Bill Duffy: “Sometimes I ask myself, ‘Why am I doing this?’”
How does it feel to be inducted to the Martin Luther King Jr. International Board of Renaissance Leaders?
Bill Duffy: Wow, that has to be the highligh of your life. Being recognized by anything that has to do with MLK, whom I admire so I much and think was one of the four most humanitarian people ever, that’s simply amazing. Just having that recognition from that type of association is overwhelming.
Why do you think you have a better reputation than most NBA agents?
BD: Well, I think other agents would argue that because this is a very cutthroat and negative business. I respect all of the other agents that are successful because I understand the difficulties of this business. There’s such a negative nature to this thing. How distasteful is to see the how the recruiting goes sometimes… I think maybe other people try to help their reputations by criticizing others. My philosophy is to always try to talk about what we do and speak for ourselves because we can’t really speak for anybody else. I think that people that are significant and rational understand what we do. And what we do is look out for the interest of our players long-term. We try to make our clients see that you need a vision, that you should try to do things that position yourself for the future. When you are a pro athlete, you have the chance to meet a lot of people, to network with a lot of people… And those are things that we want them to see. I think that our responsibility is to educate our clients so that they are visionaries, so that they don’t live from check to check.
Since the business can be so nasty, have you ever considered quitting?
BD: No, because I almost feel that I would let a lot of people down. That’s the main reason. I wouldn’t want to walk away from my responsibilities. At the same time, I do get cynical sometimes and I ask myself, “Why am I doing this?” … More often than not it’s because it can get really draining to deal with the people that surround some players. You try to instill this vision that you should do the right thing to change the fate of your family, to build a legacy that lasts, that it’s not all for the moment… But a lot of people, especially around the players, don’t see things like that. And I admit it sometimes can get very frustrating. There’s got to be a balance between enjoying the moment and positioning yourself for the future.
When was the last time that you thought that… “Why am I doing this?”
BD: (Laughs) Well, it was… It’s always those times when you see some people that just don’t get it. Sometimes you are disappointed because you think you have made an impression on somebody and you find out that it’s not really that way and they don’t show any kind of loyalty.
Do you think it matters to have a good reputation in this business? There are agents known to be pretty dirty that are also very successful.
BD: That’s because of the money aspect. With nasty agents, it’s all about the money. And I guess it’s OK as long as the players understand their agents don’t care about them and that they just care about the business and the money.
When trying to recruit players for your agency, what is fair game and what is crossing the line?
BD: If you start the relationship with the player doing something unethical or borderline unethical. But anyway, that’s going to define your relationship with him. You are blind if you think he’s not going to do to you what he did to other people. It’s like cheating. If one person cheated on somebody with you, how can you expect that he’s not going to cheat on you with others down the road?
When a player changes agents and hires you to represent him… How’s that work? Who makes the first contact?
BD: Agents usually become aware when a player is dissatisfied. And when that happens, you attack the client. But in our case, I’m not embarrassed to say players approach us very often. For example, Linas Kleiza of the Denver Nuggets. When he was going to cut ties with his agent, he approached us because we had recruited him in the past. He was the one to initiate the contact. In the past few years, it’s happened with other players like Mike James, Amir Johnson and Sasha Vujacic. It’s kind of flattering that players do that because it says a lot about the reputation you’ve built around the league.
Can you explain what’s the situation between Carmelo Anthony and your agency? Because there have been conflicting reports about what’s really going on between BDA Sports and Carmelo…
BD: First of all, I have to say that we love Carmelo. We’ve always given him huge support in everything that he’s done in basketball and elsewhere. He’s been great to work with. And I fully respect what he’s doing. He wants independence and to structure his own vision on what he wants to do in business. Whatever he chooses, I fully support that. And I understand it.
Do you think there could be a trend that stars such as Carmelo Anthony will get agents like you to deal with the basketball side of business and hire other people to deal other things in the business that are not strictly basketball related?
BD: It should be that way! Players like Carmelo can build their own empire. It’s no different to other investors. With the kind of connections you can build in the position he is, you have the chance to develop multiple strategies. I applaud that if he wants to do it. Our role as basketball agents is to secure his career, that he gets his contracts… But you don’t need a basketball agent forever. At 35 your career is probably over, but your life is not. And you don’t need an agent for your life. So any alliances you can build with all types of different people when you are still playing, I think that’s going to pay off when you’re not playing.
