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Legends 2013 I Volume 2 Issue 3
Inside This Issue Features 7
NBRPA Welcomes Former WNBA Players as Members
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National Basketball Retired Players Associatoin Announces ‘Inaugural Class’ of Former WNBA Players as Members Dave Debusschere Scholarship
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NBRPA Welcomes Former WNBA Players as Members
Where Legends are Made Legends of World Conference Schedule NBRPA Members Reflect on “I Have a Dream”
Departments NBRPA BUSINESS: 10
NBRPA to Launch Groundbreaking Business Development Certification Program
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National Basketball Retired Players Association Extends and Enhances Partnership with the NBA
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Memeber News
WHERE ARE THEY NOW 28
Jerome Williams
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Aaron James
REBOUND PROFILE 30 Junior Bridgeman 31
Jamal Mashburn
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Eddie Arnet Johnson
Inside This Issue 4
Welcome - Arnie D. Fielkow
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Fish Talk - Matt Fish
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Success is Sweet: Develop With Dunkin’ Brands
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Disability Insurance Makes Sense
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Airing Things Out
36
Rebound Vegas Style
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Building Your Dream Team
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NBRPA Chapter Houtson
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Eddie Arnet Johnson
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2013 Legends World Sports Conference NBRPA Members: Welcome to sunny South Florida and ClubMed’s pristine Sandpiper Bay Resort for the 2013 Legends World Sports Conference. Widely recognized as the premiere gathering of its kind for former professional basketball players, the Legends World Sports Conference is the NBRPA’s annual retreat for members and partners to learn, network and unite in community service. We hope you enjoy your stay during a weekend that promises to be chock-full of idea-sharing, philanthropy, fraternization and fun in the South Florida sun. Like the South Florida sun, the future of the NBRPA has never been brighter. Now more than 20 years old, the NBRPA is a charitable 501(c)3 non-profit organization with a two-pronged mission to assist former NBA, ABA, Harlem Globetrotters and now WNBA players in their transition from the playing court into life after the game, while also positively impacting communities and youth through basketball. The NBRPA provides a host of programs, services and benefits designed to help retired basketball players and their families successfully navigate life after the game. In support of its membership, the NBRPA proactively offers a full menu of education, health, finance and career/life transition benefits to retired basketball players and their families and you’ll meet many of the people that administer these member programs this weekend. Conference workshop sessions will feature industry experts covering a variety of relevant topics, including Jobs in Sports, Finance, Career Transition, Continuing Education, Paid Speaking Opportunities, Social Media, Health & Wellness and more. Working in conjunction with the NBA, NBPA and WNBA, the NBRPA’s membership promotes basketball and enhances the sport’s image by building community relationships and fostering support for charitable activities and philanthropic events with a connection to the game. The NBRPA will give back to Florida youth as part of this year’s conference with basketball clinics in nearby Orlando and Miami as part of our Full Court Press: Prep for Success program on Sept. 21 and 28, respectively. Thank you for your membership and support. We are excited to have you join us for what promises to be a fun and productive weekend together in South Florida!
Yours in basketball,
Arnie D. Fielkow President & CEO
Official Publication of the NBRPA Volume 2, Issue 3 I Legends 2013 NBRPA REBOUND MAGAZINE PUBLISHER/CEO
Matthew Fish I mattfish@reboundmagazine.com
DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS
Dan Klaudt I danklaudt@reboundmagazine.com
ART DIRECTOR
Dwayne Harksell I Royaldsdh@cox.net
CONSULTANT
Larry Pond I Lpond2@cox.net
SALES Editorial
editorial@ReboundMagazine.com
Website/IT
danklaudt@ReboundMagazine.com
Advertise
advertise@ReboundMagazine.com
Administration
admin@ReboundMagazine.com
NBRPA CEO
Arnie Fielkow
STAFF
Paul Corliss, Brian Gaughan, Excell Hardy Jr., Erin Miller,Mark Scoggins, Charece Williams, Sam Vincent
NBRPA BOARD MEMBERS
Otis Birdsong, Chairman of the Board Thurl Bailey, Vice Chairman Marvin Roberts, Treasure Steve Hayes, Secretary Robert A. (Bob) Elliot, Past Chairman Dr. George W. Tinsley Sr., Past Chairman Harvey Catchings, Director Spencer Haywood, Director Larue Martin Jr., Director Johnny Newman, Director © SPORTS MEDIA MARKETING LLC 3317 S. Higley Road, Ste 114-224 Gilbert, Arizona 85297 P 480-586-6941 www.ReboundMagazine.com
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From Rebound Magazine
Fish Talk Legends World Sports Conference Issue Vol. 2 Issue 3 Welcome to the Legends World Sports Conference Issue. As always, I am excited to reconnect with friends, teammates, opponents, to enjoy fellowship, cherish my wife Rebecca (it is our anniversary) and learn about our ever evolving organization that exists for us, and for the betterment of the communities around us. Please allow me share in my vision for Rebound Magazine, your magazine. The NBA approved “Official Magazine of the NBRPA” A member since 2004, serving as Co-President of the Phoenix Chapter, and learning about the NBRPA and my fellow members, I have an overwhelming desire to help others. As you know, there is an abundance of interesting stories, crazy characters, blasts from the past, curious paths to pro-basketball, and journeys since. So many, I began to feel guilty. Why should I have access to these wonderful memories and not others? How can I share these timeless gems with others and help the NBRPA’s membership with unique opportunities and grow at the same time? Two years ago, armed with a better understanding of how to share your stories, I brought Rebound Magazine to the Phoenix Chapter. Regrettably, the chapter struggled with the vision. So Rebound was brought to newly elected Arnie Feilkow and the Board of Directors. With our need to improve communication, market the organization and chapters, provide opportunities to our membership, endear our fans, engage those who remember how it was, and educate those who have yet to learn, Rebound was a perfect fit. The Board unanimously voted for Rebound Magazine. Rebound truly adds value to you as a member. A resource, Rebound Magazine is full of franchising, investing, wellness, products and services that cater directly to you, the former NBA athlete. 7 issues later, Rebound has grown in size, outreach, relevance and readership. I am excited about the future of Rebound. Be on the lookout for a Rebound App, continued digital and print outreach, Rebound Radio and Rebound TV. I cannot do any of this without you, the members of the NBRPA. Thank you, and let’s get YOUR story in Rebound!
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HISTORIC MOMENT:
NBRPA Welcomes Former WNBA Players as Members;
Teresa Weatherspoon First WNBA Great to Join Legends of Basketball CHICAGO, ILL. – The National Basketball Retired Players Association (NBRPA), the only alumni association directly supported by both the NBA and National Basketball Players Association (NBPA), today announced a historic vote by its board of directors to welcome in former WNBA players as members. Charter WNBA star Teresa Weatherspoon, who debuted with the New York Liberty in the league’s inaugural season of 1997 en route to a 4-time WNBA All-Star career, is the league’s first former player to join the NBRPA. “Thank you to the National Basketball Retired Players Association for embracing former WNBA players,” Weatherspoon said. “It is awesome to know that after we live our dream of playing in the WNBA, there is an organization willing to offer a helping hand to assist us with off-the-court goals in life after the game.” Weatherspoon, who currently serves as head women’s basketball coach for her alma mater – Louisiana Tech – is one of the most successful women’s basketball players in history, with an NCAA Championship, Olympic Gold Medal and four WNBA Conference Championships. Additional former WNBA players will be announced as NBRPA Members when this historic new partnership is officially launched on August 6 when the Connecticut Suns host the Los Angeles Sparks at Mohegan Sun Arena. “As a long-time NBRPA Member it is my pleasure to welcome the WNBA and Teresa Weatherspoon in to the Legends of Basketball family,” said NBRPA Chairman of the Board Otis Birdsong. “With a world class basketball legacy and dedication to give back and serve the community, ladies like Teresa embody the traits we seek from NBRPA Members.” The NBRPA’s new partnership with the WNBA falls perfectly in line with the alumni association’s longtime affiliation with both the NBA and NBPA. “For more than two decades the NBA and NBPA have been our partners and we’re very pleased to welcome the WNBA into the NBRPA family,” said NBRPA President & CEO Arnie D. Fielkow. “There’s no doubt that the addition of these new members will help fulfill our two-pronged mis-
sion to assist former players’ transition into life after the game and positively impact communities and youth through basketball.” The NBRPA made Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer Lynette Woodard its first female member in February of 2013. Woodard was eligible for membership as a former Harlem Globetrotters player. Details regarding the announcement of additional former WNBA players at the August 6 Connecticut-Los Angeles game at Mohegan Sun Arena will be released in the near future. About the National Basketball Retired Players Association The National Basketball Retired Players Association (NBRPA) is comprised of former professional basketball players from the NBA, ABA, Harlem Globetrotters and WNBA. It is a 501(c) 3 non-profit organization with a two-pronged mission to assist former NBA, ABA, Harlem Globetrotters and WNBA players in their transition from the playing court into life after the game, while also positively impacting communities and youth through basketball. The NBRPA was founded in 1992 by basketball legends Dave DeBusschere, Dave Bing, Archie Clark, Dave Cowens and Oscar Robertson. The NBRPA works in direct partnerships with the NBA and the National Basketball Players Association. Arnie D. Fielkow is the President & CEO, and the NBRPA Board of Directors includes Chairman of the Board Otis Birdsong, Vice Chairman Thurl Bailey, Treasurer Marvin Roberts, Secretary Steve Hayes, Past Chairman Robert A. (Bob) Elliott, Past Chairman Dr. George W. Tinsley Sr., Rick Barry, Harvey Catchings, Spencer Haywood, LaRue Martin and Johnny Newman. Contact: Paul Corliss Vice President of Communications & Marketing National Basketball Retired Players Association 917-621-5744 | pcorlis@legendsofbasketball.com REBOUND
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NBRPA ‘INAUGURAL C�SS’
August 7, 2013
National Basketball Retired Players Associatoin Announces ‘Inaugural Class’ of Former WNBA Players as Members The National Basketball Retired Players Association (NBRPA), the only alumni association directly supported by both the NBA and National Basketball Players Association (NBPA), recently announced a historic vote by its board of directors to welcome in former WNBA players as members. With 600+ former NBA, ABA and Harlem Globetrotters amongst its membership, today at Mohegan Sun Arena the NBRPA is pleased to announce its inaugural class of former WNBA players as members: Cynthia Cooper-Dyke, Nikki McCray, Carla McGhee, Dawn Staley, Sheryl Swoopes, Penny Toler and Teresa Weatherspoon.
Cynthia Cooper-Dyke A charter member of the WNBA, Cooper-Dyke helped lead the Houston Comets to WNBA Championships in 1997, 1998, 1999 and 2000, and was named WNBA Finals MVP in each of those four championship runs. CooperDyke was named WNBA MVP twice in her career and is a member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Additionally, Cooper-Dyke was voted to the WNBA’s All-Decade Team in 2006, and in 2011 was named one of the Top 15 players in WNBA league history. Today she is head women’s basketball coach for the University of Southern California. Nikki McCray A lockdown defender in her 8year WNBA career, McCray was a 3-time WNBA All-Star. Known for community service off-the-court, the former University of Tennessee standout was hand-picked by President Bill Clinton to be made a member of the President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports in 2000. Today she is an assistant women’s basketball coach for the University of South Carolina. Carla McGhee McGhee played for the WNBA’s Orlando Miracle from 1999 to 2002. McGhee was a standout at the University of Tennessee, where she played on two NCAA Championship teams, and also won a Gold Medal with the United States Olympic team in 1996. Today she is an assistant women’s basketball coach with the University of South Carolina.
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Dawn Staley Staley played in the WNBA from 1999-2006 and was a 6-time WNBA All-Star. Staley was also a 3-time Olympian and was selected to carry the United States flag at the opening ceremonies for the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece. In 2006, Staley was voted to the WNBA’s AllDecade Team, and in 2011 was named one of the Top 15 players in WNBA league history. Today Staley is the head women’s basketball coach at the University of South Carolina. Sheryl Swoopes A charter member of the WNBA, Swoopes helped lead the Houston Comets to the league’s first championship in 1997 and won subsequent WNBA Championships with Houston in 1998, 1999 and 2000. Swoopes was named WNBA MVP three times in her career, won WNBA Defensive Players of the Year three times and twice led the league in scoring. In 2006, Swoopes was voted to the WNBA’s All-Decade Team, and in 2011 was named one of the Top 15 players in WNBA league history. Today she is head women’s basketball coach for Loyola University in Chicago. Penny Toler A charter member of the WNBA, Toler was a standout point guard for the Los Angeles Sparks from 19971999. She was the very first player to score a basket in a WNBA game, when she knocked down a jumper on June 21, 1997. Toler also made the league’s first free throw. Today she is President & General Manager of the Sparks and has led the franchise to two WNBA Championships.
Teresa Weatherspoon A charter member of the WNBA, Weatherspoon debuted with the New York Liberty in the league’s inaugural season of 1997 en route to a 4-time WNBA All-Star career. Additionally, Weatherspoon was also named as one of the Top 15 Players in WNBA league history. Today she is the head women’s basketball coach at her alma mater, Louisiana Tech. “Thank you to the National Basketball Retired Players Association for embracing former WNBA players,” said Weatherspoon, who was the first former WNBA player to sign on as an NBRPA Member. “”It’s a no-brainer to be a part of it and get back into the atmosphere, the love circle of the game of basketball. At this point you don’t feel like, ‘Oh, I played in the WNBA, you’re NBA, you’re Harlem Globetrotters, you’re ABA,’ what you feel like is a family, a basketball family.” Otis Birdsong, a former NBA All-Star and Chairman of the Board for the NBRPA, said adding Cooper-Dyke, McCray, McGhee, Staley, Swoopes, Toler and Weatherspoon as the first class of WNBA Legends of Basketball falls perfectly in line with the make-up and goals of the NBRPA.
