Victor Cruz was one of the original five to sign to Roc Nation Sports, who's next? (Credits: The Star Ledger/USA Today Sports) |
When Jay-Z teamed up with Creative Artistis Agency earlier this year, it sort of rocked the world. HOV, who's already exerted his influence over several unique cultural spheres, was starting a sports agency firm? Whoa. The feeling of shock hasn't really settled, especially when Jay continues to slowly build a sports empire one major piece at a time. Currently, Roc Nation Sports represents Robinson Cano, Victor Cruz, Geno Smith, Kevin Durant and Skylar Diggins. Each of these athletes are at least somewhere near the top of their game, except for Geno Smith who we know very little about it. Yet most importantly, these athletes are marketable away from their craft.
In Durant's case, not only is he arguably the second best player in the NBA, but he's got this charisma that makes him extremely likable. He's active on social media. His backpack fad caught on fast and he's developed this mean streak that has gotten people truly excited about his future.
Cano's isn't as marketable off the field because he keeps relatively quiet. However the way he conducts himself on the diamond makes him seriously interesting. He's one of the top-5 or top-10 players in the game, but he plays with this casual fluidity that makes him look like he's not even interested. Whether it's making a snap throw in the hole, or lining an opposite field bomb into the left field bleachers, he does it with ease. Anytime you can do something without looking like you're trying, then you look awesome.
Victor Cruz is definitely nowhere near KD or Cano respectively, but he's still an exciting player. He's a quick playmaker, who can turn a 10-yard catch into 99-yard highlight. Again, however, it's not what his done on the stat sheet, but his extracurriculars. You know what I'm talking about. His highly entertaining salsa celebration, which lately has included him throwing up the Roc. In his case it's not the talent that makes him marketable, it's the salsa dance. Get it?
So we here at BDD&C have identified 10 athletes who we believe would be a perfect fit for Roc Nation Sports down the road. (Not in any particular order)
Brandon Phillips, 2B, Cincinnati Reds
Dat Dude BP, as his Twitter handle goes, is the absolute man. He's a slugging second baseman, who has found his niche on a talented Reds team. But it's not just his talent that has him as potential RNS guy. He's got the swagger and gusto that HOV would love, his Twitter is funny as hell and he's not afraid to say what he wants. Oh and his trademark celebration? Throwin' hunneds. Jay-Z knows a thing or two about doing that back in the day.
Calvin Johnson, WR, Detroit Lions
The dude's nickname is "Megatron." He is absolutely not human and he proved that this year by breaking the single season receiving record with broken fingers. How do you catch fastballs from gunslinger Matt Stafford with broken fingers, let alone break a record with that handicap? Not human. Megatron is about as marketable as they come simply from his on-field abilities. Plus, anyone who wears a black visor and backs it up is legitimately the man in the NFL. He might not be the loudest or must outspoken dude off the field, but who do you want on your team catching passes. Almost 2,000 yards with broken fingers. I still can't get over it.
Matt Harvey, SP, New York Mets
Not only has Harvey exploded onto the scene this year, but he's done so on a terrible Mets team. He's also gotten lavish praise from MLB analysts who claim he's the next Verlander. His 7-1 record, his 2.05 ERA and the rumors of starting the All-Star game are cool and all, but he's the man off the field. Guy's caught on camera at a Rangers playoff game, kissing on a Russian model at 24-years old. He's a season and a half into being a Met (which is a handicap in New York compared to being a Yankee) and he's already publicly bringing out models. This dude is going to run New York for the next ten years. HOV knows a thing or two about running New York.
Kyrie Irving, PG, Cleveland Cavaliers
I think the mask game in MSG pretty much sealed this guy's future. He's the best player in the NBA under 23 by a landslide and he hasn't even played on a good team yet. I don't see how HOV could pass on a guy who might eventually team up with LeBron and win multiple titles. Plus the whole "Rising out of the ashes of The Decision," stuff with Kyrie has been really cool. Does anyone in the NBA have a cooler, more hysterical commercial than Kyrie in Uncle Drew? Nope. He hasn't exactly stayed healthy, but when he's pulling these moves at All-Star Weekend you know he's the man.
Richard Sherman, CB, Seattle Seahawks
Sherman isn't everyone's cup of tea. He's a huge talker. He's got the swaggy dreads. He told Skip Bayless on National TV to refer to him as "All-Pro, Stanford Graduate." I mean, how many dudes do you know that have went to Stanford, become All-Pro's and were cool as hell. Usually you're only going to get two out of three with a Stanford guy, but Sherman's got it all. Another notch on his resume is that he plays for the Seahawks who have emerged as one of the sexier picks for next season and their sleek, state-of-the-art jerseys are awesome. Sherman's "Talk the talk, walk the walk," attitude should have Jay-Z calling his number real soon.
Aldon Smith, OLB, San Francisco 49ers
I think that sack celebrations are one of the best type of celebrations in sports. They are like touchdowns for offensive players and most of the time transition fluidly into a celebration. Smith is not only one of the best in the game at getting to the quarterback, but his variety of celebrations certainly have caught people's attentions. Even better is that one of his celebrations by sprinting off the field and sitting down on the bench as if nothing was happening. One of those "celebrating without celebrating" celebrations and it's pretty catchy. Plus, the guy's averaged more than 16.5 sacks in his first two seasons. Anyone who rocks 99 is a HOV kind of guy if you catch my drift.
Manny Machado, 3B, Baltimore Orioles
Anytime you can be a core piece to the turning around of a franchise who hadn't made the playoffs in 15 years, you're probably the man. Machado is a straight doubles machine, leading the league by 10 with 34. Gappers, aside from the rarer triple, are awesome. Nothing like smashing a baseball into the gap and cruising into second base...ten more times than the next closest guy. This dude is 20 years old and has a seriously bright career ahead of him. HOV always had a thing for the latino culture and Machado's got that Latin-American swagger down pat. If he can make the O's a perennial playoff team, then he will remain one of the big names in baseball.
Ricky Rubio, PG, Minnesota T'Wolves
At 22 years old, it's felt like we've known Rubio for years. Yes, he was drafted four years ago, but he's only been in the show for two years. He's one of the flashier players you'll watch in the NBA and you never know what type of ridiculous pass he'll try to pull off. There's certainly room for him to grow, but again he's only 22. Rubio also slaughtered it in the "Backyard Wrestler" Foot Locker/Adidas commercial; that off-the-court charisma is big. Jay will definitely want to extend his boundaries past America and by signing a 22-year-old flashy, entertaining Spaniard he'll have just that.
Steph Curry, PG, Golden State Warriors
Before this season I probably wouldn't put Curry on this list. Yes, he's always been a nice scorer, but he's had never really shown us that he could ever translate his college dominance to the NBA. That is a thing of the past and Curry has vaulted, catapulted, exploded into the upper echelon of the league. Some of his games, especially his 54-point "awkward, nervous New York Knicks fan laugh" masterpiece, already give his legend some serious credibility. Guy's got that almost childish charisma that makes him extremely marketable in it's own weird way. HOV should not miss out of this 25-year-old's budding career.
Giancarlo Stanton, RF, Miami Marlins
A guy that has the balls to change his name from Mike to Giancarlo and then back it up is a legitimate one in my book. He's a bonafide slugger, who should consistently rack up 30-plus homers and 100-plus ribbies once he finds himself on a decent team. He averaged a home run every 13 at-bats. Wait what? At 23 he should have a monstrous career ahead of him and knowing the Marlins, they will trade him to a team that can pay him before his contract's up. HOV will most certainly jump all over an opportunity to get this guy. He's cool. He rakes. He's a natural. What more can you say?
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