How is a typical conversation with one of your players on the phone? When they call you, what do they want?
BD: We encourage our players to call even if it’s something minor, but it’s normally just checking in. Talking about what’s going good and bad. We have 20 people working in our office, so they are going to be taken care of and we’ll make sure the players and their families are doing well. Then there’s these times when there are rumors about trades or contract negotiations and some players get nervous. So your job then is to comfort them.
Are they nervous often? Would you say players are insecure people?
BD: They are justifiably insecure. People see them making millions and playing under the spotlight, but they live a life where there’s constant pressure. High pressure. Just by traveling with them, you get to see how draining it can get. All the flights, the tough schedules, having always to be ready and with your game face… It’s a challenge. Then you have all the media scrutiny and sometimes family issues that you cannot deal with because you’re away. It’s amazing how they manage to stay consistent through all that. I respect them a lot and I understand that they can often feel insecure.
Which of the guys you represent you’re the closest with? Steve Nash maybe?
BD: I wouldn’t say anyone. We’re there for everybody. You work for all of them and respect all of them. Some players are more engaging that others. You can speak about politics and other things with them… But you treat all of them the same.
That’s kind of a political answer you just gave me… You don’t have any player that you like more than others?
BD: (Laughs) You can have no preference, but I’m glad to say that I have a great relationship with some of our retired players. Terrell Brandon, for example. He’s a few years removed from playing in the NBA and still his mother called me the other day to take part in an event with Terrell and to tell me how grateful they both were. And that meant a lot to me. Another example of a great relationship is Anthony Carter. When he got married in Hawaii, I was one of just four people invited to the wedding. It makes me proud that he thinks I’ve had enough of an impact on his life that he wanted me to be at his wedding.
Tell me a little bit about what happened with Anthony Carter a few years back (BDA Sports did not pick up the $4.1 player option he had with the Miami Heat). Was that your worst experience as an agent?
BD: Yeah. It was something that shouldn’t have happened, but it did for a simple reason… The person who was in charge of doing that had a serious health issue, a life-threatening issue at the time when the contract option had to be picked up. That’s why the oversight occurred. After that happened, I basically took control of the situation and I can say Anthony Carter didn’t lose a dime. He got all the money. Now he’s starting for a contending team. A lot of people, competitors, recognized our move. Others, I know, have used the mistake to criticize us, but that’s all it was. It was a life-threatening situation that didn’t allow one of our guys to do his work. There was no negligence.
Anthony remains a client and is like a family member to me. I remember when he left college that he blew up his shoulder in the pre-draft camp and a lot of agents that were trying to get him backed away, because the common thinking is that when you get injured during the draft process you are not going to get drafted. But we kept recruiting him. And I think that showed to him that we have a sense of loyalty. I was loyal to him then and he was loyal to me when this thing occurred. I was tested and he was tested. And we stood for each other. That’s how life works. There’s going to be adversities in life and how you deal with them is what’s going to define you.
You were drafted by the Nuggets a lot of years ago. Did you ever think you had a shot at playing with them or any other team in the NBA?
BD: I was drafted in 1982 and that year the Nuggets selected another three guards. I went to summer camp hoping that I would be released soon and might get a chance with other team. But I lasted longer than expected and didn’t get that chance. I was prudent enough to see that playing pro basketball was not something that I should pursue, pursue, pursue… And anyway, I was more business oriented already at that point. I’m happy with my past and the decisions I made. Today there are 30 teams with 15 roster spots each. Had that been the situation back then, I would probably have had a career in the NBA. But no regrets. I have been more successful doing this than I would’ve ever been playing basketball.
You donated money to the Barack Obama campaign. Why was that?
BD: Obama represents a world of change and especially change in the way our country is perceived around the planet. Right now, our leadership is detached from the rest world. Having traveled around the world due to my business, I learned that diplomacy and communicaction are really the key. I think Obama can change the tone of how our country deals with the world. Just because he could be the representative of our country being a multiracial person, I think the perception they have about us will change. I also like that he has a more peaceful and humanitarian approach to foreign policy, whereas others have business-oriented agendas. Also, he is a person that has no chronies around him that he needs to appease.
