DISCUSSION ESSAY

Imagine You are the new Owner of the New York Knicks Research your selected team and answer the following questions:

Part One (One page)
You are the new owner of your team and have to build a new stadium/arena. Assume your facility is at least fifty years old and needs to be replaced.

  • Where will you build the new facility? Why?
  • How will the new facility increase revenues?
  • Will you have fewer seats to create more demand?
  • How will you make this facility more fan friendly?

Part Two (One page)
You are the new General Manager for your team. The owner wants a three-year plan as to how you are going to build the team to win a championship. Discuss how you are going to achieve this addressing:

  • Free agents
  • The coach
  • Trades
  • The draft
  • The farm system
  • Innovative ideas

Part Three (One page)
Go to the applicable link based on your selected team (example below):
Forbes.com/teams/new-york-yankees
Look at the bar charts on your team to answer parts 1, 2 and 3.

  • Discuss how the value of the franchise has changed in value over the years. Use numbers from the charts. Why do you think it has changed?
  • Discuss how the team’s revenues have changed over the years. Use numbers from the charts.
  • Discuss the changes in player expenses over the years. Use numbers from the charts. Does an increased payroll really help the team win more games?
  • What are you going to do to promote your team on a global basis so the owner can create more fan interest and make more money? Think of overseas games, jersey sales, the Internet, overseas offices, cable TV, clinics, player appearances and signing foreign born players.

Part Four (One page)
Sports agent Curtis Polk requires all his clients to follow this model regarding their income:

  • 50% will go to taxes
  • 40% you have to save and invest
  • 10% you can spend as you wish

Would you recommend this model to any player that you represented as a sports agent? Why or why not? What if the potential client said no?
Discuss three of the existing marketing deals that Lebron James currently has.
As the agent for Lebron James, what four companies would you try and get new marketing deals with and why? What kind of dollar amounts would you be looking at?
As the agent for Lebron James, would you recommend that he start his own shoe company? Why or why not?

Part Five (One page)
Please read Chapter 20 on Strategies for Career Success.
What are the four steps to obtaining the best first job and which one is most important?
Select one of the following careers in Sport Management: General Manager, Facility Manager, Athletic Director, Sports Broadcaster, Sports Agent, College Coach or Sports Attorney. Then discuss the following questions:

  • How will you obtain this position?
  • What are the job responsibilities?
  • Why you will be a success in this position?
  • What are some of the pros and cons of this position?
  • What do you think your annual compensation will be?

Part Six (One page)
Discuss four ways you will speed up the games in Major League Baseball. Fans are stating that the games are too long.
You are the owner of an NFL team and you want to address the liability from the lawsuits due to concussions. How will you make the game safer to play to address the concussion issue?
Read Chapter 16 on Sport Analytics. Discuss four points in the chapter that you can use to improve your team’s performance.