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The Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers square off in a highly-anticipated matchup of two of the top teams in the NBA Eastern Conference Friday night but the star of the show will be a toy zebra.

Actually, 100 toy zebras will be the stars of the show.

In honor of Rare Disease Day, the Celtics are teaming with Takeda Pharmaceuticals to raise awareness and support for the rare disease community, which accounts for about 10% of Americans.

How the two organizations plan to accomplish this is by having 100 palm-sized zebras parachute in from the rafters of TD Garden during a break in the game play.

Additionally, there will be a video broadcast on the scoreboard that will highlight the initiative as well as an information booth on the concourse for fans to learn more about rare diseases, Takeda’s ongoing work in the space and how they can support the community.  

The reason for the zebras, according to Heather Dean, SVP of Takeda’s U.S. neuroscience business unit, is to draw attention to the more than 7,000 rare diseases and millions of patients affected by these conditions.

Zebras have long symbolized the unique and complex journeys faced by rare disease patients. 

For Takeda, which has its U.S. headquarters based just outside of Boston, the confluence of the Celtics playing at home on Rare Disease Day was pure serendipity, according to Dean. 

It’s a lighthearted activation, but one that she said the Japanese drugmaker hopes will spark greater empathy and understanding among attendees.

“The idea from dropping these zebras from the rafters is to conjure up questions, get people to start looking into [rare diseases] and display more understanding,” she said. “We also want to encourage people who are in their own diagnostic odyssey to keep advocating and keep fighting for that diagnosis and then, ultimately, receive treatment.”

Raising awareness and advocating for rare disease patients is a key priority for Takeda, as the drugmaker aims to shorten the often long, frustrating diagnostic journey endured by patients and improve access to care.

Dean said that just as the Celtics are champions on the court – they are the defending NBA champions and have won an NBA-record 18 titles in total – Takeda wants to be a champion for rare disease patient populations.

To that end, Takeda has made a significant commitment to its rare disease research and development, with Dean noting that more than 60% of its pipeline is focused on rare diseases or rare subsets.

“We’re excited about our future pipeline to continue to address rare diseases,” she said. 

In addition to its clinical work, Dean said Takeda wants to use its resources to support caregivers who are impacted by providing for those living with rare diseases. 

She said the drugmaker’s ongoing efforts will not only seek to elevate the voices of patients and improve the standard of care but also work with advocacy groups to attain policy changes to widen access to care.  

As for the other professional sports teams in Boston, Dean said nothing else is on the books at this point but added that Takeda is open to exploring more collaborations with other franchises to continue amplifying their message and supporting the rare disease community.