Lake County to honor NBA champ with local ties

He doesn’t own six championship rings like basketball great Michael Jordan, but on Tuesday Dallas Mavericks forward Shawn Marion will receive something Jordan never did: a resolution from the Lake County Board.

Marion, a Waukegan native who helped the Marvericks win the NBA title this past season, will be on hand Tuesday morning, July 12, when the board adopts the resolution honoring his accomplishments on and off the basketball court.

Marion will be in town next week to host a free basketball camp for kids at North Chicago High School.

The resolution was the idea of county board member Angelo Kyle, a North Chicago Democrat who praised Marion for his local community work and his annual basketball camp.

“It gives (the kids) hope, and it gives them the ability to strive for excellence,” Kyle said of the program.

Marion attended A.J. Katzenmaier and Green Bay elementary schools, both in North Chicago, before moving to Tennessee.

He played basketball at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas and then moved to the NBA, where he played for the Phoenix Suns, Miami Heat and Toronto Raptors before being traded to the Mavericks in 2009.

Marion, who still has relatives in Lake County, also was a member of the U.S. Olympic basketball team in 2004.

Lake County Board Chairman David Stolman expressed excitement about Marion’s upcoming visit.

“It’s not just (that he’s an) NBA star. He’s an NBA star who’s doing something for the community,” Stolman said.

The reading of the resolution will occur the day after Marion is recognized at a rally in his honor in North Chicago. That event is set for 4 p.m. Monday, July 11, at the North Chicago High School gym.