“As a long-time NBRPA Member it is my pleasure to welcome Cynthia Cooper-Dyke, Nikki McCray, Carla McGhee, Dawn Staley, Sheryl Swoopes, Penny Toler and Teresa Weatherspoon in to the Legends of Basketball family,” Birdsong said. “With world class basketball legacies, successful careers after playing and dedication to give back and serve the community, these ladies embody the traits we seek from NBRPA Members. We are excited to build our membership with additional former WNBA players.” The NBRPA’s new partnership with the WNBA falls perfectly in line with the alumni association’s longtime affiliation with both the NBA and National Basketball Players Association. “For more than two decades the NBA and NBPA have been our partners and we’re very pleased to welcome the WNBA into the NBRPA family,” said NBRPA President & CEO Arnie D. Fielkow. “There’s no doubt that the addition of these new members will help fulfill our two-pronged mission to assist former players’ transition into life after the game and positively impact communities and youth through basketball.” The NBRPA made Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Famer Lynette Woodard its first female member in February of 2013. Woodard was eligible for membership as a former Harlem Globetrotters player.
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NBRPA BUSINESS:
NBRPA to Launch Groundbreaking Business Development Certification Program for Members in Conjunction with Florida A&M University CHICAGO, ILL. – The National Basketball Retired Players Association (NBRPA), the only alumni association directly supported by both the NBA and National Basketball Players Association (NBPA), today announced an exciting new educational partnership with the Florida A&M University School of Business & Industry to provide members with a special certification in business. As part of this groundbreaking partnership, Florida A&M will offer the “Life after Retirement – Growing Successful Business Ventures” Certificate Program to NBRPA Members beginning in October 2013. The “Life after Retirement – Growing Successful Business Ventures” Certificate Program is an intensive, integrated four-weekend business boot camp series that will culminate with a bank-reviewed business plan for retired basketball players interested in starting and growing successful businesses. Self and life assessments to assist participants in dealing with various life stressors will also be included. NBRPA Members may register for the program online here: www.cvent.com/d/p4qn31. “We are very excited to partner with Florida A&M’s School of Business & Industry for a wonderful program that will assist NBRPA Members looking to build a successful business career,” said NBRPA President & CEO Arnie D. Fielkow. “Education and learning are the backbone of NBRPA programming as we help former NBA, ABA, Harlem Globetrotters and WNBA players transition into a successful life after the game.” The intensive, sequential four-weekend business boot camps will be held the first weekend in October, the first weekend in December, the first weekend in February, and conclude the second weekend in March, with homework assignments between camps. The weekend boot camps will start at 1p.m. on Fridays and end at 4p.m. on Saturdays in Tallahassee, Fla. at the Florida A&M University School of Business and Industry. Over the course of the four weekends, participants will be provided tools and frameworks for starting and enhancing business ventures in the areas of franchising, financial services, real estate, and insurance by engaging in interactive team-based case studies, reviewing balance sheets, and performing cash flow analyses. Former players that are successful entrepreneurs will serve as guest lecturers during the weekend boot camps. If participants complete all in-camp and between-camp assignments, at the conclusion of the series, they will leave with a sound business plan that has been vetted with business professors, Small Business Development Center certified business analysts, and bankers, and the “Life after Retirement – Growing Successful Business Ventures” Certificate. 10
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For the inaugural “Life after Retirement – Growing Successful Business Ventures” Certificate Program, registration is free to NBRPA Members. Registered NBRPA participants also may receive two guest registrations at a nominal registration fee of $99 per person. Meals will be covered by Florida A&M as part of the program. Registrants unable to attend all four face-to-face boot camps may attend the weekend boot camps online and participate in the concluding March boot camp face-to-face to receive the “Life after Retirement – Growing Successful Business Ventures” Certificate.
About the National Basketball Retired Players Association The National Basketball Retired Players Association (NBRPA) is comprised of former professional basketball players from the NBA, ABA, Harlem Globetrotters and WNBA. It is a 501(c) 3 non-profit organization with a two-pronged mission to assist former NBA, ABA, Harlem Globetrotters and WNBA players in their transition from the playing court into life after the game, while also positively impacting communities and youth through basketball. The NBRPA was founded in 1992 by basketball legends Dave DeBusschere, Dave Bing, Archie Clark, Dave Cowens and Oscar Robertson. The NBRPA works in direct partnerships with the NBA and the National Basketball Players Association. Arnie D. Fielkow is the President & CEO, and the NBRPA Board of Directors includes Chairman of the Board Otis Birdsong, Vice Chairman Thurl Bailey, Treasurer Marvin Roberts, Secretary Steve Hayes, Past Chairman Robert A. (Bob) Elliott, Past Chairman Dr. George W. Tinsley Sr., Rick Barry, Harvey Catchings, Spencer Haywood, LaRue Martin and Johnny Newman. Contact: Paul Corliss Vice President of Communications & Marketing National Basketball Retired Players Association 917-621-5744 | pcorlis@legendsofbasketball.com
NBRPA PARTNERSHIP
National Basketball Retired Players Association Extends and Enhances Partnership with the NBA NBRPA and NBA to officially unveil newly-expanded partnership during NBA All-Star 2013 CHICAGO, ILL. – The National Basketball Retired Players Association (NBRPA), the only Association comprised of NBA, ABA and Harlem Globetrotters alumni, today announced a four-year extension to its historic 20year partnership with the National Basketball Association (NBA). The newly-expanded partnership will provide direct financial support to fund new and existing programs and services that uphold the NBRPA’s mission to assist former players as they transition into life after basketball. “On behalf of the NBRPA’s Board of Directors and membership, I would like to thank Commissioner David Stern and the NBA for their support – a philanthropic organization like ours would not exist without their two decades of support,” said former NBA All-Star and current NBRPA Vice Chairman Otis Birdsong. “The financial support of the NBA helps fund programs that assist in our members’ transition into life after the game. This enhanced partnership with the NBA will allow us to educate and assist more former players than ever before while creating direct revenue opportunities for NBRPA members.” Birdsong chaired the NBRPA’s committee that worked with the NBA to solidify the extension of this 20-year partnership. Also serving the committee were NBRPA Chairman of the Board Bob Elliott, Board Members Harvey Catchings and Danny Schayes, and President & CEO Arnie D. Fielkow. The NBA and NBRPA will officially unveil the expanded partnership during NBA All-Star 2013 in Houston in February. As part of each NBA All-Star Weekend, the NBRPA partners with the NBA for the annual Legends Brunch – an awards event for former NBA players that takes place on Sunday morning before the All-Star Game and airs nationally on NBA TV. “We are proud to extend our extraordinary 20year partnership with the NBRPA and support its tireless efforts to assist former players in life following their playing career,” said Charles Rosenzweig, NBA Senior Vice President, and Entertainment & Player Marketing. The NBRPA provides a host of programs, services and benefits designed to help retired basketball players and their families successfully navigate life after the game. In support of its membership, the NBRPA proactively offers a full menu of education, health, finance and career/life transition benefits to retired basketball players and their families. Working in conjunction with the NBA and NBPA, the NBRPA’s membership promotes basketball and enhances the sport’s image by building community relationships and fostering support for charitable activities and philanthropic events with a connection to the game.
The agreement also keeps in place the NBA and NBRPA’s group licensing program that provides direct revenues to NBRPA members. The NBRPA maintains a roster of nearly 600 active members. Media wishing to reach out to former NBA, ABA and Harlem Globetrotters players for interviews may do so through the NBRPA’s communications department. For more on the NBRPA, please visit www.LegendsofBasketball. com.
About the National Basketball Retired Players Association The National Basketball Retired Players Association (NBRPA) is comprised of former professional basketball players from the NBA, ABA and Harlem Globetrotters. It is a 501(c) 3 organization with a mission to develop, implement and advocate a wide array of programs to benefit its members, supporters and the community. The NBRPA was founded in 1992 by basketball legends Dave DeBusschere, Dave Bing, Archie Clark, Dave Cowens and Oscar Robertson. The NBRPA works in direct partnerships with the NBA and the National Basketball Players Association. Arnie D. Fielkow is the President & CEO, and the NBRPA Board of Directors includes Chairman of the Board Robert A. (Bob) Elliott, Vice Chairman Otis Birdsong, Treasurer Marvin Roberts, Secretary Steve Hayes, Past President Dr. George W. Tinsley Sr., Thurl Bailey, Harvey Catchings, James Donaldson, Johnny Newman, LaRue Martin and Danny Schayes. Contact: Paul Corliss Vice President of Communications & Marketing National Basketball Retired Players Association 917-621-5744 | pcorlis@legendsofbasketball.com
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MEMBER NEWS Board of Directors Candidate
2013 MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL
NBRPA Members: It would be my privilege to serve on the National Basketball Retired Players Association Board of Directors. I am excited by the prospect of serving ALL former players and working with our new CEO, Arnie Fielkow, his team and the current Board Members. It is imperative that we heal internally, establish unity and grow our organization for the good of ALL former players To grow and fulfill our potential as an organization, our Board of Directors needs former NBA players that can open doors. I have a strong relationship with the NBA and recently spoke at their 2012 rookie symposium. I have a strong relationship with the stars of today’s NBA and recently spent time with the 2012 gold medal USA Basketball team (see attached photo) before they left for the Olympics in London. As a former Olympic gold medal winner myself (Kevin Durant just broke my points record in the London), as well as an ABA MVP and NBA All-Star, I am able to open doors in the basketball world. All of us built the NBA and it is imperative that today’s younger generation of current players understand our role in their success and financial reward. I want to continue my visits with todays stars to help them understand what we did to build the game so they feel compelled to become members themselves and offer support to this organization. We need and deserve their support. Beyond basketball, I have been a success in life after the game with a successful business (Haywood Group LLC) that has been involved in recent construction projects at the Bellagio Hotel & Casino, MGM Grand, the Las Vegas Children’s Museum and the Army Reserve Center in Las Vegas (and many more). In business, brand recognition and a track record of success are crucial to growth. As a Board of Directors candidate, I will bring this to the NBRPA. Thank you for your support, Spencer Haywood
Dear NBRPA Member, The National Basketball Retired Players Association (NBRPA) would like to thank you for your membership in 2012. Because of your support, we were able to achieve more than 25% growth in the past year as we established an all-time high for dues-paying members. Your support helped put unprecedented programming, services, benefits and events in place for our former NBA, ABA and Harlem Globetrotters players. Here is a partial list of how the NBRPA worked for you: • Book A Legend Initiative: Provided 25+ Paid Appearances to NCAA Tournament events, speaking engagements, community outings and celebrity events to members this past year and launched additional marketing programs with partners to directly generate revenue for members. In addition, the NBRPA put together the first of what promises to be many first class goodwill international missions for members. • Dave DeBusschere Scholarship Fund: The NBRPA provided 25 scholarships this past year totaling nearly $100,000 helping to provide our members and their children assistance to meet the costs of higher education. • Legends World Sports Conference (LWSC): Members received free hotel accommodations for two nights at the Royal Sonesta Hotel located in the heart of New Orleans’ French Quarter on the world famous Bourbon Street, meals, entertainment and educational workshops ranging from Career Transition, Employment & Coaching Opportunities, Finance & Investments, Health & Wellness, Social Media, Personal Branding and more. • NBA All-Star Weekend: The NBRPA played host this All- Star Weekend in Orlando Florida. The weekend was filled with a myriad of activities and events including the Legends Welcome Reception, a private members meeting, Legends Care Basketball Clinic, charity golf/bowling event and the most sought after event of the weekend, the Legends Brunch. • Teamworkonline.com: As the official employment partner of the NBRPA, members now have access to 1-on-1 career consultation in the sports sector and access to a host of job opportunities. RIGHT NOW is the most exciting time in the 20-year history of the NBRPA and now is the time to take advantage of a membership that more than pays for itself. RENEW your membership today! You can choose to renew your current membership as an annual member or upgrade to a platinum membership to take advantage of a lifetime of benefits. RENEW before December 1, 2012 and receive a 10% discount. It has been an honor and a privilege to serve you the past year. I look forward to working with you to help the NBRPA realize its tremendous untapped potential. Yours Very Truly,
Dear Matt Fish, Bernard Thompson, Nick Sheppard, Dwight Morrison, Claude Terry, and Gerald Brown – the greats in the National Basketball Retired Players Association!: THANKS for coming out to Metro Center to support Phoenix Suns Charities on our “community out-reach day” for the families in the neighborhood of Metro Center Mall! As you saw from the warm reception you received from the almost 600 in attendance -- getting to meet you was a real TREAT for the young families in the area! Our wish was to create a family-friendly and wholesome day of fun – and as the main attraction, you all made it happen! Thank you for the gift of your time and showing the community that the NBRPA is made up of the ‘good-guys’ in the NBA. Enjoy a couple of these pictures from the day! Fun! Fun! Thanks so much ……. Robin J Milne Executive Director Suns Charities
Chief Executive Officer 12
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Former NBA All-Star, James Donaldson makes historic trip to the DPRK for Humanitarian and Basketball Development Efforts Press Release: November 20, 2012; James Donaldson, former NBA All-Star center, recently (November 08th – 13th 2012) returned from a visit to the DPRK (North Korea) in which he and a delegation of various professionals and humanitarians visited the country to meet with officials in regards to sports and cultural development programs. The trip was organized and headed by the non-profit organization, Global Resource Services, Inc. (GRS) www.GRSWorld.org Donaldson became the first National Professional Basketball (NBA) player to ever visit North Korea, and was warmly welcomed by the Sports Development committee members to visit a multitude of sports complexes and to watch a practice game between 2 of North Korea’s top professional teams. After the game, Donaldson spoke to the team members to encourage them to continue
Tracy McGrady Retires Tracy McGrady finally reached the NBA Finals in June. Two months later, the two-time scoring champion is walking away. McGrady, 34, announced his retirement Monday morning on ESPN’s First Take. A seven-time All-Star, McGrady last played with the San Antonio Spurs, contributing minor minutes during the team’s postseason run to a Western Conference championship after signing late in the season. “It’s been 16 years playing the game I love. I’ve had a great run but it’s time for it to come to an end,” McGrady said.
