In October 2011, PGA Tour golfer Matt Kuchar became Mark Steinberg’s first big client (not named Tiger Woods) since Steinberg moved from IMG to join basketball agent Jeff Schwartz and baseball agents Casey Close and Victor Menocal at Excel Sports Management.

Expect Steinberg to gain many more golfer clients as he begins to settle in with his new company.  Recently, Steinberg signed Gary Woodland, who just became a student of Butch Harmon.  Woodland was 5th in driving distance on the PGA Tour in 2011.  Harmon is going to work with Woodland to make him a better all-around golfer.

Woodland was formerly represented by Blake Smith of Hambric Sports Management.  Blake’s father, Randy Smith, used to coach Woodland, but parted ways with Woodland after he left for Mark Steinberg.  Woodland finished 24th in the Hyundai Tournament of Champions to kick off the season.

On To The Next One: Gary Woodland from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

Michael Beasley of the Minnesota Timberwolves is currently a client of Jeff Schwartz at Excel Sports Management, but that was not always the case.  Prior to hiring Schwartz, Beasley had been represented for team contract negotiations and off-court marketing deals by Joel Bell of Bell Sports, Inc.

When Beasley left Bell Sports, Inc., the company filed a lawsuit against the NBA player based on his non-payment of commissions stemming from a marketing deal with Adidas that Bell Sports believed it was owed.  Bell Sports claimed that it was owed its 20% commission, because the company supposedly negotiated most of the deal with Adidas prior to Beasley’s split.  A marketing agreement dated March 26, 2008 between Bell Sports and Beasley stipulates that Beasley agrees to pay Bell Sports 20% “pursuant to any agreement, arrangement, or association…on which negotiations substantially commenced during the term of this Agreement…”  However, the marketing agreement attached to Bell Sports’ Complaint is not signed or dated by Beasley.  Further, it is poorly drafted in general (Bell Sports could certainly use my services to draft a better marketing agreement for future use…but I digress).

Beasley lawyered up and responded to Bell Sports’ Complaint with his own Counterclaim.  In Paragraph 24 of his Counterclaim, Beasley states, “On information and belief, in addition to funneling money to Beasley’s mother, [Bell Sports, Inc.] paid money to Malone “on the side” or “under the table,” in exchange for Malone, at least attempting to manipulate, NBA prospects like Beasley, but typically far less-talented than Beasley, into signing an agency agreement with [Bell Sports, Inc.].”  Malone is Herman C. Malone a/k/a Curtis Malone, co-founder and operator of the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) DC Assault.  The team is based in the Washington D.C. area.

Count Five (of Eight) of Beasley’s Counterclaim is for Civil Conspiracy.  Beasley claims that Bell Sports violated NCAA rules, the Uniform Athlete Agents Act (UAAA), and the Sports Agent Responsibility and Trust Act of 2004 (SPARTA) based on the financial benefits it provided to Beasley while he retained student-athlete eligibility.  Beasley also named Malone as a third-party Defendant, and filed a separate Six Count Complaint against the co-founder of the AAU team.  Claims include that Malone funneled money to Beasley’s mother from Bell Sports and also violated NCAA, NBPA, UAAA, and SPARTA rules.  Paragraph 51 of the Complaint against Malone reads, “In summary, Third-Party Defendant, in concert with [Bell Sports, Inc.] corrupted every mechanism of honest guidance Beasley had in his life to assist him to pursue the best NBA agent available, which seriously deprived Beasley, both economically and otherwise.”

Michael Beasley v. Joel Bell, Inc. Exposes Dark Side Of Youth Basketball Recruiting from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

NBA owners and the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) are certainly not sitting idle.  However, I still do not feel a strong sense of urgency from either side of the bargaining table.  That could soon change, as many prominent basketball agents are making it known that they wish to decertify the NBPA.

