The Business of Sports Send-Off

Hey everybody!

This will be the final post for "The Business of Sport" blog. It will go back to being my "Bay State of Mind" blog for the immediate future. I am currently in the process of building my own website, that will among other things act as a blog. I will detail the opening of the site on here though. My hope is that this blog showed someone something that they had never seen, would have never seen, or found interesting.

I wish you all the best, whether you are in sports or not. Thanks for reading :)

An update on my continued pursuit of the sports world: I will be completing an internship with the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission in the spring, while waiting for responses from Graduate School and applying for jobs.

-Steve

Big Markets vs. Small Markets

I was lucky enough to attend the Cavaliers vs. Heat game on Thursday night. As tempted as I am to debate the actual game or the implications of it on Cleveland Basketball, I am going to go in a different direction with this one. Namely, the advantage of big markets over small markets in sports.

Chris Bosh, Dwayne Wade, and LeBron James uniting in Miami was undoubtedly the biggest sports story of the summer, but these situations almost never happen in small markets. The closest team to ever build a dynasty in a small market is the San Antonio Spurs with Duncan, Robinson, Ginobili, and Parker in the span of a decade. Markets such as Boston, New York, Chicago, Los Angelese, Miami, Dallas, etc. have teams and fan bases that expect to contend for championships every year, and they almost always have the talent to do it. This is why the season the Dallas Cowboys are having this year is such a big story.

Growing up in a big market city, I have definitely been spoiled in terms of being a fan. The Red Sox, Celtics, and Patriots have had tremendous success the past decade, and one of them does not make the playoffs, it becomes a big story. So what can small markets do to have this success? It is usually through free agency that these teams lose their superstars, ie. LeBron James going to Miami. And to a certain extent, how can you blame him? The only major advantages Cleveland had in comparison to Miami were a better fan base, and the ability to offer more money.

Some questions for thought:

1) Should teams in smaller markets be given financial bonuses because of their disadvantages?

2) What are some things that can be done to have players stay in smaller markets?

3) Should teams study success stories like the San Antonio Spurs, Minnesota Twins, Green Bay Packers, and copy what they are doing?

NBA Videos

Hey everyone,

As previous posts have shown, I am a sucker for funny YouTube videos done by teams and players. (By the way: Adidas did acknowledge the auto-tuned version of the ad I posted recently!). I wanted to highlight some really good ones done recently.

1) Kevin Love - Awkward Handshake Reflection: This one is for pure brand entertainment, and fan enjoyment. A great video with great cooperation by the whole organization. Video here. Props to the NBA tweeting this and putting it on Facebook.

2) Kevin Love - Coats: Another great video from Love, who is turning into a huge fan favorite around the league and is a great asset for the Timberwolves brand. This is also a unique way to promote the Coat Drive in their Community Relations Department. Video here.

3) Dallas Mavericks - Power Parody: The Dallas Mavericks continue to impress me with their own YouTube channel, and the videos that they post. This is a light hearted video that parodies Kanye West's music video for "Power". Video here.

Till Next Time!

NHL Online Content

The NHL continues to impress me with its integration of online content and media. Online game viewing, philanthropic tweeting, and new downloadable content make the NHL the league that is taking risks and finding new and interesting ways to use the Internet to connect with its fans. I wanted to highlight two recent examples by the Dallas Stars and the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Dallas Stars: The Dallas Stars made their media guide, usually a sought after, but rarely mass released item, available for download in the Apple Store for ITouch, IPhone, and the IPAD. Here is the link. The "App" is downloadable for free, and offers great high resolution photos and detailed information. I think this is a tremendous idea to bring buzz to an underused item. The only change I would make is not advertise it as an "app" because that makes it sound interactive, where really it is an online publication.

Pittsburgh Penguins: The Penguins have begun releasing their Ice Time program an hour before each game begins. The program is then available from then on under the website link. Here is the website for the programs. Releasing the program right before game time allows fans watching the game at home to receive the information in the program, and more importantly for the team, the advertisements from sponsors, then allowing the team to charge more for program ads. I think this is a genius idea, and would love for more teams to jump on board.

Till next time!

How to work in Sports

Hey everybody,

With my graduation and entrance into the job market, I thought it would be beneficial to post some stuff that I do in preparation to enter the sports industry. While there are some essentials such as Networking, Internships, and having a passion for sports, these are some things that I find interesting and helpful to me. Hopefully, you may find them interesting as well, and please comment on the bottom with what you are doing!

A) Read

I don't specifically mean books with this, and in fact I am behind on my personal reading currently. This can be blogs, websites, etc. that I check into from time to time and learn interesting content from. Sports is so progressive that it's important to stay on top of what is going on. Here are some sites that I look at:

1) http://www.thebusinessofsports.com - Russell Scibetti, Senior CRM/Database Marketing Manager for the New York Jets, began a website called the Business of Sports {dot} com. The website has turned out to be extremely successful blog that has lots of viewers and networking events throughout the year. They also have a cool feature where they highlight different "free agents" in the sports world and try to help them get a job. The website is categorized, which makes it easy to find articles in your interest area.

2) http://www.partnershipactivation.com/ - I found this site through the previous site, and specifically through the categorized sites. Partnership Activation is an area I would like to go into, and therefore having a site that constantly lists new and interesting activation ideas is great. They even release a monthly newsletter, which I highlighted in a previous post.

3) Forbes - SportzMoney - This section of Forbes (which in itself is a great resource for business) breaks down a lot of the financial details in Sports. For instance, a current article breaks down the most overpaid NBA players. They also have cool feature items such as the PowerPoint that the New York Knicks showed to LeBron James during their pursuit of him this summer.

4) Twitter - While you have to be following the right people, the amount of link sharing on Twitter is incredible, and it often will lead you to something interesting or awesome. People I recommend - New York Times Technology Section, Forbes, Russell Scibetti, Bill Simmons.

B) Computer Skills

While some of the projects assigned in classes are mostly pointless, building a great PowerPoint is not. If the project makes you learn one more computer skill, then it was not a waste. PowerPoint, PhotoShop, Excel, Word, and other computer programs are used all the time, and need to be mastered. I currently am learning the basics of PhotoShop because I have seen its importance in Marketing and Partnership Activation. If I can present that proficiency in an interview, I will be that much more attractive.

C) Community Service

I definitely love doing community service, which is why I am involved in it. It can however, be a great thing in sports. Community Relations is an intriguing area right now, and they constantly ask other members of staff to help with their volunteering programs. Being able to show a consistent history of community work will look great to a future employer.



Now I understand this is all hypothetical, because I am not employed full-time in sports yet, but these are things that I truly believe will make a difference in during an interview. Be sure to share what you are doing to help yourself get a job!

Partnership Activation Newsletter Highlights

I always try to learn more about the areas that I hope to go into such as Marketing and Partnership Activation. A great website that I follow is http://www.partnershipactivation.com/. The man who runs it studies all team, league, and sport properties and reports on interesting activation techniques. Partnership Activation involves working with corporate partners and creating the brand strategy that the two will share, and then executing all of the events, promotions, and techniques promised to the partner in the contract. This website writes a monthly newsletter that highlights many different techniques. Here are some highlights from the latest issue:

Dallas Mavericks: The Mavs created their own YouTube channel where they post parodies, jumbotron videos, and funny videos that the team uses. Users can watch these videos, share them, and comment on them. Some of the videos are really off the wall, and funny to watch, and most have been aired during the games. I think this is a great idea by the Mavs and somewhat relates to the Adidas video I recently posted. Embracing a silly personality can be a relatable, effective way to reach fans.

New Jersey Devils: When the Devils opened their new arena in 2007, the team created a large hockey puck that they asked the fans to sign from that game. The puck is now displayed prominently in the arena, thanking fans for their support. These types of promotions are simple to do, only done once, but can create a great display for teams.

Nike: Nike continues to create great advertisements, (I will be addressing the LeBron Nike Ad soon), with their Write the Future videoboard. Whenever someone does something special, a news team sends a fake news headline for the next day's paper to a video board in the area, therefore estimating the "ripple effect" of the moment. This can be a great promotion for big time games, such as Championship match-ups. Here is the video

Next article: NHL Online Content

Unintended screen time for Adidas

Adidas recently came out with their "Fast Don't Lie" commercials featuring Dwight Howard and Derrick Rose. Although there are a couple of different ads, the main ones features a rich man playing basketball with Rose and Howard, while reiterating that "Fast Don't Lie". I am personally not a huge fan of the ads, but they are pretty effective with how off the wall and humorous they are.

I was looking up a YouTube subscription that I follow this morning, and found this ad has been "Songified". The group, the Gregory Brothers, take different TV shows, online clips, etc. and auto-tune them to create funny mash ups of different videos. Their most recent video is the "Fast Don't Lie" commericials. Here is the video.

The video is very funny, and I hope Adidas highlights it somehow. While the video is careful not to use the Adidas logo, it could still be a great way for Adidas to prove they are not a stuffy corporation, and that they want to interact with fans. It could even spark a contest of the best parody video for the "Fast Don't Lie" commercials. Companies that remain fun and reachable will have great responses from their fan base.