And besides all that, him being president would mean a lot to me because, as African American, I care a lot about how we are portrayed – especially in the media. By having a person of color as president, a lot of perceptions will change, stereotypes could come to an end and racial divides (because you know the main one is black vs. whites) could be eased.
Are you pitching him to your players?
BD: Yes. You know Greg Oden spoke with him recently. We all understand the significance of that. I tell them that if you support him, it will be important. Greg will not say, “Go and vote for Obama.” But he will say, “Go and vote.” And he has let it be known that he supports Obama’s cause. At the end of the day, Greg’s vote is just one vote. But his voice, what he says, can be very powerful. We always want to make it clear on them, on our players, how influential they can be and that it’s a good thing that they are active and involved in these things.
Then you have Steve Nash, who is one of our most vocal players. He took a lot of heat when he spoke about the war in Iraq, especially being Canadian. And by the way, I think Canada is an admirable country. But I told him he should not apologize for speaking out about the war because even though he isn’t American he was paying more taxes here than any of the people that were critizicing him (laughs).
Maybe I’m putting you on the spot with this… You’re an advocate of democracy and human rights. At the same time, Yao Ming is one of your clients. And he’s basically the face of the Olympic Games for China. So what are yout thoughts on the boycott threats to the Beijing Games after seeing what China is doing in Tibet?
BD: First thing, athletes suffer boycotts more than anybody else. I know about the gravity of what’s going on, but boycotting wouldn’t be the solution. In these situations, you sit and discuss and talk about your beliefs and try to make an impression on the other side. China is a major global presence, but you can’t change one country’s culture from one day to the other. The focus has to be on engagement and communication and not pushing things on people. There should be a dialogue. The violation of human rights is a serious thing that has to be talked about. But we can’t be as aggressive as we’ve been with other countries. There are diplomatic and economic measures than can be taken, but above all there should always be dialogue and diplomacy.
Remi Said,
April 6, 2008 @ 2:44 pm
TIBET IS CHINA
KOSOVO IS SERBIA
remi is wrong Said,
April 6, 2008 @ 5:57 pm
IGNORANCE!
Jon K. Said,
April 6, 2008 @ 7:57 pm
Tibet is filled with Tibetans, not Chinese. Tibet was independent until invaded by China. Tibet is not China.
Kosovo is 90% Kosovars, not Serbs. The Kosovars do not want to be ruled by Serbia. Kosovo is not Serbia.
Countries like China and Serbia have HUGE inferiority complexes and these inferiority complexes make them come to all kinds of insane conclusions about what is good in life.
KRS-1 Said,
April 6, 2008 @ 11:56 pm
What would our reactions be if we held the Olympics and other countries and people boycotted and protested (rightfully so) because of the war in Iraq and atrocities committed in Abu Ghraib, etc? People here (in the US) would throw a fit. Before we go condemning others, why don’t we take a look at ourselves as a nation first.
Don Sellers Said,
April 7, 2008 @ 7:27 am
I will take a bite off of KRS-1. Why don’t we take a long look at ourselves before condemning (Opps that the American way, isn’t it?) B-Duff, congraulations on your induction, you do a hell of a job and it is a pleasure to have been associated with you for awhile. One thing I took away from our time was how you always think things out before reacting, you are a true professional and very methodical (smile). In a business where etiquette is off of the charts at times, you along with Bill Neff, Harold Woolfolk, Calvin Andrews, Guss Armstead, up and coming Ara Vartanian and the always ever present Aaron Goodwin not only have passion for what you do, but an enjoyment along with care for the athlete comes across from you gentlemen. From my vantage point you, Aaron, David Falk, Fred Slaughter, and a couple of others beyond my basketball memory helped set the bar where it is right now. Congrats to all hard working agents,that is a tough business you guys are in.