working and playing with pride and team camaraderie as they strive to “be the best they can be”. “I had a fabulous experience” says Donaldson, who along with being a former NBA player is also a business entrepreneur, motivational/ inspirational speaker, author, community leader and humanitarian. “Everything and everyone I engaged with really impressed me, and I can see the potential and progress being made by the North Koreans”. Donaldson, who represents and works closely with former NBA players in regard to career transitional assistance programs, made the visit to the DPRK to discuss basketball development opportunities in regards to having former professional players conduct basketball training camps/clinics for the youth and professional teams in North Korea. “There’s a great deal
of interest and excitement in having the Pros come and teach the youth” says Donaldson. “Young people are Young people… all around the world, and they are the future, basketball is a wonderful way to build bridges and relationships… no matter what race, creed, color, culture or language… I love it!” Donaldson has been doing a very similar basketball/educational development program in China, where he spends a great deal of time over the last couple of years. To contact James Donaldson, please email him at JamesD@Standing
AboveTheCrowd.com
NBRPA FAST BREAK: News you can use! This week the NBRPA held a productive series of events and meetings on the East Coast that we wanted to share with you … YOUTH CLINIC WITH SANDY HOOK ELEMENTARY STUDENTS • On April 6, we held two 90-minute youth basketball clinics for children in the Sandy Hook/Newtown community in Connecticut that was devastated by a horrific school shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary last December. • Board Member Bob Elliott participated, along with NBRPA Members Nate “Tiny” Archibald, Dwight Davis, Carl Green, Tom Hoover and Albert King. • With the help of sponsors Lexis Nexis and Newmarket International, the NBRPA left a $2000 donation to the Newtown Parks & Recreation Department • We had radio interviews nationally (FOX Sports Radio with Pat O’Brien), in New York (ESPN Radio) and Boston (CBS Radio), TV and newspaper coverage in Hartford and magazine coverage from Athlete’s Quarterly REBOUND
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Dave Debusschere SCHO�RSHIP
August 26, 2013
Dave Debusschere Scholarship Grants
Financial Aid to Students for Continued Education
A flagship program for the NBRPA’s Legends Care philanthropic arm, the Dave DeBusschere NBRPA Scholarship Fund was established in 1992. Dedicated to providing opportunities for higher learning, this program awards college scholarship dollars to former professional basketball players, their children, and grandchildren to help meet the rising costs of higher education. Through the Dave DeBusschere Scholarship Fund, the NBRPA has donated more than $1 million in scholarship money to former players and their children.This week, the NBRPA has awarded its annual scholarship to 28 students to be applied towards furthering their academic careers. Here are the 2013-2014 Dave DeBusschere Scholarship recipients: LaKeisha Colter Howard University “I’d like to thank the committee for their support throughout my entire college career. This scholarship will be used to cover the costs of tuition, fees, as well as travel expenses. I am, again, forever grateful to you all.”
Savanah Bennett Cal State Monterey Bay “With this scholarship I plan to pay for my room and board on campus. Pay for books needed for my classes along with other school supplies such as notebooks and pencils. I also plan to put some of the money toward my school year abroad in Germany.” Ruben Boumtje-Boumtje Georgetown University “I am grateful for the existence of the DeBusschere scholarship and thankful for the funds I was awarded. As I embark in my graduate studies, the funds will help pay a portion of my tuition and help me focus more on my
Stephanie Colter Argosy University ”I am extremely appreciative of the committee’s support throughout my undergraduate college career. I am also extremely thankful in the assistant to help me continue you on to Graduate School. This scholarship will continue to be used to cover the costs of tuition, fees, as well as travel expenses. I am, again, extremely appreciative and grateful to you all.”
Andrea Brown University of Nevada-Reno “I give great thanks to the NBRPA Dave DeBusschere Scholarship Program for rewarding me with a scholarship that will help me continue my study towards becoming a journalism major. This scholarship will allow me to truly focus on my studies as well as allow me to take more classes in order to graduate earlier. Again, thank you for the selection.”
Michael Glenn Georgia Gwinnett College “I plan to use this scholarship for tuition, fees, and books for my classes. This scholarship will also be used for school supplies such as calculators, binders, pencils, and paper. Once again I must express my gratitude in receiving the NBRPA Dave DeBusschere Scholarship, it is greatly appreciated.”
studies.”
Aharown Campbell Liberty University “I am so thankful that I was selected for this scholarship that has helped many other aspiring students before me to get even closer to their goals. Being the son of an NBA great, I have always been aware of the need and importance of tenacity and work ethic to be successful in both realms of school and sport. As a recipient of this scholarship, I intend to buy books, a calculator, and cover any expenses demanded by my government major, which I intend to follow up with law school. Again I would like to thank the National Basketball Retired Players Association for this honor.” 14
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future.”
Alexys George Clark Atlanta University “Thank you to the NBRPA Dave DeBusschere Scholarship Committee for your assistance in continuing my education at Clark Atlanta University. This scholarship award will assist me in reaching my goal for a successful
Damon Jones College of Southern Idaho “I plan to utilize this scholarship by helping pay for my books as well as the cost of tuition. With this scholarship, it really helped take a financial burden off both me and my parents. I am so very grateful for this opportunity and plan to use the scholarship in the most responsible manner. Thank you so much for this gift.” Taylor Kite Brigham Young University “I plan to continue studying and getting the grades that I need to better myself, prepare to be able to provide for a family, and be a service-minded individual in society. It’s through these small things that I will be an asset to my country and society as a whole.” McKenzie Kite Stock Metropolitan Community College “The Dave DeBusschere Scholarship has been such a great blessings for my siblings and I. It has helped me to pursue my dream of becoming a nurse and to hopefully be able to help others in the future. As an expectant mother and wife of a cancer patient, the financial support has greatly reduced the stress that comes with attending college. Without this scholarship it would be much more difficult to accomplish my educational goals.” Mollie Kite Brigham Young University-Hawaii “With this scholarship I hope to further my education and to ensure a bright and successful future for myself. I have a lot to offer the world and would like to become a productive and hardworking citizen in society. With the help of this scholarship, I can more easily achieve these goals and would be grateful for the opportunity to do so.” Mason Kite Brigham Young University-Hawaii “Receiving this scholarship will help me better my education to get my dream job. Thank you for this opportunity to grow as a young woman and to become the young lady I hope to be.”
Melissa Kite Provo College “I plan to use the Dave DeBusschere Scholarship to further my education in the field of Physical Therapy and help others recover from injury, illness and improve their quality of life.” Amanda Leavell Princeton University “I am so very grateful for the Dave DeBusschere Scholarship and will be able to use it to help alleviate the financial burden put on my parents by college tuition. College has come to be so expensive over the years, and I am so blessed that I have the opportunity to pursue an academic degree without having to worry about the downfalls of not being able to afford it.” Alicia McDaniel University of South Carolina “I have dreams of becoming a primary physician and the aid the NBRPA scholarship provides is assisting me in bringing my career ambitions to life. This scholarship allows me to finance my graduate level education, as well as act as a source of encouragement to continue to strive to be my best in all I do. I am truly thankful of the support of the National Basketball Retired Players Association because they have made invaluable contributions to my life and others and I hope to extend the same generosity through health education and medicine to my community.” Jake McDowell University of Memphis “As a receipt, I plan on using this scholarship money to obtain an International business degree that will assist me in getting a job that makes me successful in life. It will help me get through college so I am able to be productive in life. I also want to thank the National Basketball Retired Players Association Dave DeBusschere Scholarship Program for this prestigious award, and I will use this scholarship money to my fullest potential.” Tamara Richardson Edward Via College of Medicine “I have received this scholarship for 3 years now and I am greatly appreciative for it. As I enter my last year of Medical school, I plan to utilize the scholarship to help pay for traveling expenses and application fees as I travel for Residency interviews and send out Residency applications, which can become quite pricey.” REBOUND
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John Rinaldi Pennsylvania State University “The Dave DeBusschere NBRPA scholarship will help me cover the cost of medical books and supplies I will need for the upcoming academic year. Thank you once again to the NBRPA for the continued support
Simon Von Nieda University of Massachusetts “I am honored and grateful to be a recipient of the Dave DeBusschere Scholarship. The scholarship will help cover the costs of my Mechanical Engineering tuition as well as books and school supplies. Thank you for this excellent opportunity!”
Samuel Roberts Brigham Young University “Thank you for the opportunity to receive this generous scholarship! With it I plan to pay for my textbooks, lab supplies, and other school expenses. Any excess funds will greatly assist me in expenses such as car payments and a phlebotomy class that I am currently taking.”
Marcus Walker University of Missouri-Kansas City “I’m truly honored to be a recipient of the David Debusschere Scholarship. I can’t thank the NBRPA Organization enough for their continued support and investment in my academic life as I work toward a degree in Strategic Marketing with an emphasis in Tourism & Hospitality.”
Sophia Roberts Brigham Young University “Thank you for awarding me this scholarship. I will use it to help pay for my college tuition this semester.”
Jasmyn Wilkins Georgia State University “With this scholarship I plan on further pursuing my sociology degree in hopes of becoming a television news anchor. I also plan on continuing to work closely within the Atlanta community through the For A Day
and generosity!”
Taryn Toolson Brigham Young University ”I would like to thank the NBRPA for choosing me as a scholarship recipient this year! Receiving this scholarship will help me immensely with paying for rent, class fees, and living expenses while I finish up my last year at BYU! It will be an incredible blessing to be able to go to school and have one less financial burden to worry about. I will graduate in April with a degree in Elementary Education with a minor in TESOL, and I look forward to being a teacher!” Evelyn Von Nieda Colorado School of Mines “I plan on using the scholarship to pay off my share of tuition. I believe that with the independence college provides, there also needs to be an independence financially, and therefore I am contributing to paying for school. I would love for my college experience to be more focused on academics and finding time to socialize and be active rather than constantly worrying how I will pay off loans or buy books, and I believe that with this scholarship you are providing me the opportunity to do this!”
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Foundation.”
