It sounds silly or self-evident but the value in connecting past to future fandom lies in those who have worn the uniform, or walked the sidelines, even for a few moments. Regardless of the score, or the record with few exceptions either on the pro or college side, the value of connecting to alumni as a tool for storytelling remains invaluable.  While it seems simple, it is not, and precious few teams, colleges, organizations do it really well. On the professional side, it usually starts at the top, with an ownership group willing to look past things said in the heat of battle, or negoti ..read more

I have always been fixated and intrigued by the power of media on college campuses, and how it is undervalued often, especially when it comes to sports. Professional teams, even many colleges, put their own local voices in a place where they as judged as “students”  vs. media, when the reality of today is that those doing the innovating, those with a consistent voice, those who deeply care about the goings on in and around the team…and that AUDIENCE THAT THESE TEAMS AND LEAGUES CRAVE…are the “student media” they turn away or put on a tier below “traditional media.” Instead of courting, n ..read more

The season didn’t end for the Milwaukee Bucks as expected, but there was an offcourt win worth noting…one that came from relationships and being professional and business like in a world where many organizations run and hide for fear of upsetting an athlete who was wrong. For those who don’t know, the Bucks Patrick Beverley pulled quite a double following the series-ending loss to the Indiana Pacers, first getting in an altercation that could have turned ugly with a fan, and then singling out and then embarrassing a longtime media member, now at ESPN, asking her to not participate in his postg ..read more

We are still in the early days of how Artificial Intelligence will be used for a tool in our industry. While there are fits and starts…Warren Buffet warned investors of AI scams last week during the Berkshire Hathaway meetings in Omaha, while CBS Sunday had an amazing piece on Randy Travis and his “voice” return using AI following his stroke, we are always curious learners, and one of the people to turn to when wanting to learn is our colleague Shripal Shah. Shripal now has his second book about sports and AI out.  Charting the Course Through AI in Sports In “The Art of Victory: AI and th ..read more

It’s not often you think of a beekeeper, an oversized athlete and an accomplished but grumpled NBA head coach in the same vein, but we do today. Why? They exemplify the storytelling of sports, two of them embody what smart, quick storytelling in the moment can do, and the third reminds us of the value of the grind in our business. So, here’s to Matt Hilton, beekeeper, Tugboat Wilkinson minor league pitcher, and Tom Thibodeau, Knicks coach. First on the Arizona beekeeper. Now bees at ballparks happen from time to time. You are outside in the spring or summer (or inside with an open roof in Ariz ..read more

Forget the fact that Saturday is the Kentucky Derby, Formula 1 in Miami, and the NBA and Stanley Cup playoffs are moving along. What’s more important for crossover in sports business? It is Free Comic Book day, and Star Wars Day . Star Wars promotions in sports have become a staple in and around the 4th of May…but Free Comic Book day continues to offer a wealth of opportunities Now in its 23rd year, Free Comic Book Day is the brainchild of comic book retailer Joe Field. The proprietor of the Concord, CA-based Flying Colors Comics & Other Cool Stuff came up with the idea in 2002, after obse ..read more

It’s always nice to see the little things that get done in storytelling that are worth emulating. Two from this week. Penguins paint the ice. Simple one, especially when you have a paint company…PPG…as your arena sponsor. For the second year in a row, the Pittsburgh Penguins allowed season ticketholders   onto the ice to paint messages and pictures on Sunday. This year’s designs featured Sponge Bob, a large rubber duck, emojis, the Pitt Panthers logo and countless penguins, even including the Robo-Penguin. Messages on the ice gave love to Jaromir Jagr, Sidney Crosby and “Big Jeff Ca ..read more

The calls and emails are welcomed and come in droves…this time of year, and I gladly answer as many calls, emails, texts and video messages form people changing careers or starting new ones, the same advice keeps ringing true, whether you have been at this for two weeks or gasp, almost 40 years. Expanding your identifiable skills, being enthusiastic and curious, learning from mistakes, listening to those around you, doing the little things to make a difference, saying please and thank you, sending notes and following up, doing your homework, over preparing and over delivering are all so key to ..read more

How do you know when you are in a startup if the marketplace is telling you that you need to adjust, and how do you keep a business going when you start to hear the siren song of chasing a different direction, especially in challenging financial times. We talked to three smart company leaders about everything from the social space to sports gambling to predictive analytics to NIL and sneakers, and learned a great deal. Enjoy the listens Jamming The Odds. Matt Restivo is the current CEO of OddsJam, but has always been a first mover in the digital space. He has made a career out of delivering ..read more

While the nexus of going to Los Angeles this week was for the CAA World Congress of Sport, the reality…one which I am continuing to realize is a sad reality…is that the real learnings occur far away from the stage for the most part. What the value is resides well outside the room with the casual encounters, listenings, and learnings form those who aren’t the same pontificating on stage, although there are always enough takeaways to note for the journey. Some observations from those stage right in LA “Socks are the new neckties.”  I fully credit my friend and colleague Frank Brown with thi ..read more