D-Sell
Giovani Fereira Said,
April 7, 2008 @ 1:51 pm
Okay people just relax…cause most people in Key West wants independence from the states (which would be dumb in my opnion) and most of the ones that have been there for generations consider themshelves Conchers and not Americans and I’m not refering to the rich who has swooped in over the past 40 yearss or so I’m talking about the actual middle to poor class. More than half of Quebec wants to seperate from Canada but that doesn’t happen either. So people you have to realize this is the world we live in and the dominant species can make you believe anything they want…whether it’s Saddam and is heavy handed approach (built by Americans) Or if it’s Bush and let me scare the crap out of you so you give me blank check and although heavy handed he can disguise it as the soldiers was out of line…but couldn’t you apply the same logic to Sadam per say. If someone in the world does something bad and they are not on Americas side then they’ll use that to invade or chastise but if America has nothing to really benefit…ala Kosovo.
Giovani Fereira Said,
April 7, 2008 @ 2:00 pm
Hey John K…the USA used to filled with natives natives until your ancestor came along…can you say blinded double standard??? The first chemical warfare attack was commited by who…the Americans///SIr Jeffrey Amherst who gave the natives knowingly blankets infested with small pox. THe genocide of the natives in general….the enslavement of black people who built this nation…maybe all of us should boycott America until the pay restitutions to the natives and blacks…and what about Chinese they were put in intermittent camps cause they looked Japenese…same thin happened to the vietnames and koreans in and after world war 2…so go learn some history before you yap stupidness…the pathetic thing is that I would at least 70 % of americans are obvioulous to history and to the history of their country…most don’t realize that blacm and women were fightinh for the right to nbe consdered full human being just about 60 years ago (since they couldn’t votes they were not considered full human…black men where considered 3/4 of a person to ensure they still paid taxes…the remaing 1/4 was the part that would have allowed them to vote but that was only granted in the 1960’s a full hundred years after the emancipation proclamation was signed…and for you dumb asses out their America broke from England cause the English abolished slavery a half a century before you didi which is why the American revolution happended but I truly believe the 4 reich wil happen in America…there was three other to people who think the 3rd reich was a fancy word….white people have tried to do this numerous times in history…1400’s spansih inquisition and so forth…I bet most of yoy learned mosre history in the past few minutes than you didi most of your lives ( I said most of you not all of you)
Giovani Fereira is an idiot Said,
April 7, 2008 @ 3:54 pm
lol….”enslavement of black people who built this nation”…I’m from the north man, my ancestors had nothing to do with it and 3/4 of the country was built without their labor.
Matt Said,
April 7, 2008 @ 5:34 pm
They don’t teach us about the bad things in school when you are growing up, you have to read and look for it. I couldn’t agree more with what Giovani said, we have enslaved, killed, and stolen just as much if not more than any other powerful civilization in world history. It’s hypocritical to say ‘boycott the Olympics’ when people fail to look at themselves in the mirror. The United States is very good at doing one thing and saying something completely different. Was the Iraq war about ’saving the people of Iraq from Saddam or about preserving the plentiful oil reserves for our consumption?
tate Said,
April 9, 2008 @ 4:29 am
Don’t know why we talk about Kosovo in this forum, but it’s not that clear that they are a country. people from Kosovo are immigrants from Albania, that’s not interested in recognizing Kosovo as Albanian and getting in trouble with Serbia. THEY want to be a country, but what if a small village says they’re a different country? States should ALWAYS let them be independent? I’m not saying they shouldn’t, just that this line is hard to draw.
Nice interwiew!
paul white Said,
April 9, 2008 @ 4:09 pm
Giovani Fereira - the first chemical attack was not done by whites, but by mongols when they invaded ukraine. they would catapult dead animals infected with plague over the city gates so that the local population would die of disease, and they would not have to fire a shot.
paul white Said,
April 9, 2008 @ 4:12 pm
RE - African Enslavement - The white man could not have enslaved black people by themselves. One of the worst crimes is to ignore that whites bought slaves from other blacks (more often than not, from black mulsims in africa). in fact, the arabic word for a black person is abeed (slave) or “raisinhead”, both used in the “holy” quran.
The black slave trade is still going on in east africa
C Fatz Said,
April 10, 2008 @ 8:31 am
So that makes it right? If a black man sells a black man, I would be justified in purchasing, enslaving and abusing that black man?