Rikardo Williams University of Tampa “I am very thankful and blessed to be one of the recipients of the Dave DeBusschere Scholarship. It is a honor to be afforded the opportunity to attend college and pursue my dream of becoming a veterinarian, and all assistance is greatly appreciated.These funds will go towards my tuition and room and board. Being the ‘baby of the bunch’ I have watched my siblings strive for their goals, and I am so grateful and excited to begin my journey.” Caleb Wood Monterey Peninsula College “This scholarship is a true blessing and it will aid me in achieving a long-time goal of mine in being able to attend college and receive a higher education. I plan to work hard and diligently in all my classes and make good use of the financial help provided by this scholarship
LEGEND NEWS
By James Fegan
WHERE STARS ARE MADE: Detroit Gym Carries Legacy of Hoops Greatness
Slotted a little ways off the Jeffries Freeway in West Detroit, is an aging red-brick building that might get confused as a chapel at first sight, but it houses a small basketball court inside that most find to have a bit more spring to it than one would expect. The quarters are cramped to say the least. One side of the court has its boundary marked with hard wall, bleachers and benches creep within inches of the playing area and with no air conditioning, temperatures easily shoot past 100 degrees in the summer. A green sign that reads “St. Cecilia’s Gym” in thin white letters lies right on top of the opening archway, but hoopers native to the area have gotten to calling the place by their own nicknames. “The Mecca,” “The Sanctuary,” “The Temple,” “The Jewel of Michigan Basketball Mecca” might be the best one. It describes the obligation every Detroit basketball player of relevance has had to pilgrimage to the old gym and test their abilities. That requirement was evenly spread, from a run-of-the-mill junior high standout, to even a future college All-American and 14-year NBA veteran. “Your game wasn’t proven until you were able to prove it at St. Cecilia,” said Jalen Rose, who attended St. Cecilia’s grade school before reaching the NBA. Naturally, a city with a basketball scene as fierce as Detroit’s had its proving ground offer as many of its own challenges as the competition it housed. But despite tricky surroundings that Rose claimed made it akin to “playing in someone’s backyard,” the secret of St. Cecilia’s vitality shines through at first glance. “When I first arrived at St. Cecilia’s, I realized it wasn’t about being state of the art,” said Sam Vincent, who was named 1982 Mr. Basketball in Michigan before a career as both a player and coach in the NBA. “It was about history.” Building the legend Like any basketball history, at the center of St. Cecilia’s story is a singularly determined individual. In this case, it was a newly hired gym teacher and athletic director named Sam Washington, who in 1967 saw his hometown troubled by racial tension and riots, and his gym lying empty throughout the summer. Washington figured he should work to remedy both situations. Before long, opening up the doors to kids around the neighborhood ensured Washington a full gym and a fledgling summer league, but St. Cecilia’s sterling reputation
leaped off the back of a 1974 contract dispute between the Detroit Pistons and their Hall of Fame guard Dave Bing. Locked out of his normal practice space for the three weeks of negotiations, Bing came to the gym his old friend Sam Washington had been pushing for him to be a part of – St. Cecilia’s – to keep his game fresh throughout the holdout. Washington, recognizing the opportunity for promotion, had never made any secret about Bing choosing his gym for his workouts, but took it to another level to secure extra funding for his passion project. As Dave Bing practiced in St. Cecilia’s, steadily racking up fines from the Pistons, Washington approached the future Mayor of Detroit and asked him what his team planned to do with the money. Bing didn’t have an answer for him. While the Pistons typically donated the proceeds from player fines to an outside cause, they probably did not expect the plan Washington decided to approach them with. “I don’t know how my dad did it.” Washington Jr. said. “But he got the Pistons to donate the money they were taking from Dave Bing to St. Cecilia’s so they could get a new floor and things of that nature.” The first teammate Dave Bing was able to bring down to try out St. Cecilia’s springy new floors was a rookie by the name of Jimmy Walker – Rose’s late father, who had just been selected first overall in the draft. But neither Bing, nor Sam Washington, had to twist many arms after that. “It was word of mouth. I didn’t see Sam doing a lot of outreach.” Bing said. In an era where players were left to their own devices to maintain their skills over the offseason, the patronage of Bing and Walker was enough to bring along fellow REBOUND
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Pistons stars to train during the summer, including Hall of Famers like Dave DeBusschere and Bob Lanier. Once St. Cecilia’s could start boasting NBA players in its summer leagues, it quickly became a place that Detroit players – be they high schoolers, college players, well-paid future Hall of Famers or unemployed street prodigies – could go to and find elite competition to test themselves against. Despite being located all the way over in Ann Arbor where he attended Pioneer High School, the rumor of professional players hanging around St. Cecilia’s lured a high school-aged Bob Elliott, who went on to earn AllAmerican honors at Arizona and play three seasons for the New Jersey Nets, to check the place out. Alongside his friend Tony Dungy – yes, that Tony Dungy – Elliott recalls getting more than he bargained for on his first trip. “We went down early to watch those guys play. We looked, and Bob Lanier walked into the gym and we were like ‘Alright, we’re going to see Bob Lanier play!’ Then it came time for our game and we were warming up and I looked at the other end of the floor and there was Bob Lanier. Yeah, we were going to see him, alright A place where only the game mattered As much as St. Cecilia’s existed as a forum for Michigan junior high and high school talent to converge and gain attention from coaches and recruiters, there were no age requirements or professional qualifications needed. “Having played in the NBA … All of us NBA [veterans] know that of the best ballplayers in the world, many are not in the NBA, for whatever reason,” Elliott said. “But in St. Cecilia, you’re getting everybody there.” The parking lots overflowed with cars – and also players waiting in line – as word of the opportunity to see or play the best competition in the state spread. Players stepped into the red-brick hothouse lined with packed bleachers that leered over the court like hanging tree branches, knowing that they had the opportunity to prove themselves against the stars. Or be memorably embarrassed. The decision to step onto St. Cecilia’s court was not made lightly. Before Willie Burton starred at the University of Minnesota, became a top-10 draft pick and played in the 18
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NBA for eight seasons, he made a point of honing his game and reputation around the other playgrounds and gyms of Detroit. He didn’t dare face the challenge of St. Cecilia before the time was right. “You have to go to St. Cecilia’s when you’re ready,” Burton said. “You don’t just walk up there like ‘Ok, let’s play some basketball,’ you will get killed.” Then, and especially now, other local gyms offered more comfortable conditions than St. Cecilia’s. But Washington, as well as players, embraced the inescapable sweltering heat as just another crucible to bear when trying to hang with the top competition in the state. “It would be more than hot,” Elliott said. “Why shower? You couldn’t shower. Your body would just keep perspiring after games.” How did players adjust to such conditions? “Shoot, you play,” Elliott said Not only did they play, but in a fast-break, high-flying, showy style that would have been grueling even in a controlled climate. Vincent summed up the style as “Fast-break, fast-paced, hot, competitive, physical, lot of fouls, no calls.” But there was a method to the madness. As much as the likes of Derrick Coleman, B.J. Armstrong, Chris Webber, Glen Rice, Voshon Leonard and members of the Detroit Pistons milling about turned the court into a performance stage, tough defense and basketball IQ were emphasized. As much as tough play and intensity ruled over the gym, the professionalism of the refereeing on-hand graduated alongside St. Cecilia’s rising profile. Rose, whose favorite St. Cecilia’s memory is a game he was ejected from for fighting Steve Smith – a man he acknowledged as an idol – turned around and dismissed any notions of the Detroit hoops sanctuary being a home to unkempt streetball. “You had to be a well-rounded player,” Rose said. “It wasn’t about just getting it in the hoop, it was about working on your game and trying to take it to the next level. We had so many players who were having success in high school, success in college,
success in the pros. It was almost like an assembly line of terrific players that would continue to come through St. Cecilia’s.” Sam Washington’s handiwork Any creation reflects upon its artist, but for a gym that opened its doors to the top, but also very young and strong-minded players from all across Michigan for decades, St. Cecilia’s remaining a product of Washington’s vision required his constant attention and maintenance of the court and its surroundings. “He had his whistle, he had his striped shirt,” Bing said. “You knew who he was, he walked inside the gym, he walked outside the gym.” Located in a rough part of a tough city and host to heated games played for city and regional pride, there was a lot of potential for extra-curricular activities, St. Cecilia’s had a lot of potential for violence. Yet incidents were kept to a minimum, to the degree where out-of-towners like Vincent of Lansing felt comfortable making the trip out. For some, the secret to St. Cecilia’s success was the pure entertainment value, the undeniable quality of and focus on the basketball that pushed everything else to the background. “People weren’t worried about their problems or anything that was going on,” Burton said, “They were just seeing some basketball players doing some phenomenal things.” Rose had a less ethereal idea for why nonsense was kept to a minimum.
“The Mecca,” “The Sanctuary,” “The Temple,” “The Jewel of Michigan Basketball Mecca” “Sam Washington sat at that door. You would have thought he was a Navy SEAL the way he was respected in that community.” Washington’s positioning at the fountainhead of Detroit basketball made him an authoritative voice in the region. College coaches who wanted to see a player knew to reach out to him, and in turn his word was said to be enough to secure a scholarship over the phone, sight unseen. Burton, despite never having a substantial relationship with him, still remembers a standalone moment
where Washington acknowledged his potential. “That was like the President of the United States giving you recognition,” Burton said. Washington was supportive of players, but his praise was not given idly. Sometimes, it was intentionally withheld, and in some cases, his best players got the hardest treatment. When Jalen Rose – whom Washington refused to call ‘Jalen’ until “he made a name for himself” – was still a grade school student at St. Cecilia’s, Washington seized a moment where he caught the youngster goofing off to shock him with his first ever glimpses of his estranged biological father. “He took me downstairs and he dusted off his old projector, I remember him wiping the dust off it, there was literally dust on this thing. And he showed my biological father (Walker) doing the spin dribble, being a big guard, putting in work, knocking down jumpers, and said ‘That’s what you could potentially be, if you stop goofing around, Rose.’” Keeping St. Cecilia’s alive Washington never did address Rose by his first name. He died of a stroke in 1988 at just 54 years of age. “Kids think, ‘My dad’s invincible, he’s going to be around forever,’” Washington Jr. said. At the time of his
father’s passing, Washington Jr. was a young man trying to make his own way in Philadelphia. Now after his siblings had their turns heading up the gym, he’s the Executive Director of the facility. “I don’t want anyone else running it,” Washington, Jr. said. And Washington Jr. is not coasting on the name of his father. The challenges he faces are entirely different. The actual St. Cecilia’s school closed in 2010, taking with it critical funds that used to be received from the church, and Jalen Rose’s efforts to open a charter school in the space fell through as well. College recruiting rules have reduced the amount of influence figures like Washington can wield and the game has simply spread out, taking Detroit’s utter dominance of the Michigan basketball scene with it. St. Cecilia’s is still respected – college stars Trey Burke and Derrick Nix made their way down to the gym in the past year – but there are other gyms as well, and other ways to be seen. Sam Jr. has kept the place looking pretty spiffy. A new floor was added two years ago, a mural of Sam Washington, Sr. in addition to a Hall of Fame – which includes around 300 names – make up the interior decorations. The phrase “Where stars are made, not born,” is painted onto the hardwood.
Landmark status exists as a possibility down the road, but Washington Jr. realizes that the key to keep St. Cecilia’s alive is engaging its past, reaching out to gaudy names that dot the list of St. Cecilia’s alumni and to keep them coming out for fundraising events to help the place that helped them stay out of trouble growing up, take their game to the next level and build the confidence they needed to succeed at any stage. “I’ve got a sales background,” Washington Jr. said, “The word ‘no’ means nothing to me.” The hard sell has its uses, but many of these guys find themselves coming back without prodding. What would have been an exciting prep lineup 20 years ago now makes for a hardfought battle in the leagues made up of retired players that St. Cecilia’s hosts regularly now. “They’re always going to be intense,” Burton said of the games he frequents along with Jalen Rose, Voshon Lenard and others. “Guys’ pride is there. We can’t move the same, we can’t jump as high, but no one wants to lose.” But do the fans still pack the hot little red brick gym to see it? “Oh yeah,” Burton said, “The parking lot is full.”
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Legends World Sports Conference Schedule of Events Start
End
Wednesday, September 18, 2013
5:00pm
8:00pm
Arnie Fielkow, Otis Birdsong, Thurl Bailey and Paul Corliss arrive in Miami
End
Thursday, September 19, 2013 (Sandpiper Resort)
Start 9:30am
11:30am
12:30pm
2:00pm
Miami Children’s Hospital Visit (Otis Birdsong, Thurl Bailey, George Tinsley, Sam Vincent, Arnie Fielkow and Paul Corliss) Press Conference at Florida International Health Center
12:00pm
5:00pm
Board Members, Sponsors & Exhibitors arrive at Resort
6:00pm
7:30pm
8:00pm
10:00pm
Sponsor/Speaker’s Dinner with Board of Directors (Marketplace – Sections 5&6) Board of Directors Working Dinner Meeting (Boardroom)
Start
Friday, September 20, 2013 (Sandpiper Resort)
End
Bus Transportation
Pickup at FLL at 12pm and 2pm arriving at Sandpiper Resort at 2pm and 4pm Pickup at PBI at 1pm and 3pm arriving at Sandpiper Resort at 2pm and 4pm
9:00am
6:00pm
Check-In & Registration in Legends Lounge (Atlantic Ballroom)
9:00am
5:00pm
Club Med Recreational Activities (Sandpiper Resort)
5:00pm
6:00pm
Legends Networking Happy Hour presented by Thuzio (St. Lucie Suite/Slice Bar)
5:00pm
7:00pm
Board of Directors & Chapter Presidents Photos (Atlantic Ballroom)
6:00pm
7:00pm
7:00pm
8:00pm
8:30pm
9:15pm
9:15pm
1:00am
Legends Welcome Reception presented by Wells Fargo (Spanish Patio/Atlantic Ballroom) Welcome Address by Board Chairman Otis Birdsong & President/CEO Arnie Fielkow, Speakers Members Dinner (Marketplace – Sections 5&6) Entertainment-Provided by Club Med (Theatre) Entertainment-Provided by Club Med (Slice Bar)
Saturday, September 21, 2013 (Sandpiper Resort)
7:00am