Improvements from Reebok, New Balance, and Under Armour

While Nike is, and will be the king of the athletic shoe market for some time, I have been impressed with recent advertisements from Reebok, New Balance, and Under Armour. Nike currently holds 47% of the footwear market for athletic apparel, but hopefully these ads push Nike to become more innovative with its ads.

New Balance:

Video

This might be my favorite ad of the three. The projection mapping technique used in the video allows the shoe to take on many different lights, colors, and animations. The video catches the eye because of the customization and fun atmosphere of the video. If New Balance is moving towards a more customizable, yet still athletically effective direction, they could have a very successful campaign.

Reebok:

Video

Reebok was extremely fortunate to get John Wall on its basketball side, considering they had just had Allen Iverson for quite some time. Considering how electric Wall has been thus far, it could be an excellent pick up for them. I am choosing to focus on the basketball side of Reebok because it has had a much more difficult time competing in the basketball market. With the introduction of the ZigTech shoes, which have been extremely successful thanks to endorsements by Peyton Manning, Chad Ochocinco, and Sidney Crosby, Reebok put together some great ads for them. The advertisements has a tremendous energy to it, which matches the high activity level that the shoe will use. Side Note: I love the quick appearance by Allen Iverson in the commercial, see if you can find it!

Under Armour:

Video

Under Armour finally launches into the basketball shoes market with some impressive looking shoes. The company secured Brandon Jennings to be its commercial athlete, which is a decent start for them. Jennings is not quite a superstar but a consistently exciting player. The commercial is an effective teaser ad which created a buzz around the shoes. Side Note: It seems like the ad uses the exact same music as Inception did.

Some very cool stuff, and hopefully there will be more to come. Let's go Nike, pick it up!

Spurs vs. Cavs End of game presentation

While this will be a quick post, I was really impressed by the music director for the San Antonio Spurs last night. I was watching the Cavs face the Spurs, and the Spurs were winning handily. Because I was watching on TV, I hadn't really been able to follow what the Spurs were doing in terms of game presentation.

Surprisingly and impressively, many of the fans stuck around to the end of the game, despite the 24 point lead the Spurs had. As the time was running towards zero, the song "All I do is win" started playing, which in itself was not surprising. It was the timing that was incredible. The lyric, "Everybody's hands go up"... occurred right as 0.0 happened, then a short pause, and all of the fans had their hands up. When the next lyric, "And they stay there!" occurred everyone within the camera view was dancing to the song. These small game presentation moves can make a huge difference, so well done to the Spurs.

Citi Field Review

For my weekly facility review, I decided to do the other New York Stadium, Citi Field. Here is the virtual slideshow.

Positives: First and foremost, I love the wider walkways. This allows for better fan traffic around concession stands, seating, and restrooms as well as decrease waiting times. The expanded fan fest area should give fans a lot to do during some of the below average baseball they have been seeing, as well as entertain younger kids during the game. Also, and this is a small but brilliant touch. The seats are both wider, and angled toward the infield so that there is no neck turning at any point during the game. Finally, they give access to all people to all restaurants and clubs during the game.

Negatives: With the access to the restaurants and clubs, the team will have to significantly increase season ticket holder benefits considering exclusivity is usually a big part of the reason to have the tickets. Secondly, 45,000 people could be considered a big number, especially with how wide the park is.

Overall, it looks like a great park, and should be one of the bright spots in the upcoming Mets season.

Philanthropic Tweeting

One thing, other than social media in general, that I have been extremely interested in recently has been how philanthropy is used with tweeting. Recently, the LA Kings had a really cool co-promotion with the Colorado Avalanche. Here is the website where I found it. By the way, this is a great website that I found recently to keep up to date with some cool business trends.

The general idea was that the Kings challenged the Avalanche fans to try to tweet more than the Kings fans. In every tweet, the fan had to have either a #Kings or #Avs hash tag. With every #Kings tweet, the Los Angeles Children's Hospital donated $1 to cancer cure research. During the game, the #Kings had 29, 374 tweets, therefore donating $30,000! Considering the only costs associated with this promotion is the creation of promotional materials, this may be one of the best promotions I have come across.

From a brand standpoint, not only does the philanthropic message look great, the Kings added 1,00 follower during the game! The only change I would make if this event happened again, would be to challenge the other team to also find a donating partner. That way both cities would benefit in facing the cost.

Either way, great idea by the LA Kings, and I hope to see teams improve this idea.

Forbes Article Response

Forbes, one of my favorite websites for business news, recently published an article discussing changes they would make to the National Football League. The author, John Tamny, effectively argues how the league could improve its already solid parody, readjust the draft selection, promote competition, and get rid of revenue sharing. If you would like to read the article before reading my itemized response, click here.

1) Tamny argues that because the NFL is a private league, it should use its power to fire owners who have shown a record of not competing. I have been in favor of a competition committee for a long time, and I really support this idea. The Detroit Lions, San Francisco 49ers, and Jacksonville Jaguars could have been spared the past decade for their fans. The owners would have to be proactive, aware of their fans' requirements, and ready for anything. This would force the teams to intensely compete each other to create competitive rosters, and building the brand.

2) Personally, I have no problem with revenue sharing in the NFL. While it does allow free riders, if the previous step was followed, the assumption would be that the teams would all be somewhat competitive and there would be less free riders in the system, therefore eliminating the problem.

3) Finally, Tamny proposes that the NFL Draft adopt a lottery style draft system, but instead of having the worst team have the best chance at getting the first pick, have the best non-playoff team get the best chance for the pick. This would provide an incentive for teams to compete the entire league, and the situation of a team giving up would not be a smart option because the team would not get the exciting young prospect for their fan base.

Thanks for reading and comments are always welcome!

Yankee Stadium

In my usually weekly series of reviewing a stadium/arena/or ballpark, I decided this week to review possibly the biggest and most revered stadium just recently built, Yankee Stadium. While there was some resistance to building the new one because of the history of the old park, the facility was incredibly outdated, and was becoming dangerous with age.

The new Yankee Stadium definitely acknowledges the history of the New York Yankees, making the exterior look like the original Yankee Stadium. It also kept the exact same dimensions, the arches in left field, monument park, and practically looks exactly the same on the field as the old park.

Internally, the stadium has a full restaurant, steak house, museum, many conference rooms, lounges, and more to entertain fans year-round. The park, like Cowboys Stadium, hosts a number of different events throughout the year, and will be hosting the Army - Navy game in two weeks. Its versatility makes it an attractive venue for many different sporting contests, concerts, and other events.

An unusual part of the stadium is the wind factor. A construction and design flaw created a natural wind tunnel out to right field, which creates a tremendous number of home runs in the stadium. Yankee Stadium led the league the past two seasons in home runs, and it will be interesting to see if the contractors do anything about the wind tunnel.

NBA Technical Fouls

The 2010 NBA Finals was an amazing series between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics. It showcased some incredible talent, and many interesting personalities. It came down to seven hard fought games until the Lakers were able to come away with the series. Now, as a Boston fan, I expected the worst feeling about that series was going to be that the Celtics lost, but it was not. It was about the referees. Not just against Boston, but how they consistently watered down the series with their ridiculous touch and technical fouls which kept the best talent on the benches. Bleacher report wrote a great article about the horrible officiating in the Finals.

Going into the off-season, the biggest story in the sport was where LeBron James and the other big name free agents were going to land, and rightfully so. I was also watching how the league was going to respond to the horrible officiating in their sport's biggest stage. After the Tim Donaghy situation, and the miserable referee holdout that the league experienced, it did not need any more negative press about their officiating, so I expected some rule changes, and possibly a change in many of their staff.

Unfortunately, the league chose to do the worst possible thing, and give more power to the officials. Not different officials, the very same ones who almost ruined the Finals. Referees were instructed to call fouls on any "Overly emotional physical gesture, including a fist pump". These kinds of gestures happen on almost every play, and now the referees are instructed to take it away. If the officials actually follow this, the game will turn into a monotonous contest, where players never look like they care as they shoot three pointers during the games.

Here is an example of this year's ridiculousness: Grant Hill and Reggie Evans were both involved in a good, hard play. Grant Hill got up, gave Reggie a slap on the behind, Reggie did the same in return, and then clearly as a joke, Grant did it back. What did the referees do? Eject them both from the game!

If the league does not act quickly about these referees and the clearly miserable rules in place regarding their power, this is going to be a huge problem. Hopefully, in the upcoming Collective Bargaining Agreement, this will be resolved.

Next article: NFL Lockout

Hey everybody,

Now that I am intensely looking at which teams have job openings, I figured it would be fun to create a top 5 list for the three majors sports that, AS A FAN, I would love to work for. The teams are on the list if they are my hometown team, have a great stadium/arena, have a cool brand, a player I would love to market, or I have enjoyed working for them. I will put a * next to the team if I have worked for them previously, and a # for my hometown teams.

