ATLANTA, Feb. 18, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Autotrader teamed up with Turner Sports and the National Basketball Association for the fourteenth consecutive year to empower a deserving organization with the donation of a new vehicle, presented this year to recipients from the Business Women Empowerment Project, Inc. (BWEP).

During the regular NBA season, hosts of the Emmy® Award-winning Inside the NBA studio team – Ernie Johnson, Shaquille O'Neal, Kenny Smith and Charles Barkley – faced off in the Autotrader All-Star Drive fantasy basketball challenge. During TNT NBA Tip-Off presented by Autotrader, hosts selected the player that they thought would be the top performer during that night's TNT double-header with the winner receiving a donation of a new vehicle to the charity of his choice, courtesy of Autotrader.

This year's winner, Shaquille O'Neal, chose to benefit BWEP, a non-profit organization committed to empowering women with access to resources that explore and expand their business through a network of knowledgeable and successful achievers. BWEP is launching a new leadership program in 2020 for high school girls (ages 16-18) who may not have a clear path or direction on what they want to do after graduating high school. This new program will help teen girls learn leadership and entrepreneurial skills, financial literacy and other abilities that will guide them toward success.

Members of BWEP were completely surprised with an appearance by O'Neal during a recent meeting for their organization. O'Neal then furthered their astonishment by personally delivering the good news about the donation of a brand new 2020 Kia Sorento courtesy of Autotrader to further enable their charitable efforts. BWEP plans to use the new car in conjunction with the mentorship events they facilitate for teenage girls in the metro Atlanta area. 

"At Autotrader, donating a new vehicle to help empower an organization making a difference in our community is one of our favorite things we get to do every year," said Greta Crowley, vice president of marketing for Autotrader. "We understand what a game-changer it can be for a nonprofit to receive a new car as a donation, and we get excited thinking about how the winning organization can further its mission and goals with help from new transportation. Meaningful partnerships allow us to give back through charitable organizations, highlighting Autotrader's ongoing commitment to serve our local communities."

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About Autotrader
Autotrader is the most recognized third-party car listings brand, with the most engaged audience of in-market car shoppers. As the foremost authority on automotive consumer insights and expert in online and mobile marketing, Autotrader makes the car shopping experience easy and fun for today's empowered car shopper looking to find or sell the perfect new, used or Certified Pre-Owned car. Using technology, shopper insights and local market guidance, Autotrader's comprehensive marketing and retailing solutions allow consumers to build their deal online, and guide dealers to personalized digital marketing strategies that grow brand, drive traffic and connect the online and in-store shopping experience. Autotrader is a Cox Automotive™ brand. Cox Automotive is a subsidiary of Cox Enterprises. For more information, please visit http://press.autotrader.com. 

About Cox Automotive
Cox Automotive Inc. makes buying, selling, owning and using cars easier for everyone. The global company's 34,000-plus team members and family of brands, including Autotrader^®, Clutch Technologies, Dealer.com^®, Dealertrack^®, Kelley Blue Book^®, Manheim^®, NextGear Capital^®, VinSolutions^®, vAuto^® and Xtime^®, are passionate about helping millions of car shoppers, 40,000 auto dealer clients across five continents and many others throughout the automotive industry thrive for generations to come. Cox Automotive is a subsidiary of Cox Enterprises Inc., a privately-owned, Atlanta-based company with revenues exceeding $20 billion. coxautoinc.com

SOURCE Autotrader