8:00am
8:00am
9:45am
8:00am
7:00pm
8:30am
12:00pm
9:00am
5:00pm
9:45am
10:00am
Members Breakfast (Marketplace – Sections 5&6) Members Meeting (Board Election Voting Begins) (Florida Ballroom) Legends Lounge Open (Atlantic Ballroom) Sports Byline USA – Live Broadcast: Media Room Opportunities (Atlantic Ballroom) Club Med Recreational Activities (Sandpiper Resort) Members Photo (Florida Ballroom)
Breakout Sessions
10:00am
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10:55am
Leadership in NBRPA/ Leveraging Relationships Bob Elliott, George Tinsley, Otis Birdsong &Thurl Bailey & NBRPA Financial Transparency Discussion Marvin Roberts, Bob Elliott & George Tinsley
Optimism in the Housing Market
Social Media Secrets 101
Franchising/Quick Service Restaurant
David Goldklang and Lenny Steigman (Wells Fargo)
Jacob Dimartino (Choice One Mobile, Inc)
PAFI powered by Fran Net
(Atlantic Ballroom)
(Martin Suite)
(Boardroom)
(St. Lucie Suite)
Career Transitioning: The Art of the Elevator Ride Jon Harris (Athlife)
(Florida Ballroom)
Legends World Sports Conference Schedule of Events Men’s Health
11:00am
11:55am
Dr. Corey Hebert (Black Health TV and the Dr. Oz Show) & EarQ (Ed Keller) (Atlantic Ballroom) Women’s Health
12:00pm
12:55pm
Dr. Corey Hebert (Black Health TV and the Dr. Oz Show)
(Atlantic Ballroom)
Financial Planning for Your Future
A Priority Buyer's Best Buy
Scott Friedman & Jesse Little (Wells Fargo)
David Goldklang and Lenny Steigman (Wells Fargo)
(Martin Suite) (Boardroom) Secrets to Financial An Agent’s Perspective: Success - The NBA How Former Players Retired Players Playbook can make money! Susan Inwood (Wells Fargo) Scott Rochelle
(Martin Suite)
Sports Employment/ International Opportunities Buffy Filippel (TeamWork Online) & Sam Vincent (St. Lucie Suite) Professional Speaking & Broadcasting
(Boardroom)
Jack Marin (Williams Mullen)
(Florida Ballroom) NBA Pension
Stephen Bardo
Jack Marin (Williams Mullen)
(St. Lucie Suite)
(Florida Ballroom)
1:00pm
2:00pm
2:00pm
5:00pm
Members Lunch (Marketplace – Sections 5&6) EarQ Testing (Boardroom)
2:00pm
3:30pm
RPAG/ Wells Fargo (Susan Inwood)/Q&A (St. Lucie Suite)
2:00pm
6:00pm
7:00pm
8:00pm
8:00pm
9:00pm
9:15pm
10:15pm
10:15pm
1:00am
Start
End
Bus Transportation
NBA Pension
Legends of Basketball Open Golf (Club Med Golf Academy) Members Dinner (Marketplace – Sections 5&6) Entertainment-Provided by Club Med (Slice Bar) After Dinner Entertainment presented by O Happy Day Tours and Travel Agency Comedian and Host, Eman and Dj’ed by Music Producer Sole Profit (Florida Ballroom) Legends Party & Dance Sponsored by: O Happy Day Tours & Travel Agency (Florida Ballroom)
Sunday, September 22, 2013 (Sandpiper Resort)
Departing Sandpiper Resort at 12pm arriving at PBI at 1pm and FLL at 2pm Departing Sandpiper Resort at 2pm arriving at PBI at 3pm and FLL at 4pm
9:00am
10:00am
Members Farewell Breakfast (Marketplace – Sections 5&6)
9:00am
5:00pm
Club Med Recreational Activities (Sandpiper Resort)
12:00pm
1:30pm
Club Med Lunch (Marketplace – Sections 5&6)
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NBRPA Members Reflect
August 28, 2013
NBRPA Members Reflect on the 50th Anniversary of ‘I Have a Dream’ Today marks the 50th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. delivering his historic “I Have a Dream” speech. Dr. King moved more than 250,000 spectators with his iconic voice and created a landmark moment for race relations in the United States. This was a historic moment for our country and its citizens. Certainly sports were not immune to the ugliness of segregation and many within the NBRPA lived it. Those that played professional basketball after the days of segregation still felt certain racial tensions that accompanied the civil rights movement of the 1960s and 1970s. Race relations continue to play a role in professional basketball, just as they do in our society as a whole. NBRPA Member Earl Lloyd was our first pioneer to walk through the door, when he became the first African-American player to participate in an NBA game on Halloween night of 1950. Hundreds upon hundreds of African American NBRPA Members followed in his footsteps, changing the make-up of professional basketball and impacting America’s racial profile. In honor of today’s 50th anniversary of Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech, the editors of LegendsofBasketball. com spoke with several NBRPA Members from various generations about their reflections on this watershed moment and civil rights overall. Listed alphabetically, here are their thoughtful comments and reflections. – Arnie D. Fielkow, President & CEO of the National Basketball Retired Players Association JOE BARRY CARROLL AL ATTLES (NBA 1980-1991) (NBA 1960-1971) (I Have A Dream) was aspirational (I Have a Dream) alleviated a lot as well as inspirational. It’s what we of the things that went on during that hoped for and gives most of us the intime. I was fortunate enough to go to spiration to reach to that. school in Greensboro, NC (at North Carolina A&T), where a lot of us took I’m grateful for the sacrifices that part in sit down strikes and demonstrathose who went before me made. The tions. I went to college with a number gratitude is tremendous and I am so of people who worked with Dr. King grateful for the efforts that players and it’s really a revelation what he was made to pave the way for players trying to do for all people. coming in as well as people outside of basketball especially I think we’ve made some progress, but we still have those who were working hard to make things better. I try to a long way to go. The people who are involved (in civil do whatever I can now to help those have a better underrights)now are doing a great job, but it has to be two sides standing about our generation. working on it to for it to actually get done. HARVEY CATCHINGS (NBA 1974-1985) MACK CALVIN (ABA 1969-1976, NBA 1976-1981) As I rewind my memory back to the March on Washington that was (I Have a Dream) means freedom held on August 28, 1963 in Washington, for all. Martin Luther King’s speech is DC, I remember – at the tender age a prophetic spiritual statement that of almost 12 – seeing it on television. represents a vision that he saw in the My mother and father made sure that coming future where there would be I watched most of the program, even freedom, love, and compassion for one though I wanted to go outside and another. It made no difference what play. (My parents) had respect and your ethnicity was or whether you’re fear of what this would mean to our gay or straight or black, brown or red. area because, Jackson, Miss. was not the most liberal thinkWhen I started in the late 1960’s, there was a quar- ing city in the South. ter system in professional basketball that only allowed The March on Washington probably opened the eyes I think three African Americans on a team. So if you of a lot of black people in our area because that was one of see where we’ve come today, it’s opening up not only the proudest days when they saw thousands and thousands for African Americans, but people of all ethnicities. of people around the fountain, as I called it back then, lisThat is, if you have the talent and opportunity to play. tening to a man that looked like me talk about a dream that he had about our future. I think that’s part of the speech. I view it as a prophetic viThings truly started changing in our city, there was a sion that Martin Luther King had at the time, because no one could’ve foreseen where we would be today. So yes it cry for integration and the tension started to build. I rehas impacted me a great deal as an African American man. member seeing the water fountains downtown with the Again, we have so far to go and I hope to continue to do my signs. The white only signs over the fountains were almost part as an African American in my community to fulfill the pristine and proper. The colored signs and fountain showed tremendous signs of wear and tear and the fountains themprophecy and the dream of Dr. Martin Luther King. 22
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selves were in disrepair, showing the superiority of whites in society. I never really thought about the significance of it at the time, because my parents would never let me drink out of them. I guess they were setting the stage for my thinking that we are all equal in the eyes of God, so why should I think less of myself. There are moments that shape who we are and after taking an inventory of the many episodes, (I Have a Dream) has to rank in the top three events of my life. I commend Dr. Martin Luther King for his courage and commitment to trying to get people to just do the right thing. Here we are 50 years later, and unfortunately, the fight continues for equality. SPENCER HAYWOOD (ABA 1969-1970, NBA 1970-1983) The issues (Martin Luther King) was addressing back then are similar to what is going on today – voting, jobs, equality for women, better education for our students. I mean that’s what the whole speech was about. I’ve been posting to my Facebook page some of my favorite quotes by Martin Luther King, such as “There is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us,” “We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools,” and “We may have come on different ships, but we’re in the same boat now.” All of these great thoughts remain true today.
MAJOR JONES (NBA 1979-1985) (I Have a Dream) means there’s hope – from the time back then until now. There is still hope, but we have a ways to go. (The civil rights movement) has impacted me greatly. It made me realize what our ancestors went through. It also made me realize what my parents went through. The hardships that they faced and the glimmer of hope they had to be able to endure those things. It gives me hope that although we haven’t achieved full equality there’s still hope. I must do everything in my power to try and make sure that moving forward I do everything I can to get Dr. King’s dream and his legacy fulfilled. EARL LLOYD (NBA 1950-1960) (I Have a Dream) meant to me that there are some (loving) people here on this earth. We’ve come a long way since then (in civil rights), but the sad part about it is that a lot of folks don’t understand loving. If you take a closer look at what’s happening today, if Martin Luther King rose out of his grave tomorrow, he’d cry like a little baby. It’s the same old, same old … we just wear different kinds of clothes. Let me tell you, hatred is a terrible thing. All you can do is be the best person you can be
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Career Transition: What’s Your Game Plan? Everyone knows that professional athletes are some of the most talented, competitive people on the court. But, it’s often overlooked that many of the same high-achievers from professional sports go on to find success in many business, education, and various professional settings. Success off the court is a result of asking the right questions, finding answers and strategically planning the next play. The reality is that a player’s career is often much shorter than they expect and, after their “playing career” ends a plan must be established. Former athletes need to have a credible picture of the future; understanding their strengths and motivational needs and how they can bring value to an organization. As you enter a new marketplace and new reality think about the following: Where is the Intersection of Talent and Passion? � Creating a well-defined path happens through career assessment, talking to mentors and/or going back to school. Through this process athletes can begin to discover where their talent and passion intersect. Having Sound Fundamentals � It’s important to get help from experts for resume preparation, career coaching and job placement in developing your successful career transition strategy. It’s a Contact Sport! � Stay in contact with your existing network (teammates, coaches, etc.) and build new relationships from alumni/letterwinner groups. Use Adversity to Accelerate Growth � Utilize the leadership and teamwork skills you developed from playing in your competitive sport and translate those skills into the workplace. One of the most important questions to ask is how to define success? Traditionally success is seen as: � picking yourself up just one more time � the continued expansion of happiness � the setting and achieving of worthy goals I like Thoreau’s definition of success. Thoreau defines success as advancing confidently in the direction of your own dream, in order to live a life that only you can imagine. It’s time that you define the dream and imagine what is possible for you! Jim Arnold is a Former NFL Player and current VP of Business Development at Gone Pro. Gone Pro provides career management and job placement services to former collegiate and professional athletes, who have Gone Pro In Something Else®. Send comments or questions to Jim at j.arnold@gonepro.com.
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Bruce Weinstein
480-621-3646
www.premierswplanning.com 26
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bruce@psigllc.com
By Bruce Weinstein
DISABILITY INSURANCE MAKES SENSE
Most People Think They are Insulated From a Life Changing Disability “It won’t happen to me.”
Many professional athletes protect their contracts from a career-ending injury with a disability insurance policy. As athletes complete their careers, those disability insurance policies are cancelled. Some athletes will transition into new business ventures, such as starting their own business or hiring on with a company. Some athletes are fortunate enough to have saved a great deal of their wealth while others are not. Regardless of a retired athlete’s situation, the facts are unsettling. • 7 in 10 workers1: That’s how many workers could not cover their normal living expenses for more than six months. • 1,825 days2: More than one in five workers will be disabled for five years or more during their working careers. • Five years of income reserves2: That’s how much savings may be needed for the 20 percent who become disabled long-term during their working careers. Most people associate disability with accident injuries but approximately 90 percent of disabilities are caused by illness rather than accidents3. The biggest single cause is musculoskeletal problems, such as chronic back trouble. The same survey found that disability claims increase with age. More than one-third of long-term disability claims in 2008 and 2009 were from people age 50-59, by far the highest percentage of any age group. How many people do you know who have had some form of cancer? I am confident that everyone would raise his or her hand. My best friend battled colorectal cancer
for four years prior to passing away at the age of 45. A prominent attorney in Scottsdale, Arizona, he exhausted all of his savings fighting for his life. But he had purchased a disability policy several years prior to his battle which allowed him to cover his basic monthly expenses. Are you prepared if something like this were to happen to you? What I tell my clients is that you should review any disability insurance policy you have or are considering purchasing to look for any shortfalls. There are taxation issues if you deduct premiums. Be sure that the benefit amount is enough to cover your basic monthly expenses. What is the definition of total disability in the policy? Does it protect you in your occupation? Do you have to be totally and continuously disabled in order to collect benefits? Do you have inflation protection? Answers to these questions, among many others, are things to ascertain. Let’s say you make $100,000 a year. Wouldn’t it make better financial sense to make $97,000 a year and applying the remaining $3,000 towards a disability policy? Now you are protecting 40-60 percent of your gross income in the event of a disability. Life doesn’t stop when you become disabled. Your basic needs continue and with the rising costs of healthcare, your estate value will decrease significantly. It is always a good idea to seek the help of a financial advisor when purchasing a disability insurance policy to review the language and what is covered and what is not. Never assume that “It will never happen to me.” Protect your present and future financial situation. To learn more please visit www.premierswplanning.com or call 602-7054555.