National Basketball Association:

Boston Celtics*#
Cleveland Cavaliers*
Orlando Magic
New Orleans Hornets
Chicago Bulls

National Football League:

New England Patriots#
San Diego Chargers
Philadelphia Eagles
Carolina Panthers
Baltimore Ravens

Major League Baseball:

Boston Red Sox#
Chicago Cubs
Los Angeles Angels
St. Louis Cardinals
San Francisco Giants

Next Post: NBA Technical Fouls

NFL In-Game Experience

Besides the obvious issue of a possible work stoppage for the NFL, the league's biggest issue is how to improve the in-game experience for fans. The distance between fans and field is significantly farther in football than in indoor sports, like basketball. While Baseball has issues as well, the historical tradition has allowed the MLB to progress slower than the NFL. So what is the real issue here?

NFL pre-game is the best in business, both on television, and the tailgating before the game. Once the game begins however, fans are forced to sit through timeouts, huddles, challenges, and penalty calls. Limitations from weather, stadium size, and noise make it difficult to use the same in-game tactics as the NBA or the NHL. There is also the issue of casual fans being paired with intense fans. Intense fans usually do not mind the pauses in the game because they remain interested watching coaching decisions, talking to fellow fans, and analyzing the game in front of them. The casual fan is the one looking for constant entertainment, especially with how expensive NFL games are. Here are some possible solutions for the NFL:

1) Use the FanVision product. Although to an extent, owners do not want fans looking down, it is probably already happening with the continued popularity of smart phones, and the significant down time during games. If what is causing the fan to look down is still NFL related, is it really that bad? FanVision (outlined in an earlier post) allows teams to get further replays and stats. Smarter fans-- with the intelligence being football related, are more likely to consistently attend the games if they feel that they can follow and interact with the game.

2) Have the big screens stream other live games during timeouts. Fans get amped when the announcer informs them that the rival team is losing, so why not show video from it? Teams could have fans text in during the game to vote for which game they watch during certain timeouts. This would be especially effective during playoff elimination/ranking scenarios if the team that needs to lose is playing at the same time. The problem with this solution would be the lack of advertising time this would create, and the multiple channel rights that would need to be acquired.

3) Employ in game fan experience teams. These would somewhat rival the in-game crews that work for NBA and NHL teams. These people would roam the crowds with contests, prizes, and other giveaways. The teams would target certain sections during each time stoppage, allowing them to address less people, making it more effective.

Next post: Teams to Work for.

Cowboys Stadium Review

As with any stadium review I do, I always encourage to watch the virtual tour beforehand or after reading the post. Cowboys Stadium, as it will be called for some time because of the difficulty the Cowboys are having finding naming rights, is a truly amazing facility that will be studied by Facility experts for years. Built with the media in mind, Cowboys Stadium is designed for exclusive access, sight lines, and beauty. With a silver color matching the Cowboys colors, the Stadium seems to shine against the bright lights and flash bulbs of cameras.

Any and all areas in the Stadium can be rented out to special events, including the Cowboys locker room, the field, and the Miller Lite club. And did I mention the scoreboard? The video board is over 25,000 square feet, weighs 600 tons, is 180 feet wide, and 72 feet tall. To give some perspective, the largest blue whale ever found was 94 feet tall, and weighed 170+ tons. It also blocked a punt. These kinds of video boards are huge players in the debate of in-stadium experience vs. HD TV at home.

Another cool feature of the Stadium is its versatility with different events. Here is a picture from when the NBA All-Star game was hosted at Cowboys Stadium.

Next article: NFL In-game experience

NFL Lockout

While there are many interesting stories currently surrounding the NFL, such as Brett Favre possibly dying on the national stage, Randy Moss being waived from the Vikings, on-field game o, handheld devices, etc., the overriding issue in the league is whether the league will lockout or not. Due to the league's financial strength, and their ability to withstand financial hardship, there are many who believe that the lockout is a done deal. The NFL is the only league that does not rely on tickets as its highest revenue source, thanks to the massive television contracts they were willing to negotiate. By the way, those contracts are still owed to the league, even if there are no games.

The Sports Business Journal announced today that the NFL has been collecting a now $900 million dollar revenue pool to use in case there is a lockout. This pool has approximately $10 million from each team that is available because the teams do not have to pay player benefits next year due to the Collective Bargaining Agreement expiring. The other money comes from $18 million owed to the league from the teams, as well as savings from the National Football League. This money will go into paying interest on facility/stadium debt still owed to be paid, as well as other lockout and maintenance costs.

The Players Association has also announced it is collecting money, but as of last update, they were only up to around $200 millon. Whatever your thoughts on the lockout may be, it is certain that both sides see it as enough of a possibility that they are accumulating these funds in preparation. As a fan, I never want to see no NFL games on every Sunday, however as a hopeful employee the lockout may provide a way in to one of the teams. After enough time without games, employees may flee to other jobs and industries, leaving the young and hungry college graduates to take the spots.

I believe the lockout will not happen, and it will be resolved in time. I just cannot see how a league this healthy can shut down its product and afford to take this massive risk. It is something that I will be watching very closely, and I will be posting any and all updates I have on this blog.

Next article: Cowboys Stadium review

Concussions: A headache for the league?

Three Sundays ago, the National Football League was forced to deal with one of its most controversial issues, players receiving concussions due to helmet to helmet hits. Now, before I delve deeper into this issue, I wanted to explain why I am blogging about this when my topic is "Business of Sport". In business, every department needs to be aware of what the on-field product is up to. This helps during business, ticket, or event planning negotiations if the employee has a real understanding of what is going on on the field in order to market that to the customer or business partner.

Back to the issue, the NFL had previously tried to deal with this issue by making helmet to helmet hits a fifteen yard unnecessary roughness penalty. However, with four really hard helmet to helmet hits during that week, it was clear that further action was necessary. The league responded by ruling that any malicious helmet to helmet hit will result in an immediate suspension. While some argue that the ruling is ridiculous, I actually like the rule a lot.

While there is legitimacy that the ruling could be dangerous at first if players are actively thinking about not hitting with the helmet, over-time, players will be conditioned to it, and eventually dangerous hits like these will decrease out of habit. Although there will still be hard hits, it was great to see a change in hits like from Brandon Meriweather in Week 6 to Week 7. Sorry about the poor quality on the second video. If everyone pays attention to the league ruling as Brandon Meriweather did, the league should become a safer place.

Next article: NFL Lockout

Michael Vick

Without having too deep of an ethical discussion, I wanted to write about Michael Vick and his journey back to stardom in the NFL. Everyone knows what Michael Vick did in terms of abusing dogs in the underground activity of dog fighting. Unlike most celebrities and star athletes however, Vick spent 21 months in prison and did not get the celebrity treatment. Vick then worked hard to get back on an NFL franchise, eventually landing with the successful and healthy Philadelphia Eagles, which was a great break for Vick. Donovan McNabb provided him with great mentorship, and is a close personal friend. Then, a strange thing happened. McNabb was traded to the division rival Redskins, which left a hole at starting quarterback. Initially taking a backseat to Kevin Kolb, Vick finally got his chance a few weeks ago to start, and performed tremendously. 291 yards passing with 3 touchdowns, and 1 rushing touchdown on the way to having a passer rating of over 100. The Sports Business Journal then brought up an interesting question. Should we consider Vick back for good, and should sponsors take chances on him again?

Back when Vick was with the Falcons in the height of his success, Vick had deals with EA Sports, Coke/Powerade, Kraft, Rawlings, Hasbro, AirTran, and Nike. The most famous Vick commercial was Nike's The Michael Vick Experience. Once the dog fighting controversy occurred however, Vick lost the entirety of his endorsements. Now that he is back on the field, his agent, Joel Segal of Lagardere Unlimited, says his on-field play is the main focus. "The calls have been coming in, but it's not something that's on the front burner for us... This is something we are taking slowly" says Joel. I was extremely happy that Vick seems to have an agent willing to take his time, and build the Vick brand back up slowly, gaining positive press for on field performances and public community appearances. If Vick continues to succeed on the field, he will certainly gain endorsements, with his exciting style of play.

A Couple quick hits:

- Ben Roethlisberger is the new Michael Vick, and Big Ben's behavior is going to be intsensely critiqued after the second rape allegation.

- Here is a great video that contains Vick being auto-tuned. He shows up around 43 seconds into the video.

I sincerely hope Vick's injury does not keep him off the field for very long, as I am becoming a fan of his again, and I look forward to seeing him play.

Next article: Cowboys Stadium Review

State of the NBA

As I mentioned in my first blog post, my dream industry is to work in is the National Basketball League. I love the fun and fast-paced environment that the league has, and in my opinion the league takes the most chances, especially when mobile marketing and social media are involved. For example, here is a graph showing the social media usage in each league:



A crucial step in working in any industry is having a solid understanding of where the industry is and where is it going? I am going to discuss the NBA's most recent offseason impacts and the new referee rules specifically.

1) NBA Offseason 2010

Although this past off-season was filled with as many quality players as there have ever been on the market at one time, the ultimate destination of LeBron James captured everyone's attention. Would he stay in Cleveland, still be the man but with a better supporting cast in Chicago, gravitate towards the bright lights of New York, hang out with Jay-Z in New Jersey or team up with Dwayne Wade in Miami? Just reading that sentence gives a snapshot of how intricate this entire process was. Almost every player, with the few exceptions (Joe Johnson and Amare Stoudemire) did not choose their new destination until after LeBron chose Miami. While I could debate the merits of LeBron leaving Cleveland for a long time in terms of short term ramifications, I want to focus on the long run changes this will cause.