Arn Tellem (Wasserman Media Group), Bill Duffy (BDA Sports), Mark Bartlestein (Priority Sports), Dan Fegan (Lagardère Unlimited) and Jeff Schwartz (Excel Sports) have collectively had their names printed by many media outlets over the past week.  These gentlemen have decided that they are in favor of decertification of the players’ union, which would allow their clients to file antitrust lawsuits against the NBA.  As long as the NBPA exists as a certified union of NBA players, the players forfeit their right to sue for any antitrust claims.

Journalists have been quick to point out that the five aforementioned agents collectively represent roughly thirty percent of the active players who comprise the NBPA, which happens to be the percentage of players needed to sign a petition in favor of decertification prior to all players in the union voting on the matter.  Thereafter, a simple majority would effectively decertify the NBPA.

This discussion reminds me of an article written by NBA.com columnist David Aldridge on July 4, 2011, where he said,

Players are much more unified this time around than in ’99, in no small part because [Billy] Hunter has neutered the influence of powerful player agents like Arn Tellem, Mark Bartlestein and Bill Duffy, with an executive committee comprised mainly of middle-class players like Roger Mason, Jr. and Keyon Dooling.)

I wrote a reply, respectfully disagreeing with Aldridge’s assessment.

It is naive to think that the “middle-class players” will control negotiations on the players end, especially when a big problem with the current system is the large dollars that mid-level players are receiving.  The heavy hitting agents will be involved, whether or not they represent any players on the Executive Committee.

At this point in time, it seems as though the major agents are actively involved and will not be ceding control any time soon.  Whether this is a good thing for the NBA, in general, remains to be seen.

Agents In Control Of Collective Bargaining Negotiations For NBA Players from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

Steinberg instead chose to become a member of Excel Sports Management, the ever growing basketball, baseball (with the additions of Casey Close and Victor Menocal), and now golf divisions. Tiger Woods will join Steinberg and become a new client of Excel Sports. Just prior to Steinberg making his announcement of joining up with Excel Sports, I had heard that he was also considering a move to another powerhouse – Lagardère Unlimited. Perhaps Lagardère will continue to look for someone to grow its golf division.

Steinberg’s transition to Excel Sports makes perfect sense. He became acquainted with the people at IMG when he performed in a summer internship while in law school at the University of Illinois College of Law. He started working for IMG before he even graduated law school and did not stop until May of this year. While at IMG, he became close with guys like Jeff Schwartz and the aforementioned Casey Close, who respectively lead the basketball and baseball divisions at Excel Sports. As Steinberg stated to Darren Rovell of CNBC.com, he has known Schwartz and Close for roughly 20 years. He further stated,

“We grew up in the business together and I truly felt Excel was a perfect fit. We intend to be a multi-sport agency that is an ideal destination for top clients and corporations.”

While the additions of Casey Close and Victor Menocal earlier this year already made Excel Sports a company to keep a close eye on, its expansion into golf with the addition of Mark Steinberg makes an already intriguing company even more exciting to follow. I have a feeling that Excel Sports will be receiving a lot of internship applications for quite some time.

Mark Steinberg Joins Jeff Schwartz, Casey Close At Excel Sports Management from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

Over the weekend, Marc Stein of ESPN.com reported that Williams has chosen Schwartz of Excel Sports Management as his new agent.  Excel Sports also represents big names like Blake Griffin, Paul Pierce, Lamar odom, Kemba Walker, Kevin Love, and Tyson Chandler.

On To The Next One: Deron Williams (Update) from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

Other than a couple kids from Kentucky (Josh Harrellson and DeAndre Liggins), the following is a comprehensive list of players selected along with their agents of record.  Do not pay too much attention to the teams listed, as a lot will change based on trades.  Based on the information that is listed below, BDA Sports, Octagon, and Creative Artists Agency each had 5 clients selected.  Priority Sports and ASM Sports each had 4 clients selected.  The real winner was Wasserman Media Group, with involvement in the representation of 7 player selected.  30 players were selected from the 6 agencies listed above, accounting for exactly half of the entire draft.

