Athletes Come Together to Assist Victims of Hurricane Katrina

As soon as Hurricane Katrina left the gulf coast area former New Orleans' point guard and current Golden State Warrior Baron Davis dropped $50,000 to the American Red Cross disaster relief fund to help with the relief efforts in the area.

"I played for the New Orleans Hornets for three years," Davis said in a statement. "The damage to the city from Hurricane Katrina is irreplaceable. Thousands of people are homeless. We all know someone who needs help right now. Everyone can make a difference, even five dollars, just by calling the Red Cross help line."

Joe Horn, wide receiver for the New Orleans Saints plans to return to New Orleans for a few days as soon as possible to help with relief efforts. Horn said the New Orleans athletes need to give back tho their supporters and Horn himself showed up at Astrodome early during the evacuation to Houston, cheering up the youngsters in the crowd.

"It's not just the people in the (Astrodome), there are people in hotel rooms, 12 at a time with families piled on top of families, and they won't have the financial means [to survive]," Horn told the Associated Press. "People stealing food, people stealing diapers; that's not stealing to me, that's surviving. I'm going to stay there two days and see if I can help them out. I know I can't help everybody, but I'm going to try my best because I love the fans there and in Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi."

Chris Duhon is stepping up for his hometown of Slidell, La., a city which was under as much as 15 feet of water. The Chicago Bulls point guard is in the process of raising money for relief efforts as well. He has partnered with FEMA and is seeking financial support, food, and clothing donations for the victims.

"This tragic event has destroyed the homes and lives of many people – people I know," Duhon said in a statement. "Many towns are experiencing this devastation and have yet to determine what, if any, buildings will be saved. We have to do something to help ease this burden."

Stephon Marbury broke down into tears as he spoke at a NBA Player's Association press conference announcing its partnership with the Feed the Children Foundation to assist with the relief efforts of the Gulf Coast.

"When I see all those babies float[ing] in the river... I think about the kids... My kids," Marbury said, sobbing during the press conference. "I just hug my own son…He doesn't even know why."

Kobe Bryant has already donated $100,000 to the cause, Baron Davis dropped an additional $60,000, Mavs forward Alan Henderson donated $100,000 as well and Duhon added an additional $30,000. So far the NBA Player’s Association have raised $2.5 million.

Steve McNair, quarterback of the Tennessee Titans, is also raising funds by offering an autographed picture for everyone who sends in $100 or more to his foundation for hurricane relief. He plans on spending time in his hometown of Hattiesburg, Miss., an area that was hit hard by Katrina, checking up on friends and family still in the area.

"It's a relief for me and all my family members and my teammates to go out and do all we can to help those people in shelters and making them at least feel comfortable while they're there," McNair told the Associated Press.

Donations can be sent to the Steve McNair Foundation, 209 10th Ave. South, Suite 342-B, Nashville, TN 37069.

Serena Williams is also donating money to the relief effort by giving $100 for every ace she serves for the rest of the year.

"Last year we in Palm Beach got hit really bad," Williams told the New York Daily News. "That was like a Category 2, 3 maybe at the most. It was devastating down there. It was a lot of damage… It was pretty sad. So, I can only imagine what it must be like in New Orleans, especially looking at all the footage, all the rain, all this horrible stuff. I thought it would be just a halfway decent gesture."

The NBA/WNBA, NFL, MLB and U.S Tennis Association also announced that they will donate $500,000 to $1 million each towards the hurricane relief efforts.

Among other contributors Brett Favre has raised $140,000 through his Web site and collected several planes full of donated goods. Lance Armstrong donated $500,000 to help cancer patients affected by Katrina. Peyton and Eli Manning, who grew up in Baton Rouge, La., flew down to Louisiana to help distribute more than 31,000 pounds of goods. Raiders QB, Kerry Collins says he will donate $1,000 to the relief effort for every touchdown pass he makes this season.

LeBron Continues With His Busy Offseason

Who has time for basketball? Last week, Lebron James was rolling with the NASCAR crowd at the Sharpie 500 in Bristol, Tenn. Bron's image was on the hood of the Powerade Flava23 sponsored car of Bobby Labonte. Flava23 is a new line of drinks that James helped develop, with new flavor SourMelon hitting store shelves later this year.

King James and his James Family Foundation also donated more than 1,000 backpacks filled with school supplies from Target to area students in Akron and Cleveland last weekend.

"We have been doing events like this since I was in high school and I will always be here to support the kids," James said in a statement.

Finally, James will be hosting the "Nike Battlegrounds: King of the Court," a one-on-one basketball tournament that will air on MTV2 this month. Ben Gordon and Andre Iguodala will be helping out as well, coaching some of the contestants as they run through the tournament. Look for the premier to air on MTV2 on Sept. 18.

Melo, T.O. and Q-Rich "Be" With Common

As part of a new ad campaign for Nike’s Brand Jordan products, Common’s song “Be” will serve as the backdrop. A video of the song was shot in Brooklyn that features Brand Jordan sponsored athletes Carmelo Anthony, Terrell Owens and Quentin Richardson. The video premiered on BET’s '106 & Park' last week and features the three athletes roaming the streets of the inner-city, connecting with the folks in the hood. Directed by Paul Hunter, the ad shows the new line of Brand Jordan lifestyle line which features jeans and shirts.

A few days after the show, Common performed at a Brand Jordan party hosted by Carmelo at MIX in the Mandalay Bay Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.