communities through the gift of clean water visit www.hoops20.org