Never before have players controlled an NBA offseason to this extent before. Players were open about their discussions with players and their attempts to persuade certain players to specific teams to play with them. There was even the much hyped Chris Bosh, Dwayne Wade, and LeBron James dinner that many believe sealed the deal for the eventual decision. While the NBA has always been dominated by teams with multiple stars (Celtics-Cousy, Russell; Celtics - McHale, Parish, Bird; Lakers - Johnson, Abdul-Jabbar; Spurs - Duncan, Ginobili, Parker; etc.) this is different in that many of the best players switched teams in their primes while choosing with each other and trying to create Super Teams. This concept can be traced back a few years where the 2004 Lakers brought Karl Malone and Gary Payton to team up with Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant. The team made it to the Finals but were dismantled by the Detroit Pistons and was the last year with Shaq in Los Angeles. A few years later the 2008 Celtics brought Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen to join Paul Pierce, which eventually lead to them winning a ring. Each super teams has done it a little bit better in this decade and if that improvement happens again, the Heat could shatter the Bulls all-time best record. With the NBA Lockout coming up, the control of players is a big issue. There are talks of trying to have a hard cap, which means that a lot of the current contracts would have to be rewritten and nullified to make room under the cap. Whatever happens, the control of players is definitely something to keep an eye out for.

Shorter term, I see there being a big news line this year about the new rules allowing referees to call more technical fouls on players for emotional responses during the game. While I understand that the league is trying to promote a cleaner product, this has the potential to make the game more boring to watch, the players more frustrated, and eventually, hurt their fan engagement. The draw to basketball over football and baseball is the speed of the game, and the lack of wait time between plays. If technical fouls are constantly being called, the game will slow down, and some of the game's best players will be sitting in the locker room for the crucial moments of the games. I believe this needs to be changed, and I hope it will.

Thanks for reading, next article will be about Michael Vick.

New Meadowlands Stadium

After the new Amway Arena that I reviewed last week, I wanted to switch sports and discuss a new football stadium. Being that the New Meadowlands Stadium was awarded the Super Bowl XLVIII Bid over any of the warm weather bids, I thought it would be a great starting point.

New Meadowlands Stadium is extremely unique in that it hosts two different football teams at the same time. This makes it equivalent to Basketball's Staples Center. There have been widely publicized issues between the Jets and Giants, and who should be considered the majority franchise. Regardless of fan opinion, the Giants were always known in the old stadium more prominently than the Jets because they played in the stadium before the Jets. Now, with the Stadium hosting hundreds of different events every year with different sports and teams, it seems that the Stadium belongs only to the city of New York.

Although the virtual tour is being adjusted and is currently not available on the website, I saw a video rendering of it closer to the time it opened. There were a few things that stuck out to me. One, the stadium architecture was built considering consumer flow in mind. With better parking lots, more entry gates to the stadium, wider walker lanes, and bigger in-stadium lounges, it is clear that comfort was a huge focal point. Along with the wonderful suites, and the extremely cool field level VIP Lounge, people should be able to be very comfortable in the stadium. The VIP Lounge lets the corporate visitors be right behind the players bench, and even allow for some possible interaction with players. Next, the park is clearly having difficulty finding naming rights, even representing two different team properties. The constant battle between the teams, and high price tag most likely contribute to this issue. Finally, the stadium looks great to be the first cold weather Super Bowl stadium. I have been a proponent of cold weather Super Bowls for a long time, and I believe the New Meadowlands Stadium will put on a great show.

Next article: State of the NBA

PGA and GE?

In today's corporate partnership landscape, all the leagues are competing with one another for sponsorship dollars. Currently, the Professional Golf Association (PGA) is currently negotiating a deal with GE, the international company that deals with innovation in media, electricity, and other areas. The present sponsor of the league's development league is Nationwide, but they have notified the league that they will not be renewing their deal.

The PGA is struggling right now with the decline of Tiger Woods. Although Woods is back playing tournaments, he has yet to return to his dominant form before his divorce controversy. This International deal would provide the PGA with some positive press. GE, being an extremely well-known and globally successful company, would continue its push into sports sponsorship. Their only sports sponsorship thus far has been with the Olympics. The PGA will benefit from GE's image, and GE will get an international professional sporting league with a higher income target market.

This potential bright spot for the league will hopefully come true, and GE will probably continue its push into sports. Good news is great, because the LPGA just reduced the price in hosting a tournament because of their financial trouble.

Next article: Meadowlands Stadium.

FanVision - NFL Handheld Machines

The Miami Dolphins, before this NFL season, unveiled their new FanVision product. The handheld device allows NFL fans to have further instant replay, statistics, schedules, and other information from both the game they are attending, and others that are currently going on. The idea is that fans will use this device to be further involved in the game, checking statistics, checking different camera angles on instant replays, and making educated opinions about what is going on around them.

12 Teams and 21 NCAA teams have already partnered with the technology for the 2010-2011 season. Fans would pay upwards of $250 to have the product, and it will be allowed in these 33 stadiums. Most notable among the current teams are the University of Michigan, New York Jets, and the Chicago Bears. Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks, although usually an innovator, has openly expressed his doubt on the product, saying that this product will cause the fans to look down during the game, which is a team's worst nightmare when considering signage, jumbotron ads, and the team.

I also have some doubts on the product. Being in the age of the smartphone, where so many people have constant internet and app access, how big of a niche does this product fill? Anyone with a Blackberry, Iphone, Droid or similar product can access most of what FanVision offers without any additional cost. Also, with the amount of fans that can only afford to go to one game a year, this product would be a waste of money. This product appeals to people who become bored during the downtime in Football and Baseball, and season ticket holders who can decrease the price per contest of this product.

Ultimately, I see this product failing. I see the cost being too high, and there not being enough of a niche market. I will certainly keep an eye on it however. Here is the link

Next article: A partnership between the PGA and GE??

New Amway Arena

Occasionally throughout the semester, I will be posting my reviews of the newest arenas and facilities in professional sports. With the Orlando Magic having just introduced the new Amway Arena the other night, I thought it would be a great place to start.

The old Orlando Magic Arena was unfortunately a miserable venue. Built just twenty years ago, it was known for being uncomfortable, poorly laid out, and just plain ugly. 20 years is not that old for an arena, considering the oldest arena in the NBA is currently the Oracle Arena, built in 1966. Thankfully, the Orlando Magic were able to acquire the funds to build a new arena, as well as acquire naming rights, something that Cowboys Stadium is having a lot of trouble doing. Amway Arena is the perfect example of an arena built with its fan base in mind. There is an entire fan area outside of the arena, a rooftop sky bar, an 180 feet tall LED spiral tower, and a fan plaza. This arena is built with the partying fan in mind. Amway looks like a great place for many different events, such as concerts, basketball, hockey, and arena football.

I do however, have a couple of worries about the arena. First, the brand new practice facility, which looks great, has a wall of windows so that the public can watch. While the players may enjoy having their own private facility, I can imagine a few of the players and coaches objecting to having their practices be public. Second, with all of these great bars and party areas, the security presence is going to have to be massive, especially with a roof top bar. Third, the arena, although not huge in terms of seating at 18,000+, looks a lot bigger than it is. It seems like the seats are stretched back to make room for all different types of events. While that is good for the overall arena, it seems like watching basketball would be hard from any of their nose bleed sections. Hopefully that is just how it appears in pictures.

Overall, Amway arena looks great. Definitely much improved from the previous arena. I would highly recommend the virtual tour here and check it out. For the next facility tour, I will be checking out the New Meadowlands stadium.

Player Salaries

One of the biggest frustrations people have with professional sports are the enormous player contracts that teams hand out. With all of the extremely meaningful professions out there, such as doctors, teachers, and police officers, how are athletes the ones making millions of dollars? I have heard this argument over and over again. While there is truth to it, I do not completely agree with the entire argument. Value, defined in economic terms, is defined as what people are willing to pay for. The Indianapolis Colts currently league the NFL in attendance percentage with 106.8%. Their average ticket price is currently $86.5, not including club seats. Add on at least $15 for parking, and $15 for food, and the average person is dishing out almost $120 per game. Looking again at the average attendance, only one team is below 80% attendance, the Oakland Raiders. Ticket money, for every league but the NFL, is the highest revenue source, and therefore the attending fans are the ones who end up paying for the player salaries.

However, with each of the other leagues dropping slightly in attendance, the price of professional sports is obviously getting high. Here are some possible solutions to these problems:

Rookie Contract Limits: This is being worked on in the NFL, and rightly so. The NFL has huge rookie contracts, exponentially higher than any other sport. These young players have never played at the professional level, and are therefore very likely to fail at this level. Having rookie contract limits would protect teams, and force rookies to work harder in their professional preparation.

Player Development Improvements: Every team in every sport is starting to develop their player development program more seriously than they have in the past. I still do not believe that Money Management is stressed enough because we still hear so many players ending up bankrupt.

