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SALT LAKE CITY — Rudy Gobert has been texting Joe Ingles every day about different ways to donate to help fight the Australia bushfires.
Donovan Mitchell had a custom pair of his signature shoes made to feature an Australian flag — and then he auctioned them off with part of proceeds going to help fight the fires.
The Jazz have also designed a shirt that will be sold during the Jazz vs. Houston game on Jan. 27 with proceeds benefiting the Australian firefighters (the shirt will also be sold online).
“Everyone's been really supportive and trying to help,” Ingles said. “The hardest part is not being there.”
If he was there, Ingles envisions himself going out and physically assisting in stopping the brush fires that have devastated a country. As it is, he has to help from afar.
Ingles and his wife, Renae, have pledged to donate $500 for each 3-pointer Joe has made from the beginning of the season through the All-Star break next month. Ingles has made 93 triples so far, already equaling $46,500.
Any help would mean a lot! Every little bit counts... Thankyou ❤️ https://t.co/6oiQg73DG7
— Joe Ingles (@Joeingles7) January 17, 2020
“I'm fortunate to be in a position to be able to do some more things on top of what we had done with NBA and NBPA already,” Ingles said.
Ingles is also hoping Jazz fans — and everyone else — can chip in, too. He’s asking fans to donate to the Red Cross to help the volunteers fight the fire.
The fires are in Ingles' home country, but they hit even closer when he received news that some of his close friends had lost businesses and homes.
“Obviously, regardless, it's devastating. But having some close friends that lost businesses and homes and stuff like that is pretty gut-wrenching to watch and see what they're going through now,” Ingles said. “So that's obviously not just them, but widespread of a lot of people and the wildlife and animals and the country in general. We'll do as much as we can, keep pushing it out there.”
