The Holocaust, a Basketball Legacy, and an Unprecedented American Dream

Former NBA star player and executive Ernie Grunfeld is the only athlete in NBA history whose parents survived the Holocaust. By the Grace of the Game (Dreamscape Media, 2021), a new book written by his son, former professional basketball player Dan Grunfeld, details his family’s remarkable history, and the profound impact that basketball has had in their lives. Ernie Grunfeld was ten years old when his family immigrated to America from Communist Romania, with no knowledge of English and having never touched a basketball. Roughly ten years later, he stood on the podium as an Olympic gold medalist for the United States.

This virtual event is the annual Abram Matlofsky Memorial Program supported by the Karma Foundation and will be held Wednesday, March 23, at 7:00 p.m., on Zoom. Dan Grunfeld will discuss his family’s history and extraordinary American story in conversation with his father and Craig Karmazin, CEO of Good Karma Brands, a sports media and marketing company, and grandson of Abram Matlofsky.