NBA: Pitbull's First Love Was Hoops

Skip to main content Skip to navigation < > NBA: Pitbull's first love was hoops12yAnna Katherine ClemmonsWhat's next in the gambling scandal that has ensnared Chauncey Billups and the NBAPortland Trail Blazers23hRamona ShelburneProsecutors to offer plea agreements in poker casePortland Trail Blazers10hRamona ShelburneRedick calls sideline tiff with Luka 'very normal'Los Angeles Lakers7hDave McMenaminBarnes has iron man streak ended by sore ankleSan Antonio Spurs10hTrae tossed from bench ahead of Wizards debutWashington Wizards2dGiannis rusty but 'just happy that I'm out there'Milwaukee Bucks2dJamal CollierNuggets bolster depth with vet point guard JonesDenver Nuggets2dShams CharaniaInside the secret history of the black mambaLos Angeles Lakers7dBaxter Holmes'Confidence renewed': James Harden, Jose Ramirez and a fresh hope in ClevelandCleveland Cavaliers2dJamal CollierNBA 2025-26 postseason tracker: The Thunder clinch the first postseason spot2dESPNBetting buzz: Kon Knueppel overtakes Cooper Flagg as NBA Rookie of the Year favoriteCharlotte Hornets4dESPNFantasy basketball pickups: Add Dejounte Murray, Precious Achiuwa before it's too late2dAndre Snellings

• Anna Katherine ClemmonsJan 22, 2014, 03:00 AM ETClose
  Anna Katherine Clemmons is a contributing writer for ESPN The Magazine.

Multiple Authors

• 
• Email
• Print

ARMANDO PEREZ' FIRST love was basketball, not music. The artist better known as Pitbull credits hoops with keeping him in school and off the streets of Miami's Little Havana. So when he helped create a charter school in his hometown earlier this year, he lobbied to lend the curriculum a sports bent. The Sports Leadership & Management (SLAM!) Charter Middle/High School opened its doors in August to 800 students; 4,000 more are on the waiting list. The curriculum's elective offerings focus on sports broadcasting, marketing and sports medicine, and athletics are infused into courses like math, where students play fantasy football to learn statistics and strategic thinking. "My mom taught me that with certain subjects, it may not be that you don't understand it, you're just bored," Pitbull says. "Tap into what these kids want to do and they won't want to leave."

Follow The Mag on Twitter (@ESPNmag) and like us on Facebook.