Home Court Capital (HCC) has announced the launch of its services to invest in early-career professional athletes across the NBA, MLB, and NFL. With an initial $150 million to deploy, HCC says it “will accelerate player income and help provide greater financial security and flexibility to select athletes.”
HCC adds that it “participates in athletes’ career successes by providing an upfront cash payment in exchange for the assignment of a small, fixed percentage of future athletic career earnings. In the event that an athlete does not generate future sports-related income, for whatever reason, there are no ongoing repayment obligations. In addition, athletes realize enhanced financial security in the event of an injury or other material change in circumstance.”
Veteran sports agent Jack Mills told Sports Litigation Alert that “assuming the ‘investments’ would be made only to professionals or about to be professionals, so there is no question of losing college eligibility.
“But just from a financial management standpoint, I am opposed to a player spending money before he’s earned it, whether it be from a loan or a payment made against assignment of future earnings.
“There is certainly risk involved for the investors, particularly for high injury risk sports (NFL). But the investors are certainly going to rate their risk based on the ability and potential earning power of each player and if it’s a good deal for the investors. The loss of future earnings will likely not be a good deal for the player.”
Peter Gourdine, the president of HCC, is an experienced executive and attorney, “having worked for major global and national level law firms for more than 8 years — most recently in the areas of sports and entertainment rights enforcement and dispute resolution,” according to HCC. “Prior to his legal career, Gourdine had a successful 12-year career with the NBA. He is the son of former NBA Deputy Commissioner and Executive Director of the NBA Players Association, Simon Gourdine
“To identify athletes and diversify its portfolio, HCC uses a quantitative approach that combines big data analytics and machine-learning techniques, with a qualitative, industry-knowledgeable overlay. The investment strategies at HCC are led by Guy Fischer, Chief Investment Officer. Fischer is the former Chief Investment Officer and Deputy Head of Capital Markets Division of Bank Leumi, Israel’s largest bank, where he oversaw global investments of more than USD$23 billion AUM, in a wide variety of asset classes.”
HCC’s says investments “benefit the early-career athlete in a multitude of ways beyond just accelerated income.”
“Athletes who partner with HCC will be entering into a relationship built on more than just financial returns. We believe in the importance of an athlete’s professional relationships, and our investment process is designed to support those relationships,” noted Gourdine.