First Round

1. Kyrie Irving (Cleveland Cavaliers) – Jeff Wechsler (24-7 Sports Management) – This is the first client of Wechsler’s to be drafted #1 overall.  However, Wechsler is no stranger to having 1st round clients.  He represents Larry Hughes, D.J. White, Quentin Richardson, Mike Sweetney, and used to represent Penny Hardaway – all of whom were selected in the 1st round.
2. Derrick Williams (Minnesota Timberwolves) – Rob Pelinka (Landmark Sports Agency) – Pelinka has a lot of talented clients, none larger than Kobe Bryant.  However, he also represents names like Carlos Boozer, Wesley Johnson, James Harden, Derek Fisher, and Andre Iguodala.
3. Enes Kanter (Utah Jazz) – Max Ergul – Not much info on Max Ergul; however, he does represent former Milwaukee Bucks forward Ersan Ilyasova.
4. Tristan Thompson (Cleveland Cavaliers) – Leon Rose (Creative Artist Agency) – Leon Rose and CAA happen to represent another former #4 overall pick named Chris Paul.  The agency also represents LeBron James, Carmelo Anthony, and Dwyane Wade.
5. Jonas Valanciunas (Toronto Raptors) – Sarunas Broga (East Players) w/CAA – All of Broga’s clients listed on his FIBA page were born in Lithuania.
6. Jan Veseley (Washington Wizards) - Aleksandar Raskovic w/Arn Tellem – Raskovic is said to be working with Wasserman Media Group to represent Veseley in negotiations.
7. Bismack Biyombo (Charlotte Bobcats via trade) – Igor Crespo (Xpheres Basketball Management) – 6th international player taken in the 1st 7 picks of the draft.
8. Brandon Knight (Detroit Pistons) – Arn Tellem (Wasserman Media Group) – I wonder if Knight will get along with Tracy McGrady, who is also a Tellem client.
9. Kemba Walker (Charlotte Bobcats) – Jeff Schwartz (Excel Sports Management) – This is the same company that recently hired Casey Close and is quickly developing a very powerful baseball division.
10. Jimmer Fredette (Sacramento Kings via trade) - Jeff Austin (Octagon) – The crew at Octagon did a tremendous job boosting the marketability of an already marketable Fredette.  Let’s see what they can do with him once he is in the NBA.
11. Klay Thompson (Golden State Warriors) – Bill Duffy (BDA Sports) – I had heard back in march that Thompson was a priority for BDA Sports.
12. Alec Burks (Utah Jazz) – Andy Miller (ASM Sports) – Along with Andy Miller, Justin Zanik and Andrew Vye represent players at ASM Sports.
13. Markieff Morris (Phoenix Suns) – Tony Dutt (Rival Sports Group LLC) – I covered the interesting story about Markieff and his brother signing with Dutt and how a man named Jason Martin may have played a big role.
14. Marcus Morris (Houston Rockets) - Tony Dutt (Rival Sports Group LLC) – Just read the linked story above.
15. Kawhi Leonard (San Antonio Spurs via trade) – Brian Elfus (Impact Sports Management) - Late 2010, Elfus became a part of Impact Sports Management, which has a history of representing a multitude of football players.
16. Nikola Vucevic (Philadelphia 76ers) - Rade Filipovich (BDA Sports)
17. Iman Shumpert (New York Knicks) – Happy Walters (Rogue Sports) – Shumpert joins another Happy Walters client in New York - Amar’e Stoudemire.
    
18. Chris Singleton (Washington Wizards) – Bill Duffy (BDA Sports) – 3 BDA Sports clients taken in the top 18 picks of the draft.
19. Tobias Harris (Milwaukee Bucks via trade) – Henry Thomas (Creative Artists Agency)
20. Donatas Motiejunas (Houston Rockets via trade) – Herb Rudoy (Interperformances) – The agency also represents Manu Ginobili and other foreign born players in the NBA.
21. Nolan Smith (Portland Trailblazers) – Joel Bell (Bell Management International)
22. Kenneth Faried (Denver Nuggets) - Thad Foucher (Wasserman Media Group)
23. Nikola Mirotic (Chicago Bulls via trade) – Igor Crespo (Xpheres Basketball Management)
24. Reggie Jackson (Oklahoma City Thunder) - Aaron Mintz (Priority Sports)
25. MarShon Brooks (New Jersey Nets via trade) – Seth Cohen (Original Creative Representation)
26. Jordan Hamilton (Portland Trailblazers via trade) - Lee Melchionni (Wasserman Media Group)
27. JaJuan Johnson (Boston Celtics via trade) - Kevin Bradbury (BDA Sports)
28. Norris Cole (Miami Heat via trade) – Joel Bell (Bell Management International)
29. Cory Joseph (San Antonio Spurs) – Leon Rose (Creative Artists Agency)
30. Jimmy Butler (Chicago Bulls) - Happy Walters (Rogue Sports)

