I make it a point in every initial conversation with a potential client, to tell them that I am not in the business of making promises.  When a current client asks me what the entity on the opposite side of the bargaining table will come back with as an offer, or if he will come to us with an offer at all, I always tell him that I am not a fortune teller.  I will do all the work necessary to put my clients in the best situations possible, but I cannot predict the future, nor can I ultimately guarantee success.  There are too many factors out of my control, including the objective talent of the athlete and subjective wants, needs, and thoughts of scouts, coaches, and executives, that making predictions or guarantees is downright stupid and unethical.

But agents do it…over and over again.  Because my profession is so competitive and cutthroat, agents, especially newcomers, find that they have to make promises to athletes just so that they can be considered in the running as someone who may be hired.  There are two major problems with this tactic: 1) The agent does not have the player’s best interests in mind.  By promising the world to a player when the world is not really available, the agent is not fulfilling his fiduciary duty to be honest to his client. 2) Short-sidedness.

In any Sport Marketing class, students will be taught the value of Relationship Marketing over Database Marketing.  Database Marketing is concerned with the simple one-time transaction while there is short-term interest in the consumer.  Relationship Marketing refers to a long-term and mutually beneficial arrangement wherein both the seller and consumer focus on value enhancement with the goal of providing a more satisfying exchange. This approach attempts to transcend the simple purchase-exchange process with the customer to make more meaningful and richer contact by providing a more holistic, personalized purchase, and use the consumption experience to create stronger ties.  It is about personal, long-term relationships.

How do those marketing terms apply?  While there is not technically a buyer and seller in the principal/agent relationship between a sports agent and an athlete, upon the agent’s recruitment of an athlete, it really does seem like the agent is selling his product (services) to the athlete (eventual buyer).  Many agents do not think long-term and will do whatever is necessary (including making promises) in order to get that one big client.  If that agent happens to follow through on those promises (often by chance), then congratulations to him.  If he doesn’t, that short-sidedness should lead him right out of the industry.  If it doesn’t, then the competition is losing out on an opportunity to hold something against another agent in the future recruitment of athletes.

Instead of that approach, agents should focus on the relationship building, which means that false promises and short-sidedness must be thrown out of the window.  With the ultimate concern being the well-being of the player and the personal relationship created, agents would focus on creating value to the player instead of primarily value to himself.

I like this particular paragraph by Abbott:

Anyone who claims to know now what will happen then is lying. An honest agent will promise to try. An honest agent will show you what they have done in the past. But an honest agent will not promise ideal results, because that’s impossible.

Abstract: The Sports Agent Responsibility and Trust Act of 2004 (SPARTA) and the Uniform Athlete Agents Act (UAAA) have helped protect student-athletes and educational institutions against the harmful acts of unscrupulous sports agents. Statutory regulations have not adequately enforced agents’ duties to all athletes. Furthermore, while aspects of agency law, such as the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act, player association regulations, and various Bar Association rules have helped fill some of the gaps, there remains a need for increased supervision over the sports agent profession. This article argues that student-athletes should have a statutory right to enforce the duties of sports agents and that all sports agents should have to be licensed under a federal registration system. In addition, it describes the need for a self-regulatory commission of sports agents to help weed out the unscrupulous agents who fail to fulfill their duties in the representation and solicitation of any athlete.

Click here for the full article and be sure to leave your comments below.

Sports agents have to comply with many different regulations.  There are state statutes, a federal statute (SPARTA), players’ association regulations, and NCAA regulations.  There is not an overwhelming amount of information pushed towards incoming agents to advise them about all of the necessary rules and certifications.  The easiest rules to violate without knowing it concerns the contacting of student-athletes.  The NCAA and its member institutions (colleges) oftentimes do little to help guide agents.  They all set up basic compliance websites, but who actually bookmarks those and visits them on a regular basis?

