鈥?For most of his NFL career Authentic Tarvarius Moore Jersey , Jamaal Charles hid the challenges of his childhood when he was badgered over his reading disability before finding a lifeline in the Special Olympics.“I feel like I was an outcast, I was left out because so many people made fun of me. But when they saw me play sports, there was just something about me where people came to me and just stopped talking about me and started being more of my friend,” Charles said in an interview with The Associated Press in which he opened up about the role Special Olympics played in his life.Once he gained confidence by competing in the Special Olympics, the teasing stopped. The tutoring began. And Charles set out to prove wrong the doubters who said he wasn’t smart enough to get into college and would never play professional football.“I had to fight all my life to prove to people that I can do those things,” said Charles, who will pay tribute to the Special Olympics this weekend as one of 1,000 players who will lace up customized cleats reflecting their charitable endeavors as part of the league’s “My Cause My Cleats” campaign.That’s double the amount of players who participated in the inaugural effort last year.Special Olympics “was the drive that sparked me, that led me to do all those things, and look where I’m at now,” said Charles Authentic Kyzir White Jersey , who joined the Denver Broncos this season after nine years in Kansas City where he’s the Chiefs’ all-time leading rusher and boasts the highest career rushing average (5.5 yards) in NFL history.Charles’ reddish-orange cleats honor the Special Olympics that changed his life when he was 10 years old and won a gold medal in track and field. More importantly, he came away with a newfound confidence and, eventually, acceptance.“People that have a chance to compete in the Special Olympics, they build up confidence 鈥?confidence that we don’t have in the classroom, confidence we don’t have around ‘normal’ people,” Charles said. “You believe in yourself.”Charles began to share his story two years ago when he gave a speech at the opening ceremony of the Special Olympics in Los Angeles in front of more than 60,000 people.“A lot of people where happy that I did it. They were surprised. They didn’t know my history or my story about the Special Olympics,” Charles said. “I competed in the Special Olympics when I was young in middle school and that’s when (I realized) that I can do something in life.”Other players supporting the Special Olympics with their calico cleats this weekend include Aaron Rodgers, Tyreek Hill, Joe Flacco and Kareem Hunt.Many players worked with Nike Ezekiel Elliott Cowboys Jersey , Under Armour and Adidas to design the cleats they’ll wear in games this weekend. Others used their own designers.Von Miller is wearing two different cleats: one has eyeballs and eye charts on it to promote his foundation “Von’s Vision,” which provides eyewear to underprivileged kids, and the other is a black and purple cleat with detachable butterfly wings on the back in honor of a childhood friend who was diagnosed with lupus.Domata Peko’s specialized shoes support the “Save the Children” organization and also features a Syrian flag.“The reason I put Syria on here is because my wife is from Syria and they are going through a really tough time right now,” Peko said. “Save the Children has been doing a good job with the refugees that are over there. I just wanted to show some love to the children.”Derek Carr is using his cleats to talk about his son, Dallas, who was born with an intestinal abnormality, and other players, including Malcom Jenkins and Mike Evans will use their cleats to showcase social justice issuesBroncos running backs coach Eric Studesville will wear specialized sneakers honoring the Donate Life kidney donation program in honor of his late mother who donated a kidney to a family friend several years before she died in a motorcycle accident.Players are increasingly wearing custom-designed cleats before games to make a statement, fashion or otherwise. The king of the customized shoes is Steelers receiver Antonio Brown. But players can only wear them during warm-ups because NFL rules prohibit players from wearing shoes during games that are not black or white with a team color.Week 13 is the only weekend that players don’t have to worry about the league’s fashion police flagging them for fines over their footwear.Afterward, the stylish shoes will be auctioned to raise money for the charities.
Things are coming a little easier this summer for Derrick White.

White, the 29th pick in last year’s draft Matt Kemp Jersey , is off to a fast start in the NBA Summer League. He scored 18 of his 21 points in the first half to lead the San Antonio Spurs to a lopsided 103-81 victory over Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks on Tuesday night.

The 6-foot-4 point guard, who played in 17 games last season for the Spurs, also had nine assists, six rebounds and two blocks in an impressive all-around performance.

”I am just feeling more comfortable this year,” White said. ”I am learning what works and what I need to do to be successful.”

White continued his solid play from the night before, when he had 22 points and seven rebounds in the Spurs’ 92-76 loss to the Utah Jazz.

White is vying for more playing this season, especially with Kawhi Leonard’s future with the Spurs uncertain.

Young, this year’s No. 5 overall pick, continued to struggle in Utah, finishing with 12 points on 5-of-16 shooting. In two games the former Oklahoma star is just 9 of 36 from the field, including 2 of 16 from 3-point range. Young had three assists and three turnovers.

Young averaged 27.4 points last season for the Sooners.

SPURS 103 Authentic Lamar Jackson Jersey , HAWKS 81

Jeff Ledbetter had 16 points and three 3-pointers, and Amida Brimah had eight points and 11 rebounds for San Antonio (1-1). The Spurs rested first-round draft pick Lonnie Walker IV.

John Collins had 19 points and first-round pick Omari Spellman had 10 points and seven rebounds for the Hawks (0-2).

HEAT 89, LAKERS 74

Derrick Jones Jr. had 21 points and Duncan Robinson added 19 to lead the Heat (1-1). Lakers first-round draft picks Svi Mykhailiuk had 12 points and Moritz Wagner had eight points and five turnovers. Los Angeles is 0-2.

GRIZZLIES 95, JAZZ 92

Wayne Seldon and Kobi Simmons each had 20 points. No. 4 overall pick Jaren Jackson Jr. had 10 points and eight rebounds after a dominating performance the night before when he scored 29 points on eight 3-pointers for Memphis (2-0).

The Jazz (1-1) rested first-round pick Grayson Allen.

WARRIORS 71, KINGS 54

First-round draft pick Jacob Evans had a team-high 13 points on 5-of-12 shooting, adding five rebounds and two steals for the defending NBA champions.

Marvin Bagley III, the No. 2 pick in the draft, was held to seven points on 3-of-16 shooting with seven rebounds for the Kings (1-1). Justin Jackson had 20 points, but the Kings only shot 27.5 percent from the floor.

—

.