Juan Toscano-Anderson, the first Mexican American ever to participate in the NBA Slam Dunk contest, honored his heritage by wearing the colors of the Mexican flag in his jersey during the contest.
Juan Toscano-Anderson’s grandfather immigrated from Mexico in the 70s. Toscano-Anderson himself was born in Oakland, California.
This year not only did Toscano-Anderson represent his heritage by wearing the colors of the Mexican flag, but also he was the first Mexican American player who participated in the All-Star Weekend and made it to the Slam Dunk finals.
“It’s always important to me,” Toscano-Anderson said. “Just because that’s half of who I am and also that’s where my career started. That league gave me a chance, and I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t play in that league so that’s my way of saying thank you to that league and to the people that helped me there, and also just putting my heritage on the platform. This is the biggest platform in sports, I feel, after the Super Bowl and NBA Finals.”
Toscano-Anderson started his pro career with the Soles de Mexicali, a Mexican professional basketball team based in Mexicali, Baja California, Mexico.
Juan Toscano-Anderson is a professional basketball player for the Golden State Warriors of the National Basketball Association. Currently, he is the only Mexican American player in the league and the fifth player of Mexican heritage in the NBA. The former players like Juan Toscano-Anderson are Eduardo Nájera, Horacio Llamas, Jorge Gutiérrez and Gustavo Ayón.
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