Council for Disability Awareness, Worker Disability Planning and Preparedness Study, 2008. Commisioner’s Disability Insurance Tables A and C, assuming equal weights by gender and occupation class. Council for Disability Awareness, Long-Term Disability Claims Review, 2012. Bruce Weinstein is a financial advisor and managing member of Premier Southwest Planning Group LLC. He is also a member of The Sports Financial Advisor Association (SFAA), a non-profit association of CPAs, attorneys and financial advisors. Investment Advisory Services offered through Premier Southwest Planning Group, LLC Securities offered through The O.N. Equity Sales Company Member FINRA/SIPC One Financial Way, Cincinnati, OH 45242 (513) 794-6794 The O.N. Equity Sales Company and Premier Southwest Planning Group, LLC are not affiliated 1
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WHERE ARE THEY NOW
Findlay Prep Promotes Jerome Williams to Head Coach and Andy Johnson to Program Director and Associate Head Coach “I’m blessed and honored to be the next Head Coach of this elite program,” said Williams. Findlay Prep Assistant and former NBA player Jerome Williams promoted to Head Coach and Andy Johnson promoted to Program Director and Associate Head Coach Findlay Prep of the Henderson International School has announced Jerome Williams as head coach of the Findlay Prep program and Andy Johnson as the new Program Director and Associate Head Coach. Williams served as Associate Head Coach of Findlay Prep this past season. The Pilots went 35-1 and played in their 5thNational High School Invitational finishing the season ranked as high as #1 in the post season polls under Coach Todd Simon. Johnson has been an assistant coach with the program since 2009 and has played a key role in building the program to national prominence. Williams has also been a part of the Findlay program since 2009 in various roles from Player Development to Assistant Coach. “I’m blessed and honored to be the next Head Coach of this elite program,” said Williams. “I thank the Findlay Education Foundation and Henderson International for allowing me to step into the shoes of Todd 28
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Simon and Michael Peck on a quest to win another National Championship and produce productive college scholarship student athletes.” The Findlay Prep program has produced seven McDonald’s AllAmericans, seven Jordan Brand AllAmericans and won 3 National High School Invitational titles in the past 5 seasons This past June, alum Anthony Bennett was selected as the #1 overall pick in the NBA Draft. A number of other Findlay Prep athletes have gone on to play in the NBA, including Tristan Thompson (Cleveland), Avery Bradley (Boston), Cory Joseph (San Antonio), and DeAndre Liggins (Orlando). Previous Head Coach Todd Simon accepted a position as an assistant coach at UNLV after last season’s 351 campaign. He was with the program from its inception in 2006. He succeeded Michael Peck who was hired by the NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers to head their D-League affiliate Idaho Stampede team. In the past 6 seasons the Pilots went a combined 192-9 with 3 NHSI titles and spent time as the #1 ranked team in each of those 6 seasons. The Findlay Prep program will also retain assistants Michael Smalley, entering his 4th year with the program,
as well as Brett Price, entering his 6th year with the program. Findlay Prep of the Henderson International School has been equally successful in the classroom and in their community endeavors as on the court. “Findlay Prep is a world-class program and a valued asset to our community.” Said Henderson International School headmaster Seth Ahlborn, “Our focus on excellence in athletics and academics in the Henderson International and Findlay Prep programs prepare young people for entry into the nation’s best colleges and careers. Jerome “JYD” Williams JYD Project Inc. 2831 St. Rose pkwy ste. 203 Henderson, NV. 89052 (702)589-4658 www.jydproject.com www.jeromewilliams.info
August 26, 2013
Q&A with AARON JAMES
Aaron James the New Athletic Director at Grambling State University NBRPA member Aaron James was recently named Athletic Director of his alma mater, Grambling State University. A native of Louisiana, James experienced the rare opportunity to play a vast majority of his basketball career in his home state with the old New Orleans Jazz. James was a prep All-American at New Orleans Cohen High School and then attended Grambling, where he was a 3-time All-Southwestern Athletic Conference pick. James was the SWAC MVP as a senior, leading the nation in scoring with a 32.1 average in 1973-74. Drafted in 1974 by the Jazz, James averaged 10.8 points, 4.1 rebounds, and had 370 assists over the span of 356 games. After his retirement from the NBA, James served as Grambling’s Assistant Women’s Basketball Coach, Head Men’s Basketball Coach and Assistant Director of Athletics before being named AD. Q: While growing up, what players did you look up to? Elgin Baylor, Bill Russell, Wilt Chamberlin, Gary West, and Sam Jones Q: What would you say was the overall highlight of your basketball career? I don’t know if there’s one overall highlight. There are probably quite a few of them, but I think one of them I cherish that’s close to my heart is the only championship I ever won when I played in the Philippines. I think that’s an accomplishment I always look back on and say that was the one. Another big success I had not pertaining to basketball was when I graduated from college. That was a great achievement for me. My father never saw me play basketball in high school or college. My mother was always there, but my father told me if you graduate from college, I’ll be there and he was right there at that time. So I think that was a huge accomplishment for me. Q: How does it feel to be named the Athletic Director of your alma mater, Grambling State University? It’s a great feeling, because I’ve been around here all my life. Grambling has been terrific to my family and me. My kids received degrees here, so Grambling is very dear to me. Having the opportunity to come back and be in a position where I can help make a legacy here is just a tremendous feeling for me. Q: What aspects of your new title as Athletic Director excite you the most? Well, I don’t know if there’s one specific thing that excites me the most. I think one thing is that I’ve set some goals for myself that I would like to try and achieve this first year. One of my goals is getting all of our units in good standings with APR. Another would be getting a student athletes fund here. We tried to pass one last year and it failed. So I think one of things that we’re going to accomplish this year is pass the student athlete’s fund, which would be a big plus for our budget. Also, fundraising is going to be a main point. We need some outside sources because the way the state of Louisiana is going they’re cutting our aid every year so we need to bring in some outside funds.
Q: How did you get started in college athletics? I started off at Jarvis Christian College as Head Basketball Coach for the men and I was also a physical education instructor. I stayed there for two years, then a job opportunity became available at Grambling for the Assistant Women’s Basketball Coach. I took the job here and I must have stayed three to four years in that capacity. Then, I was promoted to Head Men’s Basketball Coach and I stayed in that position for six to seven years. After which, I became Assistant Athletic Director and I also worked in development. From there I even taught classes as an assistant professor. Next, I started working as Assistant Athletic Director again. Soon after, I became Interim Athletic Director and I’ve been interim two different times. This was the last time before they made my title permanent. Q: You’ve played a large role in GSU’S athletics program following your NBA career, has the role of Athletic Director always been a goal of yours? Yeah, this is now my 27th year I’ve been here. It wasn’t a goal of mine before I was coaching, because I really wanted to coach early in life. Then after I got a taste of it and enjoyed the coaching part of it, I looked around and thought about the administrative aspect. One thing I did always know was that I wanted to be a part of athletics in some capacity. So after experiencing the administration part of it I thought I could do a fairly decent job in that area. Q: Besides being named GSU’s athletic director, what else have you been up to these days? I have two kids. One of is living in New Orleans and the other in Arlington, Texas. Both of them work in social security offices for the federal government. My wife, Abigail, is the Director of the Title One program in Ruston, Louisiana. So basically we live an even keel life.
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By Raynard Jackson
Junior Bridgeman:
From The NBA Hardwood To The Boardroom So often in today’s media, professional athletes are caricatured as dumb, narcissistic, spoiled brats who know the cost of everything and the value of nothing. In today’s world of sports, if you are not chest-bumping or causing some other attention to be drawn to yourself, you are considered boring. In today’s celebrity obsessed society, people know who is pregnant, the baby’s name, who is sleeping with whom, etc. Strangely enough, today, you can be famous for being famous—with no accomplishments to speak of. But, yet, “old-school” success has never gone out of vogue, it’s just been ignored. Everyone knows Michael Jordan and Earvin “Magic” Johnson, but who knows Ulysses Lee “Junior” Bridgeman? Typical measures of success are how much money you make, how many gold records you have, or how many championships you have won. But, my measure of success is the distance travelled from where you began. Bridgeman played 12 years in the National Basketball Association (NBA)—10 years for the Milwaukee Bucks and 2 years for the Los Angeles Clippers. He was born in East Chicago, Indiana and played college ball (and graduated) at the University of Louisville. His father was a blue collar steel mill worker, as was very common in that part of the country during the 60s. Bridgeman was considered a very good, steady player and was able to make a good living playing basketball. Mind you, Bridgeman’s professional basketball career spanned from 1975 to 1987, well before players were paid the exorbitant money they are now paid. He retired right before players started to make the big money. Though Michael Jordan made the bulk of his money from endorsement deals, he still made close to $ 100 million in salary from the NBA alone. Bridgeman never made anywhere close to that type of money. Magic Johnson probably made even more money than Jordan from salary alone, being in LA. With that as my premise, I would argue that Bridgeman is more successful than either Jordan or Johnson. Not so much in terms of money (though he is estimated to be worth well over $ 200 million), but in terms of where he started. The NBA helped him make a living, but his morals and values helped him make a life. His company, Bridgeman Foods LLC, operates over 160 Wendy’s hamburger restaurants (he is the second largest Wendy’s franchisee in the world). He also owns over 118 Chili’s restaurants. He has over 11,000 employees and revenues in excess of $ 500 million. He is listed as one of the top 20 “Richest Black Americans,” according to Forbes Magazine and is ranked # 3 on the Restaurant Finance Monitor’s Top 200 franchisee-owned companies. An avid golfer, he also sits on the board of directors of the Professionals Golfers Association (PGA).
While his fellow athletes were hanging out during the off season, Bridgeman was working in local Wendy’s restaurants, learning the business from top to bottom. Again, basketball helped him make a living. But, his wife of 34 years, Doris has helped him make a life. They have three adult children (Justin, Ryan, and Eden) and all are working in the family business. Both Justin and Ryan have MBAs and Eden is in preparation for hers. Last month, I profiled another successful businessman, David Steward of World Wide Technology (www.blackenterprise.com/news-politics/moralsuccess). He and Bridgeman are identical twins, as far as their approach to business is concerned. They both have been married to their respective wives for over 30 years and both believe you can be a successful businessman and a Christian at the same time. They are not mutually exclusive. Why has TV One or BET never profiled Blacks who made their money in industries other than sports and entertainment? Bridgeman is a very private person, but I would hope that he will allow more people the privilege of meeting someone of this stature and to share the beauty of how you can raise a beautiful family, earn an honest living and have a good life. Raynard Jackson is president & CEO of Raynard Jackson & Associates, LLC., a D.C.-public relations/government affairs firm. His website is: www.raynardjackson.com.
The NBA helped him make a living, but his morals and values helped him make a life.
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Jamal Mashburn:
couldn’t stop thinking about briefcases Jamal Mashburn had everything an athlete could dream of. During his 12 years in the NBA in the 1990s and early 2000s, “Monster Mash” was instrumental in turning around the Dallas Mavericks; he also set several scoring records and was even selected for the All-Star Game while playing for the New Orleans Hornets. But despite all that success, he couldn’t stop thinking about briefcases. “Growing up in Harlem and riding buses, trains and cabs to get to school downtown, I was always curious about what was in the briefcases people were carrying,” he remembers. “I always wondered, What are they doing? The people always seemed important and had direction and purpose. I grew up idolizing the briefcase. To me, it symbolized information and knowledge.” Because his father had been a professional boxer, Mashburn had few illusions about the life of an elite athlete when he was drafted by the NBA. Unlike many of his teammates, he recognized that his career was always just one injury or one bad season away from ending forever. So, instead of blowing money on cars and houses, he began buying franchises with a group of investors, including his old college basketball coach at the University of Kentucky, Rick Pitino. Now, six years after his last layup, Mashburn has a briefcase full of contracts for 37 Papa John’s, 34 Outback Steakhouses, three Dunkin’ Donuts and the largest Toyota dealership in Kentucky. “I think I was a little bit of an anomaly, because I was thinking about my exit even when I entered the league. Most guys don’t start thinking about that stuff ‘til their seventh or even 10th year,” he says. “They’ve been in the basketball industry since they were a young kid. It’s all they know. And now they have to find something else, another passion.” The Stats Mashburn is more of an anomaly than he knows. Roughly 60 percent of NBA players find themselves bankrupt five years after retiring, while 78 percent of NFL players are in financial trouble two years after taking off the pads, according to the NBA Players Association and Sports Illustrated, respectively. Poor financial literacy, bad investments, outright fraud and the common delusion that careers last forever have made some of the strongest humans on earth some of the most financially vulnerable. While there’s no magic bullet for the problem, Michael Stone, an NFL safety for seven years, is among those who believe the franchise world can provide former athletes a safe way to ease into their post-sports life. That’s why he formed the Professional Athletes Franchise Initiative (PAFI), which in October 2011 signed a memorandum of understanding with the International Franchise Association. The goal is to educate pro athletes on franchising and to network them with franchisors. Athletes get a stable postsports career; the companies get franchisees with deep pockets and built-in publicity. “Just imagine if you were a doctor and spent all that time and money going to med school, but once you got your license, you had only four years to practice medicine. Then, overnight, everything you worked so hard to learn has no value,” Stone says. “That’s what athletes face. They have a
few years to maximize a lifetime of preparation and training, because once it’s gone, it’s gone.” Stone believes franchising is uniquely suited to the skill sets of professional athletes. “It’s a good fit, because franchising parallels sports,” he says. “Athletes are executors. You follow prescribed movements put together by a coach and organization to win a ballgame. “I was thinking about my exit even when I entered the In franchising, you league.” --Jamal Mashburn have the game Photo© Josh Ritchie plan and business model put together by the franchisor. Like an athlete, the operator has to come in and execute the plan.” Going Pro There are no official statistics on how many sports stars have gotten in on the action, but there is growing evidence that athletes and franchising do mix. Jamba Juice recently signed a deal with tennis ace Venus Williams to open five stores in Washington, D.C. An investment group led by Super Bowl champ Keyshawn Johnson, along with NFL star Reggie Bush and other elite athletes, has opened Panera Bread franchises along California’s central coast. And Junior Bridgeman, a Milwaukee Bucks stalwart, has parlayed his 12-year basketball career into a franchise empire that includes 162 Wendy’s and 121 Chili’s restaurants, bringing in $507 million in revenue per year. PAFI does not aim to sucker athletes into blindly signing franchise agreements. Instead, Stone wants to create a community of educated athletes making smart financial decisions. He wants to build a trusted bridge between franchisors and the pros, who are often overwhelmed by con men, investors and family members trying to get a piece of their earnings. To that end, in the summers of 2010 and 2011, PAFI sponsored two-day education summits at which top names in the franchising world gave athletes a boot camp in the basics of franchising, helping them figure out the steps to take and the skills to develop in order to succeed. “We’re not concerned about getting guys to come to the summit and open a franchise, though we do have 28 brands that are charter members,” Stone says. “We want to create a pipeline. Over the next five to 10 years we want to start a wave of successful athlete franchisees. It’s always a stain on sports when guys retire into bankruptcy. We want a deep relationship with the NBA as well as the NFL. And we’re pushing hard with Major League Baseball and the National Hockey League, too.” REBOUND
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Building a bridge to the pro leagues is not just a charity drive. Franchisors see athletes as prime candidates, since they typically have a large pool of investment cash, lack the expertise to start their own business from scratch and have large networks of friends in the same position. And pro athletes come with built-in marketing buzz. In a time when the credit crunch has hamstrung mom-and-pop investors, self-funded athletes or sports groups are a lucrative niche market for franchisors. The Dallas-based Wingstop franchise knows firsthand the power of bringing pro athletes into its system. Troy Aikman, former Dallas Cowboys quarterback and threetime Super Bowl champ, is an investor and sits on the board of directors, besides serving as the company’s national spokesman. Wingstop markets its concept directly to athletes through franchise shows and networking, and now counts NFL players Raheem Brock, Willie McGinest and Ron Stone as franchisees. Most recently, Milwaukee Bucks power forward Drew Gooden signed a deal to open four Wingstop restaurants in the Orlando, Fla., area. “I think the basketball strike really drove home for Gooden that his basketball career is going to be over someday,” says David Vernon, the company’s vice president of franchise sales. “He’s a smart young man and brought onboard a partner with good casual-dining experience. The smart athletes know they have to bring on someone with expertise, especially if they’re still focused on playing.”