The notion that if I don’t sell drugs someone else will is the flimsiest of pretexts to excuse an immoral behavior. If I don’t enslave a man somebody else will is no excuse to participate in this hideous chain.
Dry up the market for drugs and the dealers won’t be able to sell drugs. Eliminate the purchase of humans and you’ll eliminate the sale of humans. Right is right and the enslavement of humans of any color or gender IS NOT RIGHT.
C Fatz Said,
April 10, 2008 @ 8:33 am
Oh, I really came to this page to salute Bill Duffy and what he is doing. When I get my law degree I’m going to start representing players as their agent. Then I’ll be the SECOND ethical sports agent
CF
:0)
Steve J. Said,
April 10, 2008 @ 5:22 pm
Education on world history is crucial to understanding-Kosovo is a region in Southern Serbia, which is not populated by Kosovars, but rather Albanians, who through the years have migrated to the region and are now the majority in the area. What if say in 50 years, the Mexican poulation in Southern California decided that they no longer wanted to be a part of the U.S. and its governing laws, and claimed sovereignty as a seperate nation. Would that be accepted? Educate yourselves and understand that the Albanian mafia-which is solidly entrenched in Kosovo, deals in drugs and is flooding Congress with tons of Lobby money to get all the world support for this cause.
Jonathan Said,
April 10, 2008 @ 11:18 pm
Very interesting point Steve J. Normally, when it comes to people wanting independence I say just give it to them. If they’re willing to sacrifice the benefits of being part of a larger, stronger, more unified nation, then that’s their loss.
However, I can’t see myself supporting the secession of Southern California from the US anytime soon. Not only would it undermine the stability of the “United” States as a nation, it could have far reaching political, financial, and social ramifications around the globe. It just wouldn’t make sense on so many levels.
I guess the issue of national sovereignty is more complex than I originally thought. There are two sides to every conflict. Thanks for reminding me of this.
Norman Said,
April 11, 2008 @ 9:28 am
If an NBA player said he did not support Obama for president and worked against Obama, I suspect he would not last long in the NBA. Racism is alive and well in the NBA .. believe it ..!!!
Paul White Said,
April 13, 2008 @ 5:29 pm
RE: C Fatz
I never said slavery was excused. I wrote: “One of the worst crimes is to ignore that whites bought slaves from other blacks (more often than not, from black mulsims in africa)” and also stated that it is going on today.
My point was that their is a hypocrisy where only whites are condemned when so many other races and cultures (such as Muslim Black Arabs enslaving the Christian and animast blacks in east Africa).
It is a hypocrisy to blame only the whites when their were two sides to slavery, the black and white face (the blacks who sold out other blacks).
In order for true atonement, all guilty parties must recognize their wrongs. It would be racist to only blame whites and ignore the slavery crimes of other races and cultures who practice and facilitate slavery because those cultures and races are not white.
You should read clearly before stating a conclusion “and that makes it right”.
Good luck in your legal career.
Giovani Fereira Said,
November 26, 2008 @ 3:57 pm
I love cowards…I post something then someone uses my name as giovani is an idiot…but that’s okay he’s just trailer park trash anyways….the difference is that when people do some wack stuff it’s natural to defend it but that’s built into your nature….And as that idiot stated the Mongols fired dead animals into some Euro country…but that;s the exact thing…he didn’t come in peace offerng the dead animals….the Mongols didn’t claim to be civilized…Afganistan was only conquered by who…the Mongols…but they didn’t claim they were spreading democracy ….the said we gonna kick your ass and they did…not here you go my friends here’s blankets infested with malaria and small pox masquerading as friends…to me that is more evil than what the Mongools did…they didn’t say here’s dead animals cover yourself at night with it as it would keep you warm…but like I said that’s why we rank so low when it comes to education and obviously common sense…but deep down inside you feel it…the need to justify what your ancestors did…..and then some idiot wnats to state I was from the north…that didn’t mean s.h.i.t cause most of them still had slaves…they may have gotten a smalle piece of chicken thrown in with the bread and water they were normally fed…but keep telling yourshelves that cause what goes around comes around….would it be ironic if Americans ended up as slaves to the Chinese let’s say…come learn…go get an education.