Building mission-driven institutions that align strategy, capital, and partnerships to create lasting community impact.

Lauren Sills is a corporate philanthropy and social responsibility executive currently serving as Head of Operations and Strategic Programs for the NBA Foundation, the League’s first-ever charitable foundation launched in 2020 to advance economic opportunity for youth ages 14–24.

As an enterprise leader, Lauren oversees board governance, operations, grantmaking, and revenue-generating programs, stewarding a $300M Foundation strategy. She leads the organization’s operating and financial infrastructure, including a $30M annual budget, career pathway and economic mobility strategies, and an end-to-end grantmaking platform. Lauren manages a $160M+ grantmaking portfolio, supporting more than 350 nonprofit partners across the U.S. and Canada, with a focus on rigorous review, measurement, and accountability at scale.

Lauren is the architect behind the Foundation’s signature initiatives, including the NBA HBCU Fellowship Program, a ten-week immersive experience that has placed 300+ HBCU students with NBA teams and League offices and achieved a 25% full-time conversion rate, and the NBA All-Star Pitch Competition, which has awarded $725K+ to emerging entrepreneurs across multiple NBA markets. She also serves as the senior relationship executive to all 30 NBA teams, translating leaguewide strategy into execution while building and leading a high-performing team.

Prior to joining the NBA, Lauren led philanthropy and community partnerships for the East Coast at Nike, Inc. and managed the firm’s largest employee volunteer program at the JPMorgan Chase Foundation. Her career in social impact began in the classroom as a high school teacher with Teach for America in Los Angeles, followed by roles organizing young people at Generation Progress and serving on Capitol Hill with U.S. Senator Tom Carper.

A proud graduate of Spelman College, Lauren holds a master’s degree in education from Loyola Marymount University. Outside of her professional work, she serves as an advisor to multiple nonprofit boards focused on advancing equity in education, sports, and youth development.