We start the year reviewing more of our Columbia University Sports Podcast (the CUSP Show) that we have had in the past few months. I and my cohost Tom Richardson just passed our two year anniversary hosting the show from various and sundry places in and around Manhattan, and have tried to come up with a solid mix of leaders, disruptors, innovators, provocateurs and most importantly smart storytellers from projects big and small. Here is the summary and sampling compiled by colleague Jesse Leeds Grant for another three, with more to come.
You can see a list and log on to all of the 130 episodes (three more already in the can for 2019), by clicking here. Take a listen, almost all are 45 minutes or even less.
Peter Gourdine, Home Court Capital
We sit down with Peter Gourdine, co-founder of Home Court Capital. We discuss Peter’s transition from college athlete at Brown to working at the NBA to becoming a lawyer to ultimately launching his own startup business focused on the potential net worth of athletes as they rise through the professional ranks.. Learn about an exciting new business and how analytics are continuing to drive new ventures.
Some key things to listen for…
“If you have the capability to track, measure, and use biometric data it’s incredibly valuable. There are so many complicated factors around it, like who’s going to get there first and use it, the answers to these questions will change a year from now”.
“We’re not just looking to sign any player that plays in any of the three major leagues, we’re looking for a select group of athletes, there’s a natural selection process.”
“We have raised $150 Million in committed capital. That was our dream number and we are very fortunate to hit it”.
“The messaging is critical, our key selling factor is we making investments not loans”.
Listen to the full episode here.
Dr. Lindsay Krasnoff, Journalist
Dr. Lindsay Sarah Krasnoff is an international sports writer, historian, and consultant, working at the intersections of sports, international affairs, and global communications. The author of The Making of Les Bleus: Sport in France, 1958-2010, her work on how identity, immigration, race, gender, and diplomacy play into our world today appears in CNN International, Sports Illustrated, Roads & Kingdoms, The New Yorker, The New York Times, Review France Forum, Vice Sport, and more. We talk about the global value of storytelling across cultures.
Some key points to listen for:
“Journalism is one of the smartest moves I made in my training because it taught me how to write well, how to write quickly under deadline and get the main point across with enough supporting detail”.
“Completing an apprenticeship teaches you how to consume a lot of information rapidly, analyze it to find key points, and extract the information for oral and written communications”.
“Students need the skill to listen, and to understand what someone is trying to tell them. If they are actually listening, people are always challenging your ideas and previous conceptions and that’s how you learn.”
Listen to the full episode here
John Lashway, President, Hamilton Honey Badgers
We spend time with John Lashway of the soon to launch Canadian Elite Basketball League’s Hamilton Honey Badgers. We discuss the business of sports startups and how basketball has grown in Canada. John walks us through what he learned while working with the Toronto Raptors when they launched, the lessons learned with the Portland Trailblazers and some of the other skills used in launching the CEBL this spring, including hiring the first ever female head coach for a men’s professional team.
Some key points to listen for.
“I believe in is a culture that develops the whole person, a holistic approach to managing and leading people, if you develop a person, you are going to get a better professional, not just names on an org chart.”
“We’re really focused on digital broadcasting, that’s where our fans are going to be found. It’s cost effective but more importantly we see the trend going that way”.
“No matter what people tell you, you work for yourself and your personal brand. Companies will come and go, hire and fire, you have yourself to worry about first.”
“Attendance is going to vary by market, if we can draw 3,000 fans a game we’ll be happy. Tickets are really affordable, we really want to make it family friendly and get fans engaged in the game.”
“The people that want to buy into this league are top blue chip sports entities already.”
Listen to the full episode here.
Enjoy the next round of listening and learning!