The University of Central Florida (UCF) is an exception from the norm.  Not too long ago, I received mail (yes, it still exists separate from email) from Lisa K. Danner, UCF’s Assistant Athletics Director for Compliance.  While my heart skipped a beat when I first saw who the mail was from, I was happy to find out that I had not violated any rules and that Ms. Danner was simply sending a message about the proper way to register with her school.  A school actually taking a preventative measure instead of a reactionary stance…imagine that.  This is how the first two paragraphs of Ms. Danner’s message reads:

Institutional control of athletics is a fundamental requirement of NCAA legislation.  Specifically, the NCAA Constitution provides that each institution monitor its program to insure compliance with NCAA rules and regulations.

The University of Central Florida (UCF) requests that all athlete agents who are interested in representing its student-athletes provide a copy of their State of Florida agent license, along with copies of professional league players’ association applications for those associations in which they are members to Lisa K. Danner, Assistant Athletics Director for Compliance.

The most important line of the letter: “UCF does this to insure agents are in compliance with the state statute.”  Well, I for one, appreciate it!  Obviously, UCF has its own interests in mind (if an agent violates the statute, it could mean unfortunate financial consequences for UCF), but it is nice to know that at least on the surface, UCF seems to also be concerned about our well-being.

Any agent who wishes to contact a student-athlete at UCF must register by filling out this application:

UCF offers the letter and the registration form on its compliance website, and also provides some other great information, including a Football Agent Calendar, Baseball Agent Calendar, NCAA Rules Concerning Agents, and Florida Statues Regarding Athlete Agents.

More schools need to follow UCF’s lead and take a proactive stance in registering athlete agents with their compliance offices.

As a graduate of the University of Florida and current third year law student at UF’s Levin College of Law, I have heard quite a bit about Tank Black.  In fact, he was a topic of discussion in my Sports Law Seminar class this semester.  In my field of work, he is most known for stealing money from clients and illegally paying money to college players to induce them to sign with his company.  What I did not know was that he was also accused of money-laundering and securities fraud.  Quite a list for someone who was representing 1st round draft picks in the NFL.

So how did this all happen?  Pick up Tanked! The Tank Black Story.  The book was written by Tank Black, so be sure to expect a very biased opinion of what went down prior to his booking.  There is also quite a bit of gloating, but if you can get past all of that, the book is a great read.  It opens up a world of information that had been locked up behind bars with Mr. Black since July 2000, when he was handcuffed in the back of a police car.

The first half of the book is dedicated to his days growing up as a short black kid from eastern Tennessee.  It talks about his athleticism and his home life where he would understand the business of selling moonshine to survive.  When professional football did not work out for him, Tank picked up coaching, and eventually became a big time assistant coach at the University of South Carolina.  The second half of the book is where I thought the story really picked up.  He was very open about discussing relationships with his clients after he had become a sports agent.  There are interesting pieces about Andre “Bad Moon” Rison, Sterling Sharpe, Vince Carter (and his controlling mother), Rae Carruth, and much more.  And then there is the sad story of Cash 4 Titles, where Tank really screwed up a lot of his athletes’ investments.

I made a note to come back to page 219 (total of 317 pages) when I was going to prepare this post.  On that page, Tank is very honest about his foray into going to strip clubs with his clients.  But there was one particular line on that page that wrapped up the entire book.  Tank wrote, “If you put yourself into life’s forbidden fast lane shit will happen.”  How true is that?

Another page that I marked was page 262.  This one I will open up for discussion.  Tank wrote, “One fact that will always be true, almost all agents give and loan players things of value because that is the nature of the business.  Any top agent who claims to never have given a player or loaned a player something is simply not being honest.”  He wrote that in reference to giving/loaning something to college players, which is illegal and against NCAA rules.  Is he right?

There are few names of sports agents that someone not familiar with the sports agent industry will recognize.  Among them are the fictional Jerry McGuire, Drew Rosenhaus, Scott Boras, and Tank Black.  Do yourself a favor and pick up a copy of Tanked! The Tank Black Story.  If you have never heard of him, it is a must that you learn up real quick.  If you think you already know the story behind his problems, you owe it to yourself to hear it from his side.

