Juan Toscano-Anderson, Gary Payton II inspire change for Oakland youth, families

Originally posted on NBC Sports Bay Area & California by Tristi Rodriguez

Local hero Juan Toscano-Anderson made his own dreams come true when he played for and won an NBA championship with his childhood team, the Warriors, in 2022. Now he’s doing his part to change lives in the city he’s always loved and adored.

And he’s doing so with one of his best friends.

Toscano-Anderson’s Journey to Achieve Foundation and Warriors guard Gary Payton II’s GPII Foundation partnered with local nonprofits and community organizations to help families start the year strong at the JTA Foundation’s annual backpack giveaway on Saturday at Fremont High School in Oakland.

The families received free backpacks, books, school supplies, haircuts, meals and other back-to-school resources.

It is the JTA Foundation’s sixth year putting together this back-to-school giveaway, and the third year it has partnered with the GPII Foundation.

“Just to be able to do this annually and give back to the community says a lot about JTA and what he brings to the community and who he is,” Payton II told NBC Sports Bay Area during an interview last week. “He’s a legend of the Bay. To come and do this with him, it means everything.”

It has been easy for Toscano-Anderson and Payton to connect with the children and families in these communities who need some extra support because they were once those kids.

For Payton, whose foundation promotes dyslexia awareness and supports youth and young adults with language-based learning challenges, it’s all about utilizing the resources that he once didn’t have as a young child overcoming his own journey with dyslexia.

Toscano-Anderson always has been passionate about the youth, but he gained a whole new, special perspective after becoming a proud father to his two-year-old son, Jadyce.

“We believe children are the future, literally,” Toscano-Anderson told NBC Sports Bay Area. “We’re just trying to help groom these kids young to prepare them to go out in the world and be difference makers. For our duty as humans but also just from my own selfish standpoint, being from Oakland, I want people from Oakland to go out and spread their wings and keep putting paint where it ain’t. Just keep leaving Oakland stamps everywhere they go. Oakland is a historical city with a lot of culture, a lot of diversity, a lot of talent. And I just want to help those kids. I was once those kids. Gary was once those kids.

“We understand the landscape of this community. We understand what this community is lacking. These kids need help. For myself, just being a father now, I just see kids in such a different light now. I have such a soft spot for young children. I’ve been blessed enough to provide my son with different resources that sometimes I look at the world like, ‘Damn, I wish I could do this for all these kids.’ So we try to do that through our foundation and be able to provide and help with. … We’re trying to teach everybody how to crawl before they walk and walk before they can run.”

On the JTA Foundation’s website, it states that Toscano-Anderson’s philanthropic hunger began as a young kid, when several acts of kindness helped get him by and become the man he is today.

Now, several years later, he wishes he could help every single person and family that helped him as a child. Little does he know, he’s on the right track.

“Even now at the age of 33 when I’m sitting back reflecting, and as many times as I get to tell my story, I’m like, ‘Man, I forgot about this part or this person that did this.’ And it’s like I wish I could thank them,” Toscano-Anderson said. “How do I thank them? Even though I’m not able to directly thank everybody, how I return that energy, that favor is just to pay it forward.”

Toscano-Anderson and Payton spent two seasons together with Golden State.

There are endless photos of them sitting side by side, hugging one another with the Larry O’Brien trophy in their hands as they sat center-court at TD Garden on that June 16 evening, soaking in their first NBA championships.

Both respected and adored by Dub Nation for their efforts on the court, their impact continued tenfold off the court.

Asked how the conversations came about to bring their foundations together and collaborate, both men flashed big grins across their faces as they recalled the “no-brainer” decision to continue their partnership beyond basketball.

“That was pretty easy,” Payton said, smiling. “We both saw what our foundations were doing, and it was just an automatic like, ‘Yo, you want to come and collab with us?’ And it’s always a no-brainer. It’s always, ‘Of course we’ll help you out.’ It’s just mutual. That’s my brother. Whenever he needs me, I’ll be there to help him. It’s for the community. For Oakland. For the kids. It’s a no-brainer.”

Toscano-Anderson couldn’t agree more.

“It was easy,” he added. “G and I have been friends for many years, before the NBA. When we got to the NBA, we had similar paths. This relationship that he and I have goes beyond just on the Warriors. A lot of people see us being friends and think we’re just friends because we played together. But his family’s from Oakland. We’ve known each other for a long time. Similar stories. He and I just have a lot of synergy, on and off the court. He’s one of my best friends. It was something where it was just like, ‘Yo, let’s do this together.’ We both have roots here. We can have a very magnified impact here.”

If it wasn’t obvious, that impact is more meaningful than materialistic.

“To me, events like this are about much more than handing out backpacks,” Hong Thach, Executive Director of Reading Partners SF Bay Area, wrote in a statement to NBC Sports Bay Area. “They’re about showing every child that their community believes in them and is cheering them on before the first day of school. A backpack is important, but what lasts even longer is knowing some people care, along with access to books, literacy resources, and mentors who want to see them succeed.

“As an Oakland native, this one hits close to home. I grew up seeing how a strong community can change the trajectory of a young person’s life, and it’s powerful to see leaders like Juan Toscano-Anderson and Gary Payton II using their platforms to pour back into the city and invest in our next generation.”

Just like the small deeds that made a big impact on Toscano-Anderson and Payton as kids, they want to encourage the community that no deed is too small.

And more than anything, it all starts with community.

“Our event is a community kickoff,” Toscano-Anderson said. “Yes, we’re giving away stuff. There’s free stuff. Even for people who don’t really need it, come out and support. Share the word. $5 is not a lot of money, but if 20 people donate $5, we can help four to five kids with the totality of $100. Just come out and support. This is a community thing. We’re all in this together.”

You can learn more and support future events for the JTA Foundation and GPII Foundation.