Lower contract totals, but higher guaranteed money: One of the biggest arguments for higher player salaries is the medical expenses that the players have, especially when they retire. If the overall contract totals were lower, but the players were guaranteed more money, they could still take care of their bodies and families, but overall player salaries would go down.

Guaranteed contracts: Currently in the NFL, players can be cut whenever, regardless of what their contract status is. If teams had to spend more time evaluating players because they were held accountable, then hopefully fans would be more willing to come to games because of the more consistent competition.

As always, feedback appreciated.

Streaming Live Content

Several reports from the Sports Business Journal (would include the link, but you cannot read it without a paid membership)indicate that the National Hockey League (NHL) is prepared to launch its service of live streaming online games to the public. Called "Gamecenter", the service will be available to those outside of the team's local market. Professional teams' marketing rights are the 75 mile radius from the arena, and anywhere outside of that is a national market. The service will be blacked out to the local market, and only broadcast outside of it. The announced cost is 19.95 per month, or a single payment of $160 for the season. This product will be targeted to people living outside of their team's market, and many people are predicting the service to succeed.

What's interesting about the NHL product, and why I will be watching closely, is that the National Basketball Association (NBA)tried a similar free service where they broadcast games online. It failed miserably. Miserable ratings along with people not finding a need for it caused it to fail. The Portland Trailblazers are the only team who is still trying the service, reducing the service to a mini-plan of exciting games for those outside the market. Hopefully it works for them, but many professionals are skeptical of its success.

Links: https://gamecenter.nhl.com/nhlgc/secure/gclsignup - Official website
http://newteevee.files.wordpress.com/2008/09/gcl-screen-3.jpg - Screen shot

First Business of Sports Blog!

Hey everyone,

This is the first post for my "Business of Sport" blog. This blog is part of a project for my PR & the Internet course. You can also follow me on Facebook under Steve Thiel, and my Twitter under Steel6623. I chose the Business of Sport topic because that industry is one of my passions. I am a Sport Management major currently interning for the Cleveland Cavaliers in Marketing. I have also interned for the Boston Celtics, Cape Cod Baseball League - Orleans Firebirds, and the B-W Athletic Department. My background as a fan is growing up in the Boston area, so naturally I am a Boston sports fan through and through. However, this blog is intended to be about the industry of Sports as a whole, and not about a specific market or team. As a fan, my favorite sports are in this order: Football, Basketball, Baseball, College Football, College Basketball, Hockey, Golf. As a hopeful professional sports employee, I hope to work in basketball, football, or baseball. Hopefully this provides a solid background on me so that you as readers will understand where I am coming from. Any questions or topic requests can be either posted on my Facebook wall or tweeted to me.

Enjoy!

Upcoming topics will involve new technology, league holdouts, and new facilities.

End of the Season: Thoughts on the Celtics

With Six and a half minutes left in Game 7 of the NBA Finals, the Celtics still had it. Then I watched my team slowly give it away, with the inevitability of the loss smothering the excitement of every Celtics basket. Ray Allen's legs were done for the season, Kevin Garnett's minutes capability was surpassed, and Paul Pierce went into hero mode. I expected Kobe to hit the final shot, I expected Derek Fisher to hit the final shot, and I expected Pau Gasol to hit the final shot. But Ron Artest...? I would have given him that shot every time and I guarantee he misses that nine out of ten times. So what happened?

The Celtics, whose age was overblown all season, finally caught up with them. The Celtics truly left it all out on the floor in Los Angeles. And that;s why it hurt so much. We weren't supposed to win this game. Our center tore his knee apart in the previous game, we were on the road, we were too old, and the best player and coach were on the other team. And yet we were winning. Just like we had won every series previous to the Finals, we were winning. Lockdown defense and timely offense. Kobe had a bad game, in arguably the biggest game of his career. And yet we couldn't do it. As a fan, I have not been that emotionally attached to a game and team since the 2004 Red Sox shocked the Yankees. The 2004 Red Sox should not have come back from 3-0, the 2001 Patriots should not have beaten the St. Louis Rams in a not-so-neutral site, but they did. The Celtics shouldn't have beaten the Lakers, and they didn't. (Analysis of the Boston Sports Fan in the next Blog post)

So what now? Instead of being on top of the world, we have an offseason filled with as many questions as any team out there. Will Doc come back? Is Sheed retiring? Will the Celtics re-sign Ray Allen? Will Pierce opt out? Who can we get in the draft? What about our bench?

Doc: As much as I love Doc, and the difficulty I am having with thinking of a replacement for him, I think it may be time to go for him. I am under the opinion that the Celtics should not bring back the exact same team next year and hope for the best. The Celtics organization is too strong to take the chance to enter a rebuilding period again. With our money, you don't need to. Unfortunately, I think the power of Doc's voice in the locker room has grown monotonous. For the new coach, you need to make sure he can handle KG and Rondo. If you win those two over, he is golden.

Ray: I love Ray. He is an unbelievable spokesperson for the organization, and the NBA. He can still shoot despite what happened in the FInals. I am starting to believe however, that it may not be in the best interest of the team to re-sign him. A few scenarios though could change that: 1) If the Celtics draft a legitimate scorer that could play behind Ray and limit his minutes. I am tired of seeing Tony Allen, even with his great defense, wander around aimlessly when he plays offense. If the kid could preserve Ray throughout the season, contribute points off the bench, and learn from Ray on how to become a great offensive player, Ray would be a great sign. The same goes for if Ray signed for less money than some think he will receive, and the Celtics pick up a free agent who could contribute the same features.

Pierce: The only way I see Pierce opting out of his contract is if he does so to sign a multi-year contract with the Celtics that assures him retiring a Celtic. Pierce will not receive twenty one million from any other team. The Captain will stay, and I would be shocked if he left.

Draft: Because I am not a huge college basketball fan, I won't give specific names or recaps of players. The two things that the Celtics need are a legitimate big man, and a scorer. The big man must be at least 6'11 in my opinion, because he must be able to play next to Big Baby, who gives up a lot of size already. He must be able to start when Perk is out for the beginning of the season with his ravaged knee, so defense and rebounding will be a key. The scorer needs to either preserve Pierce or Ray, and needs to eventually take over for one of them. While this is a tall task, this draft class seems deep enough to do it.

Much Love Celts, and Good Luck

Conference Championships Thoughts

Two extremely different basketball series decided the teams that will make up the 2010 NBA finals.

The Celtics vs. Magic was an overwhelmingly physical series, with plenty of technicals, flagrant fouls, and questionable calls. Dwight Howard started to establish himself as the physical dominator that he needs to be. I am all for having fun on the floor, and shooting half-court hook shots before the game. Once that tip happens though, Dwight Howard should be the meanest player on the floor. He has no reason not to be. He can jump the highest, has the biggest shoulders, and he is usually the tallest player on the court. What Dwight still does not have, is a legitimate post repertoire. Kendrick Perkins, Glenn Davis, and Rasheed Wallace were able to single team him, cutting off the three point shooting, and Dwight could do nothing about it. If Dwight is committed to winning a title, he should do nothing but work on his post game and free throws all summer. With the three point shooting mostly gone, Rajon Rondo and the Celtics were able to set the tempo of the series, allowing Pierce to go one on one, and have Rondo drive to the basket. There was certainly a lot of bad blood in the series, but as a basketball fan, it was a lot of fun to watch. Thankfully the Celtics avoided the collapse, and will be playing for the NBA Championship for the second time in three years, with a rematch of the 2008 Finals.

The Suns vs. Lakers, for anyone that enjoys defense, was a miserable series. Those who like fast paced entertainment however, were certainly pleased. The Suns did their best to use their zone defense and quickness to offset their size limitations against the much bigger Lakers. Unfortunately for them, Kobe took over the series. Kobe had one of his best individual series ever, dropping shot after shot against double teams, single teams, from out of bounds, fading away, and even dishing out thirteen assists when the Suns nearly triple teamed him. The combination of Bryant and Gasol are playing great right now, and stopping Gasol may be the key to success against their team. Kobe was extremely hungry to return to the Finals, and his will beat the lackluster defense of the Phoenix Suns. There was a great moment where Steve Nash was seen crying and Alvin Gentry was supporting his star. I felt bad seeing Nash that emotional, he is a great player, with a good team. Unfortunately, the Lakers came out on top this time.

Looking ahead: Celtics vs. Lakers

This series confirms the renewal of the Celtics vs. Lakers rivalry, with the teams having met in the finals just two years ago. There are a lot of interesting matchups to watch in the series, and if the Celtics can steal one in Los Angeles, I think the Celtics will win in 5 or 6. My official pick is in 6. Rondo is the x factor in this series, with Odom being the Lakers version.

Here are the matchups:

Perkins vs. Gasol: Gasol
Garnett vs. Odom: Garnett
Artest vs. Pierce: Pierce
Allen vs. Bryant: Bryant
FIsher vs. Rondo: Rondo

Bench: If Nate Robinson can continue to provide quality minutes, the Celtics have the edge here.