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Angelo Crowell, a linebacker in the NFL for seven seasons before injuries ended his career, was interested in a more hands-on management approach when he opened his two Jersey Mike’s Subs outlets in the Tallahassee, Fla., area. “I had heard all the horror stories about 80 percent of startup companies failing,” he remembers. “With franchising you don’t have to reinvent the wheel--you just roll the wheel.” When he found that Jersey Mike’s had territories open near him, he knew it was a sign; he had more or less lived on the chain’s Club Sub sandwich since his junior year in high school. And he’s more than a passive investor. “I have two managers who run the stores on a daily basis, but I’m definitely involved in all operations,” he says. “You’ll see me behind the line sometimes. I’m the owner, but I’m also one of the best employees.” Crowell doesn’t pine for his glory days in the NFL. “It’s just as exciting being an entrepreneur and employing 50 people as it was playing football,” he says. “It’s more of a success story for me. I own my own corporation. The more people understand the work that goes into running these restaurants, the more they respect it. I see myself as a head coach and general manager of an NFL team, and my employees are my players.” Winning Strategy Mashburn applauds other pro players moving into the franchise world, but warns that it’s not some sort of plugand-play cash machine. Owning a franchise takes just as much work as it took to reach the pros. “I ask guys who are interested in franchising, ‘Did you wake up one day and put your name in the draft?’ No, it was a process. You played in grade school, high school, college and, if you were lucky enough to be healthy after all that, you put your name in the draft,” he says. “Guys miss how long my journey was to get to this point. They think they can just buy a franchise and make money. They might as well go buy a boat. You have to understand what you’re getting into and to humble yourself to find people to mentor and educate you. I think guys who were pro athletes have trouble with the humility part.” Michael Stone agrees. “I think a lot of athletes want to retire and move into the corporate realm and come into an organization at a management position. But they’re 30 years old and they’ve never been in a corporate setting. I understand the frustration these guys feel. They may have a great NFL résumé, but in reality that’s just a big gap in their real résumé,” he says. “My biggest piece of advice to athletes is to network. Get to know people in your community as your career comes to an end. Use that to gain experience and to grow.” Read more: www.entrepreneur.com/article/222671#ixzz2bs78KmK9
By Jim McIlvaine
Airing Things Out
Are You Ready for a Return to Private Aviation? If there's one thing that can be said of the NBA lifestyle over the last 20 years, it is that private air charters have set a standard of travel that leave former players permanently jaded at the mere thought of flying commercial. The convenience, comfort and privacy of private air travel are simply unparalleled. While some may think those days are behind them, an explosion in private aviation has created many options for those looking to fly to their destinations. Several former NBA players are now private pilots and while they may not be flying decked-out 737s, they are still enjoying many of the perks taken for granted during our NBA days. One such player is Todd Fuller, whom we caught up with at the annual EAA Airventure in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, where we asked about his journey to becoming a private pilot. Todd graduated from North Carolina State in 1996 with a degree in applied mathmatics and was drafted by Golden State with the 11th overall pick in the first round of the 1996 NBA draft. He spent two seasons with the Warriors, before being traded to the Utah Jazz. He also spent one season each with the Charlotte Hornets and Miami Heat during his five-year NBA career. Fuller then went overseas, playing six seasons for various teams in Spain, Greece, Poland and Australia before retiring from pro basketball in 2006. Fuller has been interested in aviation since his parents gave him flying lessons as a Christmas gift in 1986. The $300 package included ten hours of ground school and ten hours of flight instruction time. Todd wasted little time and took his first lesson the next day at just 12 years of age. He continued with two to three lessons per month through 1991, before focusing his attention on basketball and not returning to the cockpit until 2007. “The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) says you need 40 hours of total logged time to become a pilot,” says Fuller. “That includes at least ten hours of solo time on trips that exceed 50 miles and some other requirements, including written, flight and oral exams.” Most pilots have well in excess of the minimum 40 hours of flight time when they become certified and Todd had over 100 hours, due to nearly completing the process in 1991. If you ask ten different pilots how much it costs to get your license, you may get as many different answers. Todd believes cost-conscious pilots can get their pilot’s license for as little as $5,000-$6,000 but acknowledges those fees can easily exceed $10,000-$20,000. The fees vary, depending on where you rent an aircraft and what type of aircraft you rent. Fuller estimates a Cessna 172 can be rented for about $100 an hour, with fuel included at some flight schools. Aviation fuel currently runs about $5.50/gallon, but the Cessna 172 is fairly-fuel efficient, burning about ten gallons per hour. Todd’s love of flying lead him to purchase his own plane, a Cessna 182RG, in October of 2007 and he makes a point of trying to fly several times a month. “An airplane is the most practical thing I own,” claims Fuller.
So what does it cost to get into a plane? “I’ve heard of pilots finding older Cessna 172s that are in airworthy condition for $40,000-$50,000, which means they’re safe and flightworthy, but don’t have a lot of bells and whistles in terms of electronics,” says Fuller. Cessna 182RGs, similar to Todd’s plane, can typically go for twice that much, with new models exceeding $500,000. Todd’s family uses their plane, which seats four (including the pilot), on trips all over the East coast. “We went to Chicago and saved money, but I don’t always look at that because I also include the fun factor and the convenience,” says Todd. On that trip, he estimated roudtrip commercial airfare to Chicago for his family of four would have cost over $1,000. That’s more than he spent on fuel for his plane, which is the bulk of the expense in making such a trip privately. However, it is far from the only expense. Maintaining a plane is just like any other form of transportation- bigger, fancier models require more upkeep. Fuller says the biggest expense is the annual inspection, which takes 18 hours on his plane and is a big component of the $4,000-$5,000 he spends each year on maintenance. Insurance rates are driven by the pilot’s experience and type of airplane, with Todd estimating he spends about $1,200 a year on premiums. Storage fees can also vary widely from enclosed hangars to the more economical tarmac tie-downs, which Fuller rents for about $800 per year at his airport. Owning a plane may not require visits to the DMV, but your local government will look to tax your plane, with rates varying by the municipality where it is stored. All of these fees and expenses may be too overwhelming for some folks, which is why fractional ownership, where a single plane has two or more owners who share associated expenses, is so popular. If private flight still interests you, but you’d rather not deal with flying or owning a plane, several companies offer pre-paid flight card options for a fixed amount of flight time. The jet aircraft used by these services are a significant step up from the Cessna Todd flies, but they’ll get you where you’re going a whole lot faster and with a level of service reminiscent of your NBA days. Buckle up, because some of these cards start at $124,000 for 25 hours of flight time. For those who may only travel a few times per year, have more flexibility in their plans and prefer to pay as they go, charter service options can be a good fit in a wide range of price points and associated levels of service. At the end of the day, all of these choices are going to be more expensive than the human cattle drive now known as commercial air travel. Is it worth the extra cost? Ask yourself that question the next time you’re squeezed into a window seat next to a 300-pound insurance salesman, as he regales you with three hours worth of halitosis-laced tales about his other encounters with pro athletes, woodworking projects and the intricacies of term life insurance policies.
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Eddie Arnet Johnson a True Scorer In his 17 year NBA career Eddie Arnet Johnson was known as a true scorer tallying more than 19,000 points in 1,200 games. Since his retirement in 1999, Johnson has become a respected broadcaster, motivational speaker and assists young athletes thanks to his new book, “You Big Dummy! An Athlete’s ‘Simple’ Guide to a Successful Career!” Johnson grew up in the CabriniGreen housing project, in the East Garfield Park neighborhood, on the Westside of Chicago. That area is known for being a rough and violent section of Chicago but it also known for developing many great basketball players. Several players from that part of town made it to the NBA including Hall of Famer Isaiah Thomas, Mark Aquirre and Johnson. There the 6-7 sharp shooter honed his shooting skills because there wasn’t much focus on defense. Johnson attended Westinghouse Vocational High school, another hotbed of basketball. There with Aquirre as a teammate they went 29-0 before losing in the playoffs. Following his high school career Johnson received offers from just about every major college. He decided to stay home and attended the University of Illinois. Johnson had a great career wearing the orange and blue averaging 14.3 points, but he might be best remembered for hitting the game winning shot against Magic Johnson’s Michigan State Spartans. MSU was undefeated and ranked #1 in the nation at the time, but the Fighting Illini was also undefeated at 14-0. The victory gave Illinois a 15-0 record and the #2 ranking nationally however Illinois faded down the stretch and the Spartans defeated Larry Bird and Indiana State for the NCAA Championship. “I never thought I would make the NBA until my junior year,” Johnson said. “My sole focus was getting my degree. I wanted to be the first in my family to get a degree. My junior year I just started to take off. Maturity, focus and loving the game as you should in order to get better.” After college Johnson was selected in the second round, 29th overall, in the 1981 NBA Draft by the Kansas City Kings and Coach Cotton Fitzsimons, 34
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“The best team I could have gone to,” Johnson said. “At the end of the spectrum of the draft all the teams are good teams and getting picked late in the first round meant it would have been tough to make the team and play a lot. It got to the second round and I heard that Kansas City was going to draft me and I was excited about that because I knew I could make the team.” Johnson had some of his best individual seasons with the Kings in both Kansas City and when the club moved to Sacramento but not many people noticed because the team struggled. The six years he was with them they only made the playoffs twice and were swept in the first round each time. On June 21, 1987, in what Johnson calls, “the Kings biggest mistake they ever made,” Johnson was traded to the Phoenix Suns for forward Ed Pickney. Phoenix was on the rise and Cotton Fitzsimons, who was now the Sun’s Director of Player Personal, acquired Johnson making him the first piece of the puzzle. “The Kings made it be known that they were going towards defense and that is why Eddie is gone,” I made one simple statement. I said, you will see me soon and I am going to show you how good your defense is. I scored 38 on them. After the game I told the new coach Bill Russell, Good defense.” The first year E.J. was with the Suns, the team was in transition going only 28-54. Fitzsimmons continued to
make quality additions signing Free Agent Tom Chambers and trading one of the Suns’ best and most popular players, Larry Nance to Cleveland for point guard Kevin Johnson, center Mark West and forward Tyrone Corbin. Dividends paid of immediately in that year, 1987-88. The team improved a club record 27 games posting a mark of 55-27 and advanced to the Western Conference Finals were they were defeated by the Los Angeles Lakers. That season Johnson came off the bench for all of seven games and averaged 21.4 points, which was the highest total for a bench player that year which garnered him the NBA Sixth Man Award. The numbers that Johnson put up that season certainly should have warranted an All- Star selection but Chambers, who averaged 25.7 and Kevin Johnson received more notoriety. Despite scoring 19,202 points, which was the 22nd highest total in NBA history at the time of his retirement and is still more than all but 17 inductees in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, Johnson was never selected to play in the All-Star game nor ever chosen for an All-NBA team. “That was the year I should’ve made it. At that time there was some old time, antiquated thoughts that drove me crazy,” Johnson said. “At the All-Star break I was averaging 22. People like Pat Riley said if a guy off
Despite scoring 19,202 points, Johnson was never selected to play in the All-Star game nor ever chosen for an All-NBA team.
the bench makes the All- Star team, what does that say about our league? If I was in front of him when he said that I would have smacked him. There were two years when I thought I should’ve made it. That year and one year I was averaging 24 at the break that was with Kansas City. I used to be upset but now it is fine. Every year at the All-Star game I get a ton of interviews.” The next season the Suns again made it to the Western Conference Finals but were eliminated by the Portland Trail Blazers. During the 1990-91 season Johnson was traded to the Seattle SuperSonics where he also enjoyed team success and came closest to an NBA Finals appearance. The Sonics lost to Phoenix in seven games in the 1993 Western Conference Finals despite Johnson scoring 34 points in the final game. Johnson also spent time with the Charlotte Hornets, the Indiana Pacers, the Houston Rockets, and even played a season in Greece, 1994-95 season, before retiring from basketball in 1999, at the age of 40. “That is the hardest thing you are ever going to do, quit something you love,” Johnson said.”But for me, I ran the gamut. Most players in the NBA, three and half years is the norm. You are lucky to get 10, 11 years in.” I had seven more than that but that last year, the rest of that year I laughed at myself. So I knew it was over. I was not going to embarrass myself.” Sometimes the transition from professional athlete to retiree is not an easy one but it was for Johnson, who had prepared himself for that time. While he was still in the NBA, Johnson had started to plan for a broadcasting career following his retirement. He began as a color commentator for Arizona State University Basketball. “I started the transition (to retirement) from my eighth year in the league. I knew I wanted to be either a GM, coach
or be in TV. I knew that my career would be something that I could form an opinion on things and as you well know, I can talk. TV was simple and from my eighth year on I did internships, had my own radio show, TV show and I called WNBA games.” Since 2001 Johnson has supplied color during the Sun’s broadcasts. He has also found the time to be a huge part of the community, being involved with many charity and youth organizations. He has developed an excellent reputation as a motivational speaker and released an instructional DVD called, “Eddie Johnson’s Jumpshot and Offensive Skills.” His most recent endeavor is “You Big Dummy! An Athlete’s ‘Simple’ Guide to a Successful Career!” The 166 page book is not just for athletes. It is aimed at anyone who is breathing that wants to become successful and improve. It is a simple plan for people who just want get to the point where they want to get in life and know how to stay there. “If you Google athletes in trouble that should make you want to do something,” Johnson said. “The one thing I didn’t want to do, I am tired of athletes writing an autobiography. Write about something that is going to help me, that is going to tell me something, that is going to help someone make it. That is what I wanted to do, help people be successful.” It is a book that will help young people navigate though life’s challenges and teach them to make the right decisions. “When you are done with this book you won’t drink and drive and you will understand that no means no in any situation,” Johnson said. “You will understand that a degree will help you when you get money in your hands and you won’t have to rely on other people. “ To buy a copy of “You Big Dummy, An Athlete’s ‘Simple’ Guide to a Successful Career! go to amazon.com.
