M&M means business

SPORTING CHANCE 
By Joaquin Henson (The Philippine Star)

They’re the Johnnys-come-lately in the business of managing athletes but Matthew Manotoc and Marvin Espiritu believe they’ve got what it takes to make a dent in the competitive field of sports agency.

For M&M, it’s all about being professional in their work and sincerely caring about the athletes they represent. Not that other sports agents aren’t professional or indifferent. Espiritu’s father Danny is considered the pioneer in the industry with a slew of marquee players under his wing, like Arwind Santos, Gary David, Jayson Castro, Mark Caguioa, Mac-Mac Cardona, Alex Cabagnot and Cyrus Baguio. Charlie Dy takes care of Jimmy Alapag, Kelly Williams and Ranidel de Ocampo, among others. Loy Allado, Ed Ponceja, Sheryl Reyes, Chris Tan, Lawrence Chongson and Mark Chan are also agents with big-name clients. What M&M tries to provide is a comprehensive approach leading to a secure future. “How to convince a player to join us is the first step,” said Manotoc, a 23-year-old former golf prodigy whose father Tommy was once a PBA deputy commissioner and mother Imee Marcos is Ilocos Norte governor. “We’re a full-service basketball agency where each of our athletes receives special attention in endorsements, financial planning, sports psychology, PR and marketing plans and off-season training. We want to set a standard of excellence and professionalism to become the country’s premier sports agency. The key is to build trust between athlete and agent. Because of my Western orientation, I feel I have a distinct advantage in dealing with Fil-Ams. On the other hand, Marvin has a distinct advantage with the locals because of his father’s extensive network and his familiarity with Philippine conditions. It’s the best of both worlds. We want our athletes to be our close friends. We play pick-up games with them and just like them, we live and breathe sports.”

In return, M&M is paid five percent of the value of a contract it negotiates for an athlete. For endorsements, the fee is between 20 to 30 percent. Is the five percent commission paid up front regardless of the term of the contract? Espiritu said the timing of the payment of fees is negotiable and depends on many factors, including preserving the viability of the sports agency.

“We approach every athlete professionally but with a personal touch,” said Manotoc. “We want to maximize an athlete’s earning potential in his sports career. Our dream is to bring back the glory days of PBA players as mainstream celebrities like when Sen. (Robert) Jaworski, Jerry Codiñera and Alvin Patrimonio were household names, even getting offers for movies and TV shows.” Manotoc blamed the Fil-Shams for diminishing the PBA’s popularity. “The fans turned to other sports leagues like the UAAP,” he said. “Ad agencies seemed to prefer putting spots in the UAAP than the PBA. We hope to change that attitude. The PBA is clearly back on track and fans are filling up the stadium again. We’re talking to ad agencies and explaining what players like Arwind and Alex can do as endorsers. We don’t want to transform athletes into artistas but we feel they’ve got earning potential as celebrities in their own right.”

M&M recently signed a contract with Viva Entertainment to enhance the image of athletes in the media landscape. “We want our clients to be seen as celebrities similar to Kobe Bryant and LeBron James with the ability to endorse mainstream product,” said Espiritu who linked his father’s client The Spiderman to Viva. “My father has given us a free hand to look for commercial opportunities for his athletes. We can package athletes together and use different marketing angles to guarantee maximum positive mileage.”

For starters, M&M picked Cabagnot, Santos, Japeth Aguilar, Chris Lutz, Marcio Lassiter, Caguioa, Castro, David, Cardona, Baguio, Julius Pasculado, Bobby Ray Parks, Yousef Taha and Jason Deutchman as the iconic candidates for commercial opportunities.

“The advantages of a celebrity athlete endorser are many,” noted Manotoc. “He can enhance brand equity, contribute, freshen and add a new dimension to a brand, build brand credibility, enhance message recall, influence the consumer’s purchase intention, increase media coverage, breathe new life into a brand, build consumer trust, target the health-conscious and active lifestyle consumers and deliver mass appeal.”

Both Manotoc and Espiritu are well-schooled for the job. Manotoc finished at Clarement McKenna College, an exclusive liberal arts private institution in Los Angeles and has been involved in investments for years. Espiritu attended the College of St. Benilde and is a successful entrepreneur with business interests in ice, wines and liquor. They’re engaged in sports agency on a full-time basis because it’s a commitment to their clients.

Postscript. Chicago coach Tom Thibodeau has edged out Miami’s Erik Spoelstra for the job to call the shots for the East in the NBA All-Star Game on Feb. 26 in Orlando. The Bulls are 24-7 and Miami, 23-7 at the cut-off to determine the conference leader. Despite playing without reigning NBA MVP Derrick Rose, the Bulls beat Sacramento, 121-115, yesterday to clinch it for Thibodeau even as the Heat downed Indiana, 105-90, on the road. If Chicago lost to the Kings, Spoelstra would be going to Orlando instead. Chicago displayed depth as six players scored in twin digits, including Kyle Korver who drained 4-of-5 treys … Barangay Ginebra consultant Alfrancis Chua’s father David Sr. passed away in San Francisco recently. Condolences to the Chua family … Harvard economics graduate Jeremy Lin sizzled with 27 points and 11 assists to lead New York over Toronto, 90-87, yesterday for the Knicks’ sixth win in a row. New York came back from 17 down and Lin shot the Knicks’ last six points, including the clinching triple with 0.5 of a second left. Amare Stoudemire was back from a week’s leave to mourn his brother’s death and hit 21 points in 33:36 minutes. Lin played 43:10 minutes and buried 2-of-2 triples. A sore point was his eight turnovers but who cares? The Dragon is breathing fire and the Knicks are suddenly the toast of the league.