Cavs to host Australia Day Game with UP&GO partnership
The Cleveland Cavaliers announced a partnership with Australia-based Sanitarium today, and will host an Australia Day game against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Quicken Loans Arena. The game will be played on Monday, 25 Jan at 7pm Eastern time.
Sanitarium's liquid breakfast product, UP&GO will be the the official Australian breakfast of the Cavaliers, with corresponding promotional rights and benefits in Cleveland and team channels.
"As the Cavaliers popularity continues to grow, the Cavaliers are proud to be establishing these types of partnerships," said Len Komoroski, Cavaliers CEO. "From Cleveland to Australia, we are thrilled to dedicate a game to a country with a fan base that loves Cavs basketball."
It's no surprise many Australians are fans of Cleveland basketball. In addition to Melbourne-born All-Star Kyrie Irving, Maryborough native Matthew Dellavedova has made a deep impression among many with his relentless, tough-minded style of play. Delly is currently experiencing a breakout season, following his phenomenal playoffs performance last season. As outlined by team writer Warren Yiu, Dellavedova has matured and established himself as a trustworthy playmaker behind LeBron James this season, leading the team in assists 11 times through 31 appearances.
"Moreover, amongst all players who have logged at least 500 minutes of court time, Delly ranks 24th in the entire league for percentage of team assists whilst on the court, which though not spectacular, underscores his growing role within the Cavs as a prime ball-mover and decision-maker within the offense." - Dellavedova in the spirit of giving
"The partnership with Australia's leading breakfast category brand, UP&GO with the Cavaliers and Matt Dellavedova is strong endorsement of the growth and presence of Australian players in the NBA and the strong NBA fan base in Australia," says Daniel Derrick, Sanitarium's General Manager, Marketing.
Game broadcast in Australia
The Australia Day game will start with a 20-minute pregame event known as the "UP&GO Cavaliers Breakfast Show", which will be streamed live on Cavs.com. The game will feature the Cavaliers wearing their gold uniforms in respect of Australia's national colours of gold and green, along with singing the Australian national anthem and other tributes to commemorate the team's first Australia Day Game.
Who: Minnesota Timberwolves vs Cleveland Cavaliers Where: Game will be broadcast live via NBA League Pass, and on ESPN When: Australia Day morning. 26 Jan 2016 (Tuesday), 11 am Australian Eastern time (25 Jan 2016, 7pm Eastern time)
Full details of the Cleveland Cavaliers' partnership with Sanitarium are available on the official media release at Cavs.com.