An NBA-heavy discussion tips off the 4th annual Olin Sports Business Summit Friday, Sept. 14, at Washington University in St. Louis. The daylong seminar opens the 2018-19 Lacob Family Business of Sports Speaker Series.
The summit is scheduled to begin with the business of professional basketball, involving Kent Lacob, a 2015 graduate of Washington University and general manager of the Santa Cruz Warriors. He’ll lead a discussion on the G-League franchise under the ownership of the Golden State Warriors.
The event takes place from 8 a.m.-4 p.m. in Emerson Auditorium on the Danforth Campus. It will feature representatives from the St. Louis Cardinals, the St. Louis Blues, the NFL Network and the sports architectural firm Populous, along with Randy Vataha, a former NFL player and Mike DeCola, chairman of the 100th PGA Championship held in St. Louis in July.
The discussion groups include:
- a morning NBA discussion featuring the analytics director of the Philadelphia 76ers; a representative of NBA HQ talking about relations with the gaming industry; and Lacob focusing on the operation of a G-League franchise like the Santa Cruz Warriors;
- a presentation involving Washington University alums in the sports industry;
- panels regarding marketing and branding with the Indiana Pacers, Avaya and the NFL Network represented; as well as a panel on sports finance that features Vataha, a former wide receiver with the New England Patriots and Green Bay Packers who is now with GamePlan LLC;
- a facility discussion consisting of Populous, St. Louis Blues and Infinite Scale officials; and
- panels relating to storytelling/crisis management and community relations, featuring representatives from the Cardinals, Blues and DeCola of the Bellerive Country Club PGA.
“Once again, we are thrilled to intersect the Lacob family generosity and the assertive efforts of our Sports Business Program to network with industry leaders,” said Patrick Rishe, organizer and program director who recently published the sports-business book “They Shoot… They Score.”
“As a result, we are gratefully able to host a wide-ranging and high-achieving group of sports-business leaders for the 2018 summit — not the least of which are a handful of Olin alumni,” Rishe said.
Seating is on a first-come, first-served basis and registration is required to ensure a seat. The event will be simulcast to the adjacent Frick Forum overflow space. For more information, visit the event’s homepage.