Second Round

1. Bojan Bogdanovic (Minnesota Timberwolves via trade) – Marc Cornstein (Pinnacle Management)
2. Justin Harper (Orlando Magic via trade) – Lance Young (Octagon)
3. Kyle Singler (Detroit Pistons) - Greg Lawrence (Wasserman Media Group)
4. Shelvin Mack (Washington Wizards) - Doug Neustadt (The Neustadt Group)
5. Tyler Honeycutt (Sacramento Kings) - Tony Dutt (Rival Sports Group LLC)
6. Jordan Williams (New Jersey Nets) - Andy Miller (ASM Sports)
7. Trey Thompkins (Los Angeles Clippers) - Arn Tellem (Wasserman Media Group)
8. Chandler Parsons (Houston Rockets) – Mark Bartelstein (Priority Sports) – Go Gators!
9. Jeremy Tyler (Charlotte Bobcats) - Makhtar Ndiaye (Wasserman Media Group)
10. Jon Leuer (Milwaukee Bucks) – Mark Bartelstein (Priority Sports)
11. Darius Morris (Los Angeles Lakers) – Brian Dyke (Shibumi Sports)
12. Davis Bertans (San Antonio Spurs via trade) - Marc Fleisher (Entersport)
    
13. Malcolm Lee (Chicago Bulls) - Brian Elfus (Impact Sports Management)
14. Charles Jenkins (Golden State Warriors) – Michael Lindeman (Excel Sports Management)
15. Josh Harrellson (New York Knicks via trade) – Unknown
16. Andrew Goudelock (Los Angeles Lakers) – Austin Walton (Walton Sports Management Group)
17. Travis Leslie (Los Angeles Clippers) - Andrew Vye (ASM Sports)
18. Keith Benson (Atlanta Hawks) – Leon Rose (Creative Artists Agency)
19. Josh Selby (Memphis Grizzlies) – Andy Miller (ASM Sports)
20. Lavoy Allen (Philadelphia 76ers) – Happy Walters (Rogue Sports)
21. Jon Diebler (Portland Trailblazers) –  Lance Young (Octagon)
22. Vernon Macklin (Detroit Piston) – Lance Young (Octagon)
23. DeAndre Liggins (Orlando Magic) - Unknown
24. Milan Macvan (Cleveland Cavaliers) - David Bauman (DB Hoops)
25. E’Twaun Moore (Boston Celtics) – Mark Bartelstein (Priority Sports)
26. Chukwudiebere Maduabum (Los Angeles Lakers) - Ugo Udezue (BDA Sports)
27. Tanguy Ngombo (Dallas Mavericks) - Bill McCandless (Court Side)
28. Ater Majok (Los Angeles Lakers) - Michael Lelchitski (SIG Sports)
29. Adam Hanga (San Antonio Spurs) - Alex Saratsis (Octagon)
30. Isaiah Thomas (Sacramento Kings) – Byron Irvin/Dan Fegan (Lagardere Unlimited)
    

