A Pro Going Pro

by A.J. Puzzo

“Right now the NCAA is building over 400,000 future professionals, and most of us will go pro in something other than sports.”

Yes, we’ve all seen the NCAA’s latest TV spot run during this year’s men’s and women’s basketball tournaments.  And yes, we all understand the purpose of the ad.  But what about those gifted NCAA athletes that do go pro in the sport of their expertise?  What about the ones that roll the dice on a dream that more than likely will die by age 30?  Are they doomed to burn their peak earning years as foolish kids in their early twenties?

The answer obviously varies from individual case to individual case, but for some, a career as a professional athlete is just the tip of the proverbial iceberg.  For some, it is the profession they choose after athletics that proves to be their true passion.

Take the former NBA point guard John Crotty for example.  Crotty spent 11 years in the League, from 1992 to 2003, in which he ran the point for eight different teams including the Utah Jazz, Miami Heat, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Portland Trailblazers. As a 22-year-old kid in ’92, the fast paced lifestyle of a professional basketball player, bouncing around from city to city, was a dream come true.  But as a 35-year-old man in 2004, Crotty was seeking something more stable, yet similarly engaging, in his life.  His answer came in the form of commercial real estate.

After a surfing trip in Costa Rica with long time friend and commercial real estate partner, Michael Fay, of the prominent Miami-based Colliers Abood Wood-Fay real estate firm, the one-time pro-athlete Crotty expressed an interest in the field and was given a chance to learn ropes.  Six years later he is netting $164 million in sales and is one of the firm’s top brokers.

“It seemed like a pretty natural fit for me,” the University of Virginia graduate said of his new career. “I wanted to give it a go here [in Florida] and wanted to try to get into real estate as opposed to coaching, which is something else I considered.”

There is a reason why sports terminology is used so frequently in the corporate work place- the qualities needed to excel in sports are similar to those required for excellence in business.  After all, a CEO couldn’t say something like, “This deal will be a lay-up for you” and get his point across accurately to one of his top real estate brokers unless a lay-up is considered a mindlessly easy shot for said broker, could he?

Obviously not, and obviously professional athletes know better than most how to handle the pressure of expected perfection.  In a recent article from Business Weekly, staff writer Anne VanderMey wrote, “[Business school] admissions officers thrill when they see pro athletes who desire entry… what MBA program wouldn’t want to enroll a sports superstar? Long hours and intense competition are their bread and butter.”

It may be that of 400,000 current NCAA student-athletes, most will “go pro” in some other distant field than sports.  But for those that decide to pursue athletics as a profession, fear not.  The lessons learned on the field of play are just as pertinent in the business world as they are in the world of sports.  Just ask the point guard who recently closed a $4.93 million 54,000-square-foot space…in cash.  Swoosh.