Khem Birch knows how important it is to be a role model for up-and-coming basketball players.
“When I was growing up, there wasn’t a lot of NBA players in Canada,” says Birch. “So, I wanted to give back.”
Standing at six-feet-nine-inches, the 26-year-old native of Montreal, who now plays for the NBA’s Orlando Magic, says it’s been a long road to get to where he is today.
“I’ve been through so much adversity and it’s paid off, but at the same time, I still want more,” says Birch.
It’s that same drive and passion for the game Birch says that he wants kids to feel at his basketball camp at Dartmouth’s Zatzman Sportsplex this weekend.
“I’m here to showcase to these kids that… I’m here to support them,” says Birch.
Apart from hosting the camp in Nova Scotia, Birch’s connection with the province runs a little deeper than most would know.
“My grandparents are from there, born and raised,” says Birch. “So it’s also about seeing family.”
If there’s anything that Birch wants to the kids to know, it’s that they should always work hard for their dreams.
“I want people to never give up,” says Birch.
According to organizers, the camp runs from July 27-July 28.
WATCH: (July 9) Khem Birch elite basketball camp comes to Montreal