I wish all of you a very Happy Thanksgiving!

It makes sense that major West Coast agencies continue to grow.  Creative Artists Agency was a player in the entertainment world well before it started buying out the largest sports agents/agencies.  It figured that its existing model and connections could bring in more revenue than those entities had been receiving in the past.  It seems to be doing quite well with that business plan.  Another company with broad entertainment connections for its clients is Wasserman Media Group.  I don’t know when agent Arn Tellem finds time to sleep, with his enormous list of clients in professional basketball and football.  He probably receives over one-hundred calls per day from GMs, reporters, and clients, and still finds time to go on the recruiting trail and find new business.  He also keeps his current clients happy, and seems to have a strong connection to the entertainment world through his wife, Nancy Tellem.  Nancy is the President of CBS and is in charge of all of its television programming.

Quite the power couple, and it definitely benefits Arn’s clients.  Recently, Pau Gasol made an appearance on CSI: Miami.  Last year, Gasol and Jordan Farmar appeared on NUMB3RS.  Both shows are on CBS, both players are clients of Arn Tellem and WMG.  Gasol and Farmar are not the biggest names in the game of basketball, but both of them are playing in Los Angeles, so it is natural for them to want a piece of the limelight.

Want to be a MAJOR player in this industry?  Better start cultivating those connections in the entertainment industry, as well.

There is often the misconception that an agent simply negotiates contracts and that is it. It seems that Beasley had apparently felt similarly, being that he had fired his previous agent shortly following signing with the Heat. He then stated publicly that he would only hire a new agent when his rookie contract expired. Now, he will certainly see that an agent like Schwartz and an organization like Excel Sports Management will function as much more than just a contractual advisor.

With Beasley’s well publicized turmoil this off-season, a well rounded agency like Excel to assist in getting his career back on track from both an on and off the court perspective is essential. They will likely immediately launch an extensive public relations re-branding effort to repair Beasley’s image and attempt to open up some doors from a marketing and endorsements point of view.

The fact of the matter is that Beasley is an immensely talented player and has huge potential. We can only wish Beasley the best in this upcoming season as the rigors of an NBA season and intense scrutiny that follow a 20 year old, second overall draft pick are obviously intense. But now, with the help of an experienced agent and organization helping to guide this player’s career, he surely will be better positioned to realize that potential.

David Carr knows the peak of the agent business. The former NFL number one overall draft pick from 2002 had almost every agent seeking his business when he came out of Fresno State. He has stuck with one agent his entire career (Mike Sullivan), but also hired a business manager. Carr was able to pick almost any agent he wanted, so his perspective on what went in to choosing an agent should definitely be of concern to our profession. Carr was gracious enough to share some time with us and give his insight into the agent business from the view of a player.

Richard Kimsey: How did you pick an agent coming into the NFL?

David Carr: I picked an agent coming out of school just based on recommendations of my peers, guys who were already in the league, guys who had been there for a while. I guess overall it was just how I felt about them, and not even every agent, but just a few guys. I think I ended up interviewing two or three guys and went from there.

Kimsey: About how many agents were after you and how did that affect the process?

Carr: A lot. I think that everyone who was an agent called me. I guess it’s the same with everybody. You got to just weed them out based on their experience. I was fortunate enough to be in a position where I was going to be a high round draft pick and it was really only two or three guys that I was interested in so that helped a lot.

Kimsey: What kind of tactics did they use to recruit you?

Carr: Everything, they used everything. Guys showed up at my school, they showed up at my house, my apartment, they tried to talk to my wife when she was at work. Called my parents, showed up at my parents house, everything.

Kimsey: How did a personal relationship build with the agent you chose?

Carr: Really with my agent, he did the contract. I also hired a business manager to handle the rest of the stuff, but I have a good relationship with my agent Mike Sullivan. We work together, but a lot of the business stuff that I do, I have a guy that takes care of that.