Thoughts: 2nd Round NBA Playoffs

Now that the only actual series in the second round is over, I can give my overarching thoughts on the semifinals. By series:

Lakers vs. Jazz

After the Jazz defeated my finals pick in the Nuggets, I was assuming they would put up a bigger fight than they did against the Lakers. It seems that after the Lakers were almost upset by the Thunder in the first round, they have now found their stride at just the right time. The Lakers size with Gasol and Bynum ruined the Jazz and specifically Carlos Boozer. Boozer, with the last game before he enters into the free agent class, needs to find his passion for the game again, because it has seemingly depleted with each year that he has been in Utah. Kobe and Gasol may be the hottest pair left in the playoffs at this point.

Up Next for the Lakers: The Suns - Matchups to exploit: Gasol vs. Lopez, Bryant vs. Richardson

Suns vs. Spurs

The Spurs were coming off of an impressive defeat of the Mavericks and were looking to be a very dangerous opponent for the Suns. The Suns had barely escaped the mostly Roy-less Blazers. Steve Nash however, was tired of the Spurs starting his summer early. Nash continues to climb the ranks of the all time best point guards, with his sharp shooting and precise passing. The Suns beat the slow and tired Spurs up and down the floor, and were even impressive defensively, something that was glaringly absent in the teams that the Spurs had upset. The Spurs need to have a good off season to get back to where they want to be. They need to find their Tim Duncan replacement, which is no easy task, and make sure to resign Manu Ginobili. George Hill should be a very helpful piece in their revamping.

Up Next for the Suns - The Lakers - Mathchups to exploit: Nash vs. Fisher, Stoudemire vs. Bynum

Magic vs. Hawks

What can one say about the biggest blow out series in the history of the NBA? When the Hawks talked about the Magic being able to win the championship after Game 3, it was officially over, and they should have just forgotten about Game Four. The Magic are the only team who have swept both of their opening series, and this could lead to them being untested, rusty, or rested and confident.

Up Next for the Magic: The Celtics - Matchups to exploit: Howard vs. Perkins

Celtics vs. Cavs

The team with the best record and seemingly best team all season has been ousted by the old and tired Celtics. Coming out of the series, the Celtics are as scary as any time, playing lockdown defense, and shutting down the league's best player enough for it to be the talk of the sports world for the last week. Kevin Garnett is healthy, which will make the series different than last year's series between the Magic and Celtics because Rashard Lewis will be guarded by someone who is as long as he is. This series should be extremely competitive and exciting for everyone involved.

Up Next for the Celtics: The Magic - Matchups to exploit: Rondo vs. Nelson, Wallace vs. Gortat

Predictions: Lakers in 6, Celtics in 6

1st Round Thoughts: NBA

I know we are decently into Round 2 now, but I have been meaning to write this for a while. The NBA Playoffs started their far too long, but very exciting chase for the championship and there were some great series to watch in Round 1. By series:

EASTERN CONFERENCE:

Celtics vs. Heat:

The Celtics, after an up and down regular season, looked completely rejuvenated in this series. While most analysts picked them to win, the impressive fashion in which they did so definitely surprised people. Ray Allen was great, hitting most of his shots, and Rondo was again the catalyst for the Celtics. Regardless of who you were rooting for however, you found yourself cheering for Dwayne Wade. His god-like performance in Game 4 where he single handedly beat the Celtics was incredible to watch. His lack of a supporting cast however lead the Heat to an early summer, and everyone will be watching Wade to see if he stays in South Beach. Next up for the Celtics: The Cavaliers - Match-ups to exploit: Rondo vs. Williams, Allen vs. Parker

Cavaliers vs. Bulls

This series went exactly as everyone predicted, with the Cavs winning the series without too much difficulty. LeBron was fantastic as usual, and he carried the Cavs to a five game series win. The Bulls fought hard with Joaquim Noah and Derrick Rose being the main headaches for the Cavs defense. Interesting to note: Noah and Anderson Varejao have been compared many times in their careers as talented energy big-men, but Noah completely dominated Varejao and hopefully the comparisons end there. Next up for the Cavaliers: The Celtics - Match-ups to exploit: James vs. Pierce, Bench depth

Magic vs. Bobcats

This series was very strange because even though the Magic were the only teams to sweep their opponent, they played the least like themselves. Dwight Howard was abysmal, filling up his stat sheets with fouls instead of points. Vince Carter did not hit a three until Game Four, but he shot them at a rate that would have made people think he was on fire. The series came down to the youth and inexperience of the Bobcats, making mistakes, while the experienced Magic made the big plays at the right time, and having huge games from Jameer Nelson. Next up for the Magic: The Hawks - Match-ups to exploit: Howard vs. Horford, Carter vs. Williams.

Bucks vs. Hawks

I believe this was the most surprising series in the East during the first round. The Bucks, despite losing their best player and Center Bogut to a horrific shoulder injury, fought against the more experienced and healthy hawks. The Hawks were clearly caught off guard by the amount of fight in the Bucks. They became stagnant, and ran a half-court offense. When they did run, they blew the Bucks out, which is what occurred in Game Seven. The Hawks fans can sigh now, although they have the much better Magic coming up next. Next up for the Hawks: The Magic - Match-ups to exploit: Smith vs. Lewis, Speed vs. Power

WESTERN CONFERENCE:

Spurs vs. Mavericks

Many people that I talked to believed that this year would be the year where the Mavericks stop choking, and actually do some damage in the playoffs. Unfortunately, it was much of the same. The Mavericks played the much more experienced and intelligent Spurs, and got out played, out coached, and out hustled. The emergence of George Hill for the Spurs was huge, and he gave the Spurs young legs, and a replacement for the miserable Richard Jefferson. Mark Cuban was a poor sport as usual, and eventually had all of America cheering for the Spurs. Next up for the Spurs: The Suns - Match-ups to exploit: Duncan vs. Collins, Parker vs. bench PG

Lakers vs. Thunder

Ladies and Gentleman, Kevin Durant is a beast and he is here to stay. Durant, along with Westbrook and Green, gave the Lakers a clinic on what passionate basketball looks like and feels like. Unfortunately for them, the Lakers remembered a little too soon. The size of Gasol and Bynum eventually caught up with the Thunder, who became America's sweethearts in the first round. The best part of the series as a fan to watch was when the Thunder lost, and the Oklahoma City crowd immediately gave them a standing ovation, and the Lakers paid homage to the players. Best show of sportsmanship I have seen in professional sports in a long time. Next up for the Lakers: The Jazz - Match-ups to exploit: Gasol vs. Fresenko, Bryant vs. Matthews

Jazz vs. Nuggets

The Nuggets were who I picked to reach the finals in the Western Conference, especially with how injured and depleted the Jazz looked coming into the series. Apparently I didn't know just how good Derron Williams is. Williams absolutely torched the Nuggets, and everybody but Carmelo played horrendous leading to the Nuggets being eliminated in the first round. Williams tooled around on the veteran Chauncey Billups, which took me by surprise. I still believe the depleted state of the Jazz will catch up to them at some point, and it will probably come at the hands of the Lakers. Next up for the Jazz: The Lakers - Match-ups to exploit - Williams vs. Fisher, Millsap vs. Odom

Suns vs. Trailblazers

Brandon Roy's triumphant return to the Trailblazers, which rejuvenated them for a little while, unfortunately fell short in their quest to beat the Suns. Jason Richardson lead the way for the Suns as he, Nash, and Stoudemire eventually wore down Aldridge and Roy for the Blazers. When this series swung south for the Suns, there was a brief chance that every higher seed in the Western Conference was going to lose in the first round, which would have been incredible to see. Alas, this did not come to fruition and the 1st Round ended about how everyone expected. Next up for the Suns: The Spurs - Match-ups to exploit-Stoudemire vs. McDyess, Nash vs. Hill

Lots more to come from the NBA Playoffs! Next up, thoughts on Round 2, Go Celtics!

College: Past, Present, and Future

The past couple of weeks have been filled with my friends and I wondering how we are almost seniors in college. College has been filled with so many experiences and it has been the greatest time of change in my life. I went from a lost, lazy, nice guy in high school to a dedicated, passionate, and still nice guy. With all of the stuff that I have done I thought it would be fun to put it all in this blog post. I will separate it into a few categories. These will be What I am Proud of, What I still want to do, What I wished I had done, and Other.

What I am Proud Of:

- Sport Management Club President - As a freshman, I noticed how little the club was doing and the potential it did have. I attended almost all of the meetings as a freshman, and when it came time to find new leaders for the club, I wrote up and application and sent it in. Lucky enough I was given one of the highest positions in treasurer. (Although we did not have a budget...) In my first semester as one of the leaders, I was quickly vaulted into the Vice President position, which was a shock because I really did not know the process. Zack, the President, and I find of floundered for the first semester putting together our ideas and trying to figure out how to execute them. Once we got started however, the club really took off. Our membership process was successful, our round table events have worked, we just had an end of the year banquet, and we will have a newsletter released within the next two weeks. I will be continuing this next year, and am excited at where we can go with the club.

- Alternative Break Site Leader/Student Director - I went on the 2009 ASB trip to Knoxville working with Disability Issues, and immediately found a passion for community service in general. I was told to apply as a site leader, and I did, and thankfully I received the ok from our Director. From there, I became a major member in the OCO office, not only leading a trip, but starting two awareness projects, conceptualizing a service dance, and planning the Spring Staff Retreat. I lead an amazing trip with an amazing group that further solidified my passion for the program. From there I applied for the Student Director position, and was recently accepted. I hope to help plan all of the trips and assure that they are successful.

