NBA Stars Steph Curry, Carmelo Anthony And Chris Paul Call For An End To Gun Violence

WASHINGTON -- A prominent advocacy group is trying to enlist basketball fans to do something about the scourge of gun violence in America.

Everytown for Gun Safety, in collaboration with the NBA, turned to top players like Steph Curry, Chris Paul, Joakim Noah and Carmelo Anthony to participate in an ad campaign against gun violence. The players joined with survivors and victims' families in a series of short videos directed by Spike Lee.

In one of them, Curry recalls hearing about a little child who died from gun violence at age 3, the same age as his daughter Riley .

The spots will begin airing during five NBA games on Christmas, when the league draws large audiences.

The NBA's efforts to draw attention to the issue earned praise from President Barack Obama on Wednesday.

I'm proud of the @NBA for taking a stand against gun violence. Sympathy for victims isn't enough change requires all of us speaking up.

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I'm proud of the @NBA for taking a stand against gun violence. Sympathy for victims isn't enough change requires all of us speaking up.
President Obama (@POTUS) December 23, 2015

The ads are part of the latest push by Everytown, dedicated to raising awareness of gun violence and advocating for reforms like expanding mandatory background checks and closing the "gun show loophole."

The group has also worked with celebrities like Julianne Moore, Amy Schumer and Sofia Vergara to call for legislative action, but many of its best advocates are those who have suffered gun violence themselves or in their families.

For one of them, the NBA's involvement is especially meaningful.

Richard Martinez started advocating for gun control measures in 2014, after his 20-year-old son, Christopher Michaels-Martinez, was killed in a mass shooting in Isla Vista, California.

As he told The Huffington Post, his son loved basketball.

"I don't think 'loved' is even the right word," Martinez said, recalling that his son played basketball throughout his life and, as a kid, participated in a basketball camp run by NBA legend Michael Jordan.

"He would be thrilled that these players are doing this. He was a great fan," Martinez said.