Ben Simmons' 'Philly Pledge' Had a Successful First Week

Throughout the entire NBA hiatus so far, a handful of notable players have been looking for ways to put their money and influence to good use. We've heard about players such as Kevin Love, Zion Williamson, Giannis Antetokounmpo, and more donating money to good causes as the country deals with the pandemic that is COVID-19.

But Philadelphia 76ers All-Star guard Ben Simmons took his plans in a different direction. Instead of just announcing a donation of x-amount of dollars, Simmons helped put together 'The Philly Pledge,' which is basically a one-stop-shop for COVID-19 relief donors.

Perhaps, somebody wants to donate money, but they aren't sure where or who they should send their money to. Well, that's where 'The Philly Pledge' helps. Simmons and his team did the research. And after finding multiple verified non-profit organizations, Simmons and other notable Philly athletes have driven attention to Philabundance and PHL COVID-19 Response via 'The Philly Pledge.'

Simmons initially launched 'The Philly Pledge' last Friday, and it immediately gained recognition that afternoon as Philadelphia mayor, Jim Kenny, made it a topic during his Friday briefing. For the next few days, Simmons' fellow Philly athletes were spreading the word about the 'The Philly Pledge,' and the Sixers Managing Partner, Josh Harris, went beyond promoting and straight to making a "significant" six-figure donation.

It has been a little less than a week since the Simmons launched his latest project, but the first update in numbers is a promising one. In just six days, 'The Philly Pledge' has generated over 1,700 donations, which started at $25. While the exact dollar amount raised is not available, 'The Philly Pledge' reported it had helped raise over $350,000 so far.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him on Twitter: @JGrasso_