Building the champions

Black Enterprise, July, 1995 by Merlisa Lawrence Corbett

THE PROFESSIONAL SPORTS ARENA. It's where billions of dollars change hands every day. Yet, like in the days of the Roman Empire, black athletes too often play the role of the gladiator in the Colosseum--risking life and limb for wealthy emperors who look down from imperial skyboxes.

Although in 1994 African Americans accounted for 79% of the athletes in the National Basketball Association, 65% in the National Football League and 18% in Major League Baseball, they have historically been denied access to decision-making positions. But there are signs that things are changing.

Unwilling to be used simply as "entertainment," African American athletes are making a conscious effort to gain ground in upper management and ownership in professional sports. The recent expansion of teams in Major League Baseball, the NFL and the NBA is a catalyst for blacks moving into the front office. For the first time ever, there are African American coaches, general managers and owners in all three major sports at the same time. That there are so many black decision-makers signals the growth of African American representation in an exclusive club. And the club members have the resources to build champions.

"We're starting to see a lot of qualified minorities in a position to take some of the top level jobs in professional sports," says Jimmie Lee Solomon, director of Minor League operations for Major League Baseball. Solomon, who was appointed by former Baseball Commissioner Fay Vincent in 1991, believes that as African Americans gain greater access to corporate America in general, they will obtain more front-office positions in pro sports teams. "Professional sports is a business," says Solomon, 38. "Our product just happens to be putting highly paid players on the field or the court."

STEPPING UP TO OWNERSHIP

Retired athletes often dream of owning a piece of the teams they gave their youth to. The '90s have provided opportunities for some black athletes to realize that dream.

After announcing his retirement from basketball in 1991, Los Angeles Lakers legend "Magic" Johnson worked out a deal to purchase 10% of the team. Johnson's longtime friend, Isiah Thomas, stunned many in the sports world last year when he uprooted his family from Detroit, where he led the Pistons to two NBA Championships, to run the Toronto Raptors expansion team. Thomas' deal included investing a reported $12.5 million in the Toronto franchise for a 10% stake in the club and a position as chief of basketball operations. Also in 1994, former Kansas City Chief all-pro Deron Cherry became a limited partner in the Jacksonville Jaguars, one of two expansion teams in the NFL.

Bill Simms, president of the reinsurance division of the Transamerica Life Insurance Companies in Charlotte, N.C., also joined the ownership ranks last year. Simms is one of 15 owners of the Carolina Panthers, the other expansion team set to begin playing in the NFL in September. The other African Americans with ownership stakes in major sports leagues are Comer Cottrell (Texas Rangers), CEO of Pro-line Corp.; and Edward Gardner (Chicago Bulls), CEO of Soft Sheen Products Inc., and his wife Bettiann. There are also many African American owners and investors in minor league professional sports.

For Cherry and Simms, their ownership opportunity was a matter of timing. When the NFL decided to expand in 1993, Commissioner Paul Tagliabue made it clear that any group interested in buying its way into the league would get more consideration if it had some minority ownership. Jacksonville principal owner J. Wayne Weaver was committed to searching for a suitable candidate with cash and clout. Cherry had both.

After 11 successful years with the Chiefs, Cherry retired from football and immediately went into business. He purchased United Beverage, an Anheuser-Busch distributorship, and firmly established himself in Kansas City, where the fans loved him. A mutual friend introduced him to Weaver, and he soon joined the Jacksonville investment group, which included Jeb Bush, son of former President George Bush. It was a decision Cherry says he didn't take lightly.

"I had to make sure I was doing the right thing for me and my family," Cherry explains. "It was a great opportunity, but it required a huge percentage of my income and savings"--savings he wouldn't have had available if he had not taken personal finance management seriously.

"You need to know the value of money and the part that it plays in your life," says Cherry. Even though he earned only $19,000 his first year in the NFL, by the time his career was winding down, Cherry had built a sizable investment pool--something he feels not enough black athletes recognize as important. "You need to put money in the bank," he stresses. "If you have the money, opportunities will come."

Eventually, the Jacksonville investors surprised many by outbidding other groups such as the St. Louis investors, which included NFL Hall of Famer Walter Payton. Cherry, 35, is officially a limited partner and not involved in the day-to-day operations of the Jaguars. However, he is a valued consultant to the team.