2011 NBA Draft Listing Of Players Selected And Their Agents from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

• JJ Barea – Dan Fegan (Lagardere Unlimited)
• Rodrigue Beaubois – Bouna Ndiaye (Comsport)
• Corey Brewer – Happy Walters (Rogue Sports)
• Caron Butler – Raymond Brothers
• Brian Cardinal - Mark Bartelstein (Priority Sports)
• Tyson Chandler - Jeff Schwartz (Excel Sports)
• Brendan Haywood – Andy Miller (ASM Sports)
• Dominique Jones – Mike Hodges
• Jason Kidd - Jeff Schwartz (Excel Sports)
• Ian Mahinmi - Bouna Ndiaye (Comsport)
• Shawn Marion – Dan Fegan (Lagardere Unlimited)
• Dirk Nowitzki – NOBODY
• DeShawn Stevenson – Mark Bartelstein (Priority Sports)
• Peja Stojakovic – David Bauman (DB Hoops)
• Jason Terry - Dan Fegan (Lagardere Unlimited)

What stands out most is that Dirk Nowitzki is not represented by anyone.  Yesterday, Bloomberg Sports released a video explaining Nowitzki’s representation situation (embedded below).  Nowitzki does not have an agent or a business manager, but he does apparently have a friend in Germany who advises him on contracts.

Who Represents The 2010-11 Champion Dallas Mavericks from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

My absolute favorite part of the MLBTradeRumors.com post was the spreadsheet linked at the top of the page, prior to the breakdown by agency.  Not only does the spreadsheet do a great job listing the money earned in this past offseason, but it also has an up-to-date listing of Major League Baseball players along with their current representation.  In fact, it is even updated to show that Jason Heyward is no longer a client of Career Sports Entertainment (CSE), but instead a client of Excel Sports Management, where former CSE baseball agent Victor Menocal has gone to work alongside Casey Close in the development of a new baseball agency at the Excel basketball powerhouse.

Boras Corp. had a remarkable offseason, racking up roughly $444.5 million in contracts for its clients.  More than $100 million behind Boras Corp. stands Legacy Sports Group and its main agent, Greg Genske.  Third on the list is Creative Artists Agency, which will likely not be ranked as high in future years with the departure of Casey Close to Excel Sports.  Dan Lozano sits at #17 on the list, but should be near the top of next year’s rankings.

The spreadsheet discussed above is embedded below.  Enjoy.

Boras Corp. And Legacy Sports Boast Strong 2010/11 Offseasons from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

Yet, Heyward is no longer a client of the sports & entertainment company.  As reported by Mark Bowman of MLB.com, Heyward has dropped CSE as his agents and will likely sign with Casey Close, who has recently gone from being an agent at Creative Artists Agency to joining Jeff Schwartz at Excel Sports Management.  It is assumed that Heyward chose to make the switch because of Victor Menocal’s departure from CSE in April 2011.  Menocal first started at CSE in the Summer of 2005, when I was interning for the Atlanta, Georgia based company.

This is what Heyward stated to Bowman:

“Right now, my only reason for doing this was to get a fresh start. I know there are some things changing around there. Victor left, and that was totally unexpected. But some other people left also as far as in marketing and [public relations] and things like that. I figured this is only Year 2 of my career. I figured if I was going to start fresh, I need to start fresh completely and give myself a chance that I can count on to be there consistently for my whole career.”

This is a huge blow to CSE’s baseball division.  Not only do they lose a player who is destined to earn ridiculous money throughout his career, but Heyward also could have been used as a major benefit in the recruitment of future clients.  Instead, rival agents will use Heyward’s quote, above, against CSE on the recruitment trail.  Last year, Baseball America named Heyward the Rookie of the Year in the National League.  He has not yet reached arbitration eligibility; CSE will lose out on a lot in future commissions.

On To The Next One: Jason Heyward from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules

Walker joins quite a list of players represented by Schwartz at Excel, which includes Hilton Armstrong, Emeka Okafor, A.J. Price, and Charlie Villanueva.  Schwartz also just happens to represent Coach Jim Calhoun, who is the coach for the University of Connecticut Huskies.

Congratulations are due for Jeff Schwartz and the rest of the Excel Sports team, who likely just picked up a future lottery pick in Kemba Walker.

Kemba Walker Signs With Excel Sports For Representation from Sports Agent Blog - Sports Business, Sports Law, Sports Negotiations, NCAA Rules