Kimsey: How did they prepare you for the draft and your first contract?

Carr: For the draft he was really helpful and just with the experience of him working with other guys. His first contract was lights out, he did a great job and that’s really the main reason why I choose him because he did the best contracts in the NFL. That was the main reason I got him and as far as preparation I had guys in that position, that was a big deal for me, because I wanted to make sure that the agent that I did sign with had anything to help him.

Kimsey: What’s the most important thing an agent can do to get a player to sign with them and to keep the player happy in the future?

Carr: Not necessarily doing anything like coming to my doorstep, that probably turns us off more than anything else, doing things that kind of bug us. If I hear about a good agent I’m going to test him out and talk to different players to see what the agent has done for them.

Basketball

• Worldwide Wes: A name I have not heard in quite some time [Surprise! William Wesley, aka Worldwide Wes, is at the Center of a Recruiting/Sneaker Controversy].
• Did you know that it’s run by a major Coach Agent? [Warren LeGarie: The Man Behind Vegas Summer League]
• I love that Tellem always makes time for this [NBA Stars to Play for Peace at Youth Clinic].

Baseball

• Thoughts? I don’t like the idea [Time to End the Draft System?].

Football

• Hopefully this is not what the UFL is looking forward to a few years down the line [AFL heading for bankruptcy?].

Sports Business

• Fantasy Sports 2.0 [FanDuel turns fantasy sports betting into a social game].
• After reading this article, all I could think about is how much Chinese companies like Houston Rockets players.  Will that change if Yao doesn’t return? [The Future Of Endorsements]

Sports Agents

• “The jockey agent is more like a theatrical agent.” [Lodi roots key to top jockey agent Mullica's success]

Contract Negotiation

• It still boggles my mind that the NFLPA does not complain THAT MUCH about the Franchise Tag [Quirky Sports Contracts].

Riddell, a current Rugby League player and Spriggs, a former AFL footballer took on the Australian Tax Office (ATO) arguing that the money that athletes pay to agents for their services should be tax deductible.

Riddell employed the services of SFX Management Group for his 2005-2007 contract, paying a 7% fee on his performance contract and 20% on his media and other contracts. Spriggs hired Connors Sports Management paying 3% of his performance contract and 20% of his other contracts.

In basic terms, under current taxation law, cost incurred by the payee in generating assessable income can be claimed as deductions on his/her tax paid. Riddell and Spriggs argued that their cases should apply due to employing a sports agent to handle their contract negotiation in regards to playing, media and sponsorship.

The conclusion was made that these costs were related to the players gaining assessable income and therefore should be able to be claimed as a deduction on their tax.

I am unsure of other countries’ tax laws, but this makes perfect sense. In other professions, if you undertake expenses directly related to the income you earn then you can claim these back. If a company hires a consultant to advise them on certain business decision,s that expense is tax deductible, so why should this be different?

So what are the implications for Athletes and Agents? Well, athletes will now have a few extra dollars in their pockets, resulting in a better lifestyle for them. As for Agents, it could be a selling point as their cut being justifiable. Not to mention, it may convince some players without an agent to start looking for one.

More recently, Anquan Boldin dropped Drew Rosenhaus for Tom Condon and Creative Artists Agency (CAA).  And yesterday, Cardinals GM Rod Graves expressed his excitement to work with Boldin’s new agents. 

Asked if there would be enough money under the salary cap to sign Boldin this year, Graves said, “It will have some challenges. There’s certainly cause for some give and take and creativity on both sides, but Tom’s been noted for that. Again, I just look forward to sitting with him and we’ll find out where we are at that point.”

I never saw a quote like that from Graves when Rosenhaus was on the other side of the negotiation table.

It seems as though GMs and other team personnel definitely play favorites when it comes to sports agents.  While Graves and others might place Condon over Rosenhaus, does it necessarily mean anything?  As long as the agent gets his client the best deal possible, quotes in an article don’t mean a thing to me.