- Men's Chorus - Although I am not in this anymore, I am very proud that I did this. I did a decent audition where I was accepted even though I could not read music. Our first concert was an amazing experience and I left in a euphoric state. After that however, every concert left a bitter sweet feeling in my mouth. I realized later that this was because I really just wanted my one concert of recognition, and after that it was just having fun singing the music. Once I got even busier however, it was one of the first commitments to go. I am still happy I completed a year in the Chorus and would not take it back.

What I Still Want to Do:

- Dance Marathon Dancer - I went and visited the event this year and was struck by how much fun everyone was having. I investigated the dancer commitment, and when I found that it was not a big one, I decided that I wanted to do it. I do enjoy dancing, and when I can help others by doing it, that makes it even better.

- ODK - This is the leadership honorary, which I believe I can certainly be accepted into. Unfortunately with my major, I do not have a honorary in my division (although I tried to start one) and therefore I would like some honorary recognition before I graduate. Hopefully I can get nominated into the Communication Department one as well because of my public relations minor.

- Start a project aimed towards getting more of B-W handicap accessible by going to Student Government. I do not know all of the details yet, but I know I want to do something about it.

- Help to plan the Distinguished Leadership Conference in 2011. I was nominated and attended this earlier this year, and had a lot of fun. It was a great experience and I would like to help others by giving them this experience.

What I Wished I Had Done:

- Study Abroad - This is really the only thing that I have now run out of time for. I would have loved to study in Australia for a semester, however it did not make sense with what I had going on here, and the amount of American sports here. I did here from people who studied there and I believe there are better internships and such here. My travel itch however, reminds me that I have not been out of the country in a while.

Other:

This is kind of a miscellaneous goals section for the year and the other things that I have done:

Still have to do:

- Go to Melt
- Go to the Cleveland Film Festival
- Go to the Science Center
- Go to a Lake Erie Monsters Game
- Go to a Cleveland Gladiators Game
- Go to a Cleveland Browns Game
- Go to a Akron Aeros Game

Other things that I have done:

- Public Relations Club
- College-101 Course Instructor

Sports: My Most Hated People

For those who don't know me, sports is a huge part of my life. I have always been infatuated with them, and in the next 1.5-4 years I hope to make them my career. I have seen some amazing games, both in person and on TV. Best in person = A tie between sitting in Wyc Grousbeck's (Celtics Owner) court-side seats watching the 76ers (still with Iverson) face the Celtics with Kendrick Perkins randomly having a 20-20 night. (Side note: Ricky Davis was with the Celtics) The other came in Fenway, where my best friend and I got tickets on the home dugout and watched Papi beat the Angels in the thirteenth inning.

For TV, my favorite hometown related moments was watching the Red Sox beat the Yankees in Game 7 of the 2004 ALCS. The best game that didn't involve one of my teams is probably the Texas - USC BCS Championship Game where Vince Young cemented himself as a God in the college quarterback rankings.

However, so many great memories has also led me to hate a whole lot of people in sports. I thought it would be fun to identify my most hated athletes, coaches, and media personnel in many different avenues in sports. I will separate them by sport, and pick my most hated person in each area.

Football:

Current Athlete: Joey Porter. This was close between Joey and Big Ben, especially because Porter has not been alleged with rape. Porter however, just never shuts up. I can forget Big Ben for a while until he crashes a motorcycle while touching a minor, but Joey never shuts his mouth. While his play justifies some of his trash talk, his mouth never says anything respectful and his standing at the fifty yard-line trash talking the other team while he shows his abs routine has gotten incredibly old. Then the icing on the cake, Porter thanks the Arizona Cardinals for a unjustifiably large contract by getting arrested for DUI and avoiding arrest. Good job Joey.

Current Coach: Rex Ryan. This one wasn't even close. I will give credit for Rex Ryan turning around the miserable team that Eric Mangini left, and signing himself some legitimate players, while still allowing Mark Sanchez to improve as a quarterback. But anyone who begins their coaching career by demanding respect from every team needs to be slapped. You do not declare yourself respect worthy, others give it to you when you have earned it. Ryan's Ra-Ra style never allows him to say "No Comment", instead he talks about how he has already scheduled the Super Bowl parade in the second round of the playoffs. Then, after their season is over, Ryan declares that he has earned everyone's respect. Ridiculous.

Current Media Personnel: I respect pretty much everyone who covers the NFL for ESPN, so I will just say Skip Bayless and move on. For those who don't know much about Skip, click here

No longer involved: I guess I should have titled his, "Who knows if he is involved?" Yup, Brett Favre. Please go away Brett, please. Your across the body, ruin the Vikings season, I don't have this arm anymore pass against the Saints shows you don't have it anymore. Be a coach, but not at first, because you will purposefully cut all of your quarterbacks, then add it to your job description.

Baseball:

Current Athlete: Alex Rodriguez. I try, even as a Red Sox fan, to at least respect the Yankees players if they are talented. Derek Jeter, although would look fantastic with a black eye, is a solid player. Cannot deny it. A-Rod has the numbers of a great players, and there are times where he is disgustingly good. However, the steroid confession, the can't keep his fly up, and the slapping the ball out of Bronson Arroyo's hand against the Red Sox doomed him. Forever.

Current Coach: Ozzie Guillen. Although some of his rants are funny. Ozzie just doesn't get it sometimes. Who knew you couldn't be wildly offensive, rant all of the time, turn on your team in a heartbeat, and not be disliked? Not Ozzie.

Media Personnel: Joe Buck. If you have ever watched Joe Buck and Tim McCarver broadcast of a Yankees game, you know what I am talking about. These two despise everyone except the Yankees, and there is glaring evidence in every broadcast that this is true. They give inappropriate comments and then become silent at the wrong times. Please, FOX, do something right for a change, and get a new lineup?

No Longer Involved: Barry Bonds. Does anyone else laugh when they hear that he is training for a come back?

Basketball:

Current Athlete: Joakim Noah. Noah narrowly beat Anderson Varejao out for this award. It might have been his face. It is also his style of play. He is the "I'm not talented enough to be here, I just hustle a lot, and annoy the hell out of people while I fill up the stat sheet." In other words, the most frustrating player alive. I would rather the annoying superstar drill shots on my team over and over, then watch players like Noah do anything against my team.

Current Coach: Phil Jackson. Ever watched a sideline interview with the Zen Master. Don't. Ever. I will not include the link. His smarmy attitude while hitting on the sideline reports makes me want to lose my lunch. And the fact that he had zero control over Kobe for several years does not help his image either. Oh, and last but not least, the fact that he asked to only be with "his team" for home games.

Media Personnel: Stephen A. Smith. I know he's not technically not involved, but I am sure he is still playing the race card with everything, including basketball. So he counts.

No Longer involved: Reggie Miller. Scratching people as he ran by. The biggest flopper in the history of the NBA. The fact that he was so good at shooting threes. The fact that his game had nothing besides the prettiest shot the league has ever seen. It's a good thing he is a good announcer.

College Football:

Current Athlete: Tim TeBow. He is not yet drafted in the NFL, so he still counts in this category. He is far less hated then some of the people on this post, but he is very annoying. His Super Bowl commercial with his Mom for Pro Choice was disgusting, his story about riding in a car without a seatbelt because Jesus would save him is awful, and his buddy buddy relationship with Urban Meyer is super creepy. I need to learn to like him though, because he is going to play for the Patriots. Somewhat unfortunately.

Current Coach: Nick Saban. He just beat out Urban Meyer but because Florida has already been discussed, I went with Bama. Nick Saban is far too narcissistic and far too boring in interviews for me to like him.

Media Personnel: Lee Corso. Today I am going to put on this mascot helmet, because we are in their city! Yay!

No Longer Involved: LenDale White. Although I am a USC fan, I always loved Reggie Bush, and never much cared for White.

College Basketball:

Current Athlete: John Wall. Not because I actually hate him, just that nobody can shut up about his awful dance.

Current Coach: Coach K. I respect him, but never has a coach looked more like the team mascot.

Media Personnel: Can I just say Skip Bayless again? I guess Dicky V. then.

No Longer Involved: J.J. Redick. Always. The Worst.

Alternative Spring Break: Indianapolis

Over my school's Spring Break, I lead a group of fellow students to Indianapolis to focus on disability issues. The trip was a part of B-W's Alternative Break Program, which sends groups of students around the country dealing with Social Justice issues.

This trip began for me last May when I chose my issue of disability issues. The topic has been a huge part of my life, with my brother being autistic. Once the issue was settled, I began researching disability resource sites, and other organizations that deal with the disabled population. I originally had a therapeutic riding center in South Carolina, however they unfortunately already had two Alternative Break trips from other schools coming that week. Then I moved on to a series of disability resource sites in Rhode Island, but the director became extremely frustrating to keep in contact with, so I moved on from them. My final cancellation was with a site in Knoxville, where I had traveled to during the previous Spring Break.

