Warriors’ Zaza Pachulia hopes he inspires players in homeland

CLEVELAND — In the 1990s, as a young boy growing up in the nation of Georgia, Zaza Pachulia learned basketball fundamentals on the dilapidated courts of a windowless gymnasium. Because there was no heater, he often practiced while wearing a hat and gloves. In place of that old gym today is the Zaza Pachulia Basketball Academy. The complex, which accommodates more than 500 members, features four basketball courts, locker rooms, a weight room, a restaurant and dorm-style living. One of the courts is the same hardwood Pachulia used to run on at the Bradley Center when he played for Milwaukee (he had the floor shipped in 267 pieces). "I really hope that a lot of Georgian players will get recognition, and I can help them get out, play in the European leagues and the NBA," Pachulia, the Warriors' starting center, said Thursday. "Basketball is in our blood." RELATED: Zaza Pachulia recently visited an Oakland middle school (story continues below): By becoming the first Georgia-born player to win an NBA title, Pachulia would remind the kids at his basketball academy in Tbilisi that they, too, can reach the summit of their sport. It is just one of the personal motivations that… Read full this story

Warriors' Zaza Pachulia hopes he inspires players in homeland have 298 words, post on www.sfchronicle.com at June 9, 2017. This is cached page on CuBird. If you want remove this page, please contact us.