SAN ANTONIO -- Shoes are a big part of basketball, but they're also a basic necessity that many children don’t have.

• Organization called Shoes That Fit
• Students at Pershing Elementary School received shoes

On Monday, the Spurs teamed up with the nonprofit Shoes That Fit to help students at San Antonio’s Pershing Elementary School.

Shoes That Fit is based in California, but helps organizations across the country put shoes on the feet of children in their local communities. After being fitted ahead of time, the Pershing student body filed into the gym on Monday afternoon, where the Spurs had a big surprise planned.

First, the kids found out they will be going to watch their local team play in person. Then, the new Spurs Hype Squad, the Coyote, point guard Derrick White and head coach Gregg Popovich came out to help hand out the new Nikes. This is the third year Shoes That Fit has worked with the Spurs, and Pershing is one of several schools that benefitted from the partnership.

For Popovich and White, getting new shoes is part of their job, but they still remember what it was like to dream as a kid about lacing up a new pair of trendy kicks.

“As I was walking through there, I think all of us can remember the first time we got a pair of gym shoes and thought we were the coolest beings in the world. Even at my age, I can think back to the first time I got a pair of Converse, and I just thought I could jump out of the gym, and like one of the teachers said, run fast, and all those sorts of things. It takes you back in time,” said Popovich.

Last year, Shoes That Fit was named California's nonprofit of the year, and donated shoes to more than 120,000 children in 2,300 schools across 45 states.