With a lack of alternatives, the Student Director gave me the contact information for two sites in Indianapolis, which is where I ended up traveling to. The first site is called Damar, which helps disabled adolescents lead more independent lives. It is a residential facility, which rests upon a forty acre campus. While we were there, we helped them set up for their annual prom, St. Patrick's Dance, and inventoried supplies for a Western themed day in the summer. The most rewarding task was playing with the kids during the gym and P.E. classes, where we played kickball, volleyball, and basketball.

The other site was the Indianapolis VA or Veterans Hospital. While we were there we helped with the Coffee Cart, the book cart, escorted people from the front desk to different hospital locations, and volunteered in the Emergency Room. This was an extremely different population to work with, but equally rewarding.

The most rewarding part of the trip however was my group. During the interview process I was able to create a very eager group that was ready every morning to do community service. I am very proud of the pre-trip meetings that I prepared which were based around team bonding and educational material. Once the trip actually began, all of the preparation that was put into the trip made the actual trip incredibly easy from a leadership standpoint.

This wonderful experience has caused me to pursue Student Director of the Alternative Break Program, which I was thankfully appointed! I am excited to interview the new site leaders in a week and a half. This whole experience has really been the most rewarding project I have worked on, and I am excited to enter the next phase.

Thanks for reading, the next blog will be about my most hated sports figures.

Spread the Word to End the Word

On March 3rd, the Special Olympics ran a campaign entitled "Spread the Word to End the Word" to stop the usage of the word "retarded". This campaign was created in response to President Obama's Chief of Staff Rahm Emmanuel calling liberal democrats "F***ing retarded", followed by a seemingly ridiculous amount of usage of the word in and around the media.

In response to this, the Alternative Break group that I lead over Spring Break to Indianapolis dealing with disability issues decided to have a table in the main building of our campus helping to spread awareness on March 3rd. Having an autistic brother has made me very passionate about this topic, so I was interested to see the campus's response.

We set up a table that had information sheets on the campaign, a big screen that had the campaign website on it, and stickers to give away to those who pledged. I tried to emphasize to my group members not pressuring anyone more than necessary when asking the onlookers to pledge not to use the word. While there were many students who walked right by the table, we did acquire 120 pledges, who pledged right onto the website on the big screen, which created a very cool and influential effect.

There were two stories that really stick out to me coming out of the campaign. First, there was a cafeteria lady who came up to the table, and merely said, "Someone called me that word yesterday. I hate that word." She did not fill out a pledge, and she did not say a word to those working the table, but the hate in your voice made what we were doing seem right. Second, a girl came up to me and asked what the campaign was about. After I informed her what we were doing, she simply asked, "Is the word retarded really the problem, or is it the people who have misconstrued it?"

Although I am very in favor of the end of the word, I do understand her point. A word is simply a label used by people. The word retarded cannot by itself cause harm or pain. The definition of the word retarded is "to make slow; to delay the development or progress of; hinder or impede" This word is actually very effective in referring to the delicate situation of disabilities. While the word itself is not the culprit, something must be done. There were many people who were on the fence when we talked to them, yet the stories and campaign caused many of these people to make the pledge and promise to try harder to use the word more appropriately or not use it all. Seeing these reactions, I believe that the campaign was both successful and beneficial.

The campaign currently has 123, 878 pledges, which is awesome to see. To learn more about the campaign, go to r-word.org.

Should the NFL go global?

After hearing the regurgitated news that the NFL has a high chance of going into a lockout in 2011, I decided that I needed to write about something exciting going on in the NFL. The NFL, much like the MLB, has been committed to play at least one game in an international venue every year. I think this is an exciting and cool prospect for the league, with the exception of London. Mexico City and Toronto though, are very intriguing prospects.

Starting with Toronto, the Buffalo Bills are seemingly starting to move there already through a slow and gradual process. The Bills have already played two games in Toronto, and the games have been a tremendous success. There is even a website dedicated to the Bills playing in Toronto. Toronto is the fifth largest city in North America, while Buffalo has declined in population every year since 1950. Travel would also not be a problem with Toronto, because Green Bay, Minnesota, and Seattle are further North than Toronto. Buffalo's economic issues force the team to keep their ticket prices among the lowest in the league, therefore not allowing them to gain any money. For a franchise that desperately needs a change of pace, Toronto seems like a great fit for the team.

In 2005, the NFL had its first game outside of the NFL in Mexico City. The game, although between the Cardinals (back when they were still the joke of the league) and the 49ers (when they were... as good as they are now), holds the all-time NFL attendance record with over 100,000 fans. Although the NFL has not come back since, Mexico City is the biggest city in North/Central America and would present a huge new market for the NFL to tap into. Like Toronto, Mexico City would not be an issue with travel because a flight from Boston to Seattle is shorter than Boston to Mexico City, which is the farthest flight that would occur. The teams that are looking to possibly relocate are the Kansas City Chiefs, Jacksonville Jaguars, and the St. Louis, all who were in the basement of home attendance last year. Any of these teams could definitely benefit from a move, and Mexico City could be an ideal location.

London on the other hand, would not be an ideal location for the league. Going with the travel issue, the west coast teams would have twelve hour flights, and the London team would have essentially cross country flights every time they played someone on the road. This would cost the team too much money and the Toronto team would never be able to become comfortable because of the constant dramatic time changes imposed on them. So even though the last three years the game has been successful, travel is too big of an issue for the league to follow through with.

I hope in the near future a place like Toronto or Mexico City will be pursued as a full-time NFL city. I think it would be great for the league, and give the marketing staffs a whole new market to work with. So NFL, please, for my sake, don't have a lockout? Thanks.

Golden Globe Picks

As an avid movie lover, I thought I would pick out my winners from some major categories in this year's Golden Globes. **I will only vote for movies that I have seen**

Best Movie of the Year (Drama):

- Avatar (Seen)

- The Hurt Locker

- Up in the Air (Seen)

- Precious

- Inglorious Basterds (Seen)

Although I loved Inglorious Basterds, I think Up in the Air needs to win this category. This movie wouldn't necessarily win if you placed it in another year's category, and it is extremely aided by the country's economic state. The title of the award is Best movie of the year, which is important, and I believe that Up in the Air needs to be seen. George Clooney, Anna Kendrick, and Vera Farmiga all give great performances, with effective roles by Zach Galifianakis and J.K. Simmons. Avatar (**Was not able to see it in 3d) did not live up to the hype in my opinion. Although I was not expecting a great script or characters, it is not acceptable that the most expensive movie in history had a horrible script and bad characters. That and James Cameron's obnoxious politics turned me off. The world is pretty cool though, and is worth a viewing, but definitely not movie of the year potential.

Best Performance by an Actor in a Musical or Comedy:

- Matt Damon (The Informant!) (Seen)

- Daniel Day-Lewis (Nine)

- Robert Downey Jr. (Sherlock Holmes) (Seen)

- Joseph Gordon-Levitt (500 Days of Summer)

- Michael Stuhlbarg (A Serious Man)

Matt Damon was solid as usual and it was nice to see him in a goofy comedic role instead of the Bourne-type roles he has been in lately. I enjoyed the movie and I believe the people who don't mind a slower paced film will too. Robert Downey Jr. however deserves this award in my mind. For a character that has been redone over and over, Downey Jr. put a funny and exciting turn on the character, even if it didn't go along with the original character. He was always fun to watch, and was the reason that Sherlock Holmes worked.

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role:

- Mo'Nique (Precious)

- Vera Farmiga (Up in the Air) (Seen)

- Anna Kendrick (Up in the Air) (Seen)

- Julianne Moore (A Single Man)

- Penelope Cruz (Nine)

It is kind of awkward picking between actresses in the same movie, especially because they were both great, and I loved the movie. The two have about the same screen time, probably with Vera getting a little more. Vera plays a horny middle aged woman who likes to meet George Clooney in different cities to have a quick hook up, while Anna plays an up-tight Cornell grad trying to save Clooney's company money. Considering that Anna's biggest movie this far was Twilight, and Vera's was the Departed, Vera probably is less intimidated by big-time successful actors such as George Clooney. This being a huge factor, Anna's great performance wins in my mind.

Best Director:

- Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker)

- Quentin Tarantino (Inglorious Basterds) (Seen)

- James Cameron (Avatar) (Seen)

- Jason Reitman (Up in the Air) (Seen)

- Clint Eastwood (Invictus)

I cannot give Jason Reitman this award, even though I had to give Up in the Air best picture because of what I mentioned earlier. Up in the Air would lose some of its effectiveness if it was not in the present day. I honestly believe that Inglorious Basterds would not. Tarantino's use of languages to create characters and his phenomenal script make him deserving of the award. This movie truly is a combination of strengths from his previous movies. The great script of Reservoir Dogs, the great cast of characters from Pulp Fiction, the entertainment factor of Kill Bill and the maturity of Jackie Brown and Reservoir Dogs all come together to make a great film. This along with the use of language make this Tarantino's best work, and he deserves to win.

Although I am excited to evaluate all of these movies, it means that there will be some poorly made movies coming out in the post-oscar scene. Now is the time to rent a solid film from years past and catch up on some movies that I haven't seen.