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REBOUND VEGAS STYLE
By Steven Striker,CEO of Striker VIP, Inc. - The Ultimate Insider in Las Vegas
Rebound Like a VIP in Las Vegas As the founder of Striker VIP, Inc., a five-star luxury Las Vegas host and concierge service, my extensive Rolodex of well-established connections have worked to the distinct benefit of my clientele over the past fifteen years. My clients include The New Jersey Nets, Jason Kidd, Dave Justice and Jerry Rice, just to name a few. These celebrities have enjoyed nothing less than royal treatment while under my care. After years of providing luxury travel services and advice to many celebrities, executives and luxury travelers, I am excited to write for Rebound Magazine and share many of my secrets on how to be treated like a VIP without breaking the bank! So, if you’re on a budget and you want to feel like a VIP, here is some advice that will make your trip a memorable experience. The first thing to consider is your hotel accommodations. The vast array of choices in Las Vegas is staggering, but you will hardly spend any time in your hotel room. When you are in your room, you’ll want a good night’s rest after all of the sightseeing, dining, shopping and gambling you’ll be doing. Secret number one is check out The Palms Place Hotel and Spa. The Palms invented the NBA custom room and created two “Hardwood Suites” for superstars like Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant. These suites include an indoor basketball court, pool table, professional locker room and even a scoreboard! But you don’t have to stay in one of those suites to rebound like a VIP, just request one of the superior guestrooms in the Fantasy Tower of The Palms Place Hotel and Spa. Book one of these rooms, which were built specifically to 9-foot ceiling heights. These modern rooms offer a stateof-the art kitchen, two 42-inch plasma screen televisions, whirlpool bathtub, living room with fireplace and a laundry closet with washer and dryer! The rates are very good and start at $129 per night, just visit www.palms.com/las-vegaspalms-place to book on line or call (702) 942-7777. My next tip is to get tickets to one of the best shows Las Vegas has to offer located inside the beautiful Wynn Hotel called “La Rev” (The Dream). Ex-Cirque du Soliel producer Franco Dragone created the show, where performers dive and conduct incredible feats of aerial acrobatics in (and under) one million gallons of water. The show creates a spectacular aquatic in-the-round theater experience. Make sure to purchase the “VIP Indulgence Package” that includes VIP seating with behind-the-scenes monitors, a bottle of champagne, chocolate covered strawberries and truffles! Seats are limited but are only $195 per person and can only be purchased at the Wynn Hotel box office or on line at www.boxoffice.wynnlasvegas.com. Want to be transported like a Vegas VIP? For a oncein-a lifetime adventure I recommend taking a twilight flight over the city at night. Maverick Helicopter offers a breathtaking evening helicopter ride called the “Las Vegas City of Lights” tour. This exhilarating trip lasts about 12 to 15 minutes and transports you from one end of the strip to the other with spectacular views over the neon-lit mega resorts, the Bellagio fountains and across the Las Vegas skyline. This package also includes a glass of champagne and a memorable photo in front of the Eco-Star helicopter. You will be 36
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able to tell all of your friends you saw Las Vegas just like a high roller --- from the sky for $119.00 per person! Visit Maverick Helicopter Tours at www. maverickhelicopter.com or telephone 1-888-261-4414. Hungry for a little Las Vegas nostalgia? I’ve got just the place. There is a well-known dining institution located right on the Las Vegas strip next to the Riviera Hotel that is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and 365 days a year. The Peppermill Restaurant and Lounge is a mainstay for all types of diners and has been open for over 40 years. The food is incredible, the portion sizes are massive and the prices are the most reasonable in town! The Peppermill has been featured on television in “CSI Las Vegas”, “Showgirls” and in the movie “Casino”. So in between hopping from shopping and sightseeing, grab a cab and get to the Peppermill to relax and order a delicious meal from the Quesadilla appetizer to a Classic Club Sandwich or a Porterhouse steak. If you’re hungry for breakfast, which they serve at any hour of the day, try one of the 10-egg omelets. You can even split one if you like! The staff is courteous and friendly and will make you feel welcome. The Peppermill is located at 2985 South Las Vegas Boulevard, Las Vegas, NV 89109 Tel (7020 735-7635. Now you know some of my secrets on how to create a memorable VIP Vegas experience. There is so much to do and see in Las Vegas (other than gambling) and I look forward to sharing more tips in my next column to help you rebound like a VIP!
Steven Striker, “The Ultimate Las Vegas Insider,” is the Founder and CEO of Striker VIP, Inc. a Five-Star Las Vegas Host, Concierge and Event Services Provider. The company creates exciting, extravagant, once-in-alifetime Las Vegas experiences for those seeking to gain access into Las Vegas’ notorious inner circle, or generally enjoy a spectacular, memorable and hassle-free luxury travel experience. Striker can be reached through his website at www.StrikerVIP.com or via telephone at 702-895-8426.
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BUILDING YOUR DREAM TEAM
Building Your Dream Team (of Advisors)
The Sports Financial Advisors Association (SFAA) recently held its annual conference in San Diego, and joining us was Rebound Magazine’s own, Matt Fish. He spoke to a room of financial professionals and attorneys who are working to further develop best practices for working successfully with current, future and former professional athletes. Included in this group were financial advisors, financial planners, attorneys, accountants, insurance professionals and money managers. As advisors to professional athletes, we are there to provide guidance and advice with financial decisions that are based on our education, experience and accreditations, including the following designations: CFP, CPA, RIA, JD, ChFC, etc. The question for you is this … how can you benefit from the combined years of advice available to you when you decide to work with experienced, licensed professionals? In a prior article we discussed how to find a good advisor. But that is only the beginning. We believe that the best approach is to create your own personal Dream Team of advisors. Any professional (including physicians, business owners and professional athletes) needs a good team of Coaches to provide guidance and direction with critical financial and business decisions. The purpose of having a complete team is that they help you address and integrate ALL the aspects of managing the challenges of a professional athletic career. Coordinating all those decisions will give you the best chance to reach your long-term financial goals. Who is on your team?
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Certified Public Accountants (CPA) – Licensed in each state, CPAs are there to help you with tax return preparation and tax return planning.
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Financial Advisors/Planners – Formerly called stock brokers, these licensed advisors provide investment strategies that fit within your goals; they are crucial to a solid long-term plan to save money and plan for the future. They may be listed as Certified Financial Planners (CFP) or as Registered Investment Advisors (RIA).
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Insurance Professionals – Life Insurance is an important part of a financial plan. Decisions that are made for estate planning are licensed by each state separately. This specialty also includes insuring your home, health, automobiles and collectibles (art and antiques).
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Attorneys – Lawyers play an important role on your team, helping to draft documents for estate planning, business organization, pre-nuptial agreements, divorce and child custody agreements. There are other financial advisors, such as bankers, mortgage brokers, and real estate agents. However, no single individual can have the expertise to manage the complex financial issues faced by professional athletes, both during and after their active careers. By surrounding yourself with your own personal financial Dream Team, you give yourself the best opportunity to take advantage of strategies that will help you to reach your long-term financial goals while still helping you manage some of the day-to-day challenges of your profession. Members of the SFAA will be at the NBA All-Star in game events to speak about financial literacy and the key financial knowledge needed to be successful both during and after a professional athletic career. We hope to see you there.
Fight back against tough economic times A sound defense against market fluctuations can start with an advisor who’s invested in your individual financial goals. Throughout changes in the markets and in your life, we’re on your side. Call today for a second opinion on any of your investments.
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By Shantonie Derrick
NBRPA CHAPTER
HOUSTON The NBRPA has nine chapter cities, with additional chapters on the horizon. Houston is the oldest, largest and most successful of these chapters. After a successful series of community events held during NBA All-Star 2013 in its home city, the NBRPA Houston Chapter is riding a crest of momentum that’s been created by a core group of members working as one. From their humble beginnings, the Houston Chapter has had a vision and passion to not only provide assistance to other retired players as they transition into life after the game, but to serve others and give back to the community. John Egan was elected the first President of the Houston Chapter nearly 20 years ago, but his hard-work and dedication to the organization is the foundation on which the chapter currently operates. Once, Egan decided his time as president was up, Jones took over in 2008 and has served with the same level of tenacity as Egan. With hundreds of NBRPA Members in the area, Jones attributes their great success to his “core group of guys,” which consists of about 20-30 former players that consistently attend meetings and events. “I think that we have a committed group and that works well for us,” Jones said. “We know who we are, we know the direction that we want to go in and the guys have definitely committed. Egan said there’s a special bond amongst members of the Houston Chapter. “Veteran guys, legend guys, getting together and bonding with each other has been the greatest asset – we’ve become friends,” Egan said. With leadership that cares about bonding and creating an impact in the community, the Houston chapter is very busy year-round. Outside of the customary basketball clinics and charity golf outings, they have partnered with Project WET to bring about water education to local schools. The mission of Project WET is to reach children, parents, educators and communities of the world with water education.
During All-Star Weekend, the chapter held two basketball clinics, a golf tournament, an event with Project WET and a gala where an excess of 1500 people-former players and guests-attended. Jones said they use their Stay in School Program as a platform to go to different schools and speak to the kid’s right before summer break. The Houston Chapter has been working diligently to increase their business acumen and attain sponsorships and partnerships with the local business community. Shell and Sports Authority are just two companies they are working with in their area. Egan’s advice for all chapters old and new is simple: “Start small and think small,” Egan said. “You have to get guys that want to give back, share, and aren’t greedy – guys that are passionate about helping other people. Have meetings and don’t hold them long, have the guys solicit other guys, do one event at a time, and get some supporters and sponsors to help you. Corporations see what you’re doing and they give money on emotional things like kids, education, feeding the homeless/hungry, cancer, etc. The competition is unbelievable, so you have to start small and grow through word of mouth; people will say it’s a great organization and begin to support.” Jones echoed Egan’s comments: “You have to get committed guys, a committed core group of guys who are going to be there regardless. You don’t come to the meetings only when it’s convenient or don’t have anything else to do. You have to have committed guys and we have a committed core group of guys. Once you can get that done you’re in pretty good shape. We work with the premise that we have a chip on our shoulder. I think that has served us well. It’s the Houston chapter not my chapter it’s our chapter. I try to do what’s best for our chapter.”
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Not all
s n o i p cham ar We
Rings
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When you love the game, it shows. Introducing NBA Banking from BBVA Compass. NBA Banking lets you manage your finances while you follow your favorite team. Now you can customize your BBVA Compass Check Card with your team’s logo while you keep up with the latest NBA news and schedules right there in Online and Mobile Banking. And for a limited time, you could get a $100 NBAStore.com electronic gift card when you make three qualifying online bill payments from your NBA Checking account. That’s banking built for you, the real NBA fan. bbvacompass.com/nba
All savings and checking accounts and Check Cards subject to approval, which may include credit approval. $25 minimum opening deposit. Please refer to the account disclosure for complete details. Products, features, and benefits offered with accounts are subject to change. Miscellaneous fees may apply. NBAStore.com Gift Card: NBA Checking accounts opened online through bbvacompass. com/nba may be eligible for a new account bonus. Qualifying accountholders will receive a $100 electronic gift card to be used toward the purchase of merchandise on NBAStore.com. Please review the following information to understand how to qualify for the bonus. In order to qualify for the bonus, accountholder must first initiate the bonus game by clicking “Activate” in the Rewards section of the Summary screen in NBA Online Banking. Within ninety (90) days of activation of the bonus game, the accountholder must make three (3) qualifying online bill payments of at least $50 each to unrelated third parties through NBA Online Banking Bill Pay service. Transfers made from PayPal, ING Direct, or from accounts owned by the customer (or related parties) at other financial institutions do not qualify. Each bill payment must be made to a unique payee. Two or more bill payments to the same payee will result in only one qualifying bill payment. Online bill payments must be processed electronically and completed by the deadline. Payments made by check or person-to-person (Pay People) payments do not qualify. Payments made by a third party debiting your account do not qualify. If three (3) qualifying online bill payments are made within ninety (90) days of activation of the bonus game, a “Redeem” button will appear in the Rewards section of the Summary screen in NBA Online Banking. By clicking “Redeem”, accountholder will be taken to the Rewards Center where a gift card number and PIN will be made available. The gift card may be redeemed for merchandise at NBAStore.com. The gift card is valued at $100. Account must be opened online via bbvacompass.com/nba. Only one bonus will be paid per eligible NBA Checking account. Accountholders with more than one NBA Checking account are limited to one bonus per accountholder. Offer is subject to change without notice. BBVA Compass may report the value of funds earned through this offer to the IRS as required by law. Other limitations may apply. †Mobile Banking: Message and data rates may apply. Check with your wireless carrier about such fees or rate plans. Allpoint® is a registered trademark of Cardtronics, Inc. BBVA Compass is a trade name of Compass Bank, Member FDIC. The NBA and NBA Team identifications are the intellectual property of NBA Properties, Inc. and their respective NBA Teams. Copyright 2013 NBA Properties, Inc. All Rights Reserved.