The Power Forward Small Business Grant

What The Power Forward Small Business Grant does

The Power Forward Small Business Grant is a program founded in 2019 that aims to create lasting economic impact through the empowerment of Black-owned small businesses. It is operated under the Boston Celtics' "Celtics United" social justice platform and is hosted on the Celtics' section of NBA.com, indicating it is part of the broader NBA team's corporate social responsibility and community impact infrastructure rather than an independent commercial enterprise. The program's core function is grantmaking — directing capital to Black-owned small business owners to support economic mobility and entrepreneurship.

The program does not operate as a revenue-generating business. There is no disclosed pricing model, no product offering, and no customer-facing commercial mechanics. Its distribution occurs through the Celtics/NBA digital ecosystem (NBA.com, NBA App, team channels), which provides reach and brand association but is owned and operated by the parent NBA entity, not by the grant program itself. Related NBA-affiliated entities such as the NBA Foundation (focused on economic mobility and workforce development) and NBA Cares (social responsibility and community outreach) provide the broader ecosystem within which The Power Forward program operates.

Because the program is philanthropic in nature, its underlying "business model" is effectively a flow-through: funds are sourced from the Celtics/NBA corporate ecosystem and deployed as grants to qualifying Black-owned small businesses. Beneficiary selection criteria, grant size, cohort counts, and disbursement volumes are not disclosed in the source data. The program's strategic value to its parent organization is reputational and community-oriented rather than financial, contributing to the Celtics' brand positioning around racial equity and small business support.

Name

The Power Forward Small Business Grant

Legal name

National Basketball Association

Website

https://nba.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

1946

Operating status

Operating

Short description

The Power Forward Small Business Grant is a 2019-founded program under the Boston Celtics' Celtics United initiative that provides grants to Black-owned small businesses to support economic empowerment, hosted on NBA.com infrastructure.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Small Business Grants

NAICS

Grantmaking Foundations (813211)

akta.pro primary industry

Corporate Foundations & CSR Grantmaking (BPAGAKAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Education Grantmaking Foundations (BPAGAKAK), Small Business & Entrepreneurship Community Education (EDAAAFAK), Financial Inclusion & Consumer Empowerment (Banking Access, Credit Building) (BPAGALAJ)

Keywords

• Small business grants
• Minority business funding
• Economic empowerment grants
• Black business grants
• Workforce development grants

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Others, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Media Rights and Broadcasting: NBA generates revenue through broadcasting deals, League Pass subscriptions, and television contracts for live game coverage
2. Ticket Sales: Revenue from live game attendance through NBATickets.com and Ticketmaster partnerships
3. Merchandise: NBA Store generates revenue from licensed merchandise including jerseys, apparel, and collectibles
4. Gaming and Fantasy: Partnerships with DraftKings, FanDuel, and Sorare for sports betting and fantasy sports integration
5. Sponsorships and Advertising: Corporate sponsorships, arena signage, and advertising across NBA media platforms

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

The Power Forward Small Business Grant is a grant program that provides direct financial funding to Black-owned small businesses to create lasting impact through economic empowerment. Administered by the Boston Celtics as part of the Celtics United initiative, the program channels capital to underrepresented entrepreneurs in support of the NBA Foundation's broader economic mobility and workforce development mission.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• NBA League Pass: Subscription streaming service for NBA games
• NBA Summer League
• NBA 2K League
• Starting 5
• NBA Fitness
• Jr. NBA
• NBA Cares
• NBA Foundation
• Social Justice Coalition
• PlayStation NBA Creator Cup

Products and services

• The Power Forward Small Business Grant A grant program providing direct financial funding to Black-owned small businesses to support economic empowerment and create lasting impact, administered by the Boston Celtics as part of the Celtics United initiative.

Quantifiable outcome

• NBA Summer League features 76 games over 11 days with all 30 teams participating
• +2 more outcomes

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• NBA G LeaguecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe NBA's official development league providing a pathway for players to develop their skills and earn opportunities at the NBA level.
• WNBAcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWomen's National Basketball Association - the premier women's professional basketball league in the world, affiliated with the NBA.
• NBA 2K LeaguecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOfficial esports league featuring professional NBA 2K video game competition.
• Basketball Africa League (BAL)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPremier basketball league in Africa featuring club teams from multiple African nations, co-founded and supported by the NBA.
• iHeartPodcastsmajorTechnology or IntegrationPodcast production and distribution partner for NBA podcasts including Dub Dynasty, Four Years of Heat, and Maxey on the Mic.
• DraftKingsmajorTechnology or IntegrationOfficial daily fantasy sports and sports betting partner of the NBA.
• FanDuelmajorTechnology or IntegrationOfficial daily fantasy sports and sports betting partner of the NBA.
• TicketmastercoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOfficial ticketing platform partner for NBA game tickets, integrated through NBATickets.com.
• PlayStation (Sony)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerTitle sponsor of the NBA Creator Cup esports-style gaming tournament featuring basketball content creators.
• EmiratesmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerNaming rights partner for the Emirates NBA Cup in-season tournament.

Scale indicators5 records

Expansion highlights1 record

Direct peers

• NBA Foundation: The NBA's official philanthropic foundation focused on economic mobility and workforce development in Black communities. Direct parent-level peer to Power Forward, with overlapping mission and grantmaking focus areas.
• Warriors Community Foundation: The Golden State Warriors' affiliated philanthropic foundation focused on education, health, and equity in the Bay Area. Franchise-level NBA peer running community grantmaking programs.
• Celtics United: The Boston Celtics' community impact arm under which Power Forward operates. Direct parent program with the same geographic focus and overlapping small business and equity mission.

Others

• National Basketball Players Association Foundation: The NBPA's philanthropic arm supporting education and economic empowerment. Connected peer operating in the same NBA ecosystem with overlapping social-equity grantmaking mission.

Broad incumbents

• Accion: Global nonprofit microfinance and small business support organization providing capital and advisory to underserved entrepreneurs. Comparable in deploying grant capital to small business owners facing capital-access barriers.
• U.S. Black Chambers, Inc. National chamber of commerce supporting Black-owned businesses through capital access, education, and advocacy. Broader-scale peer in Black-business empowerment with overlapping grantmaking and program delivery.
• Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC): Major community development financial institution providing grants and loans to small businesses in underserved communities. Operates at national scale with overlapping small business grantmaking focus.
• National Urban League: Historic civil rights and economic empowerment organization running small business programs for Black entrepreneurs. Comparable grantmaking-and-services model targeting the same beneficiary population.

Emerging players

• Athlete Ally: Sports-adjacent nonprofit focused on equity and inclusion. Comparable in leveraging sports platform and athlete capital to advance social-equity grantmaking and programming.
• LeBron James Family Foundation: Athlete-anchored foundation with major education and workforce development programming (e.g., I PROMISE School). Comparable in deploying sports celebrity capital into community economic mobility initiatives.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/NBA
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/NBA
• Facebookfacebook.com/nba
• Instagraminstagram.com/nba/?hl=en
• TikToktiktok.com/@nba

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments12 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Power Forward Small Business Grant