Kenneth L. Shropshire/Educator, Author and Consultant.
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Books by Shropshire.

Agents of Opportunity: Sports Agents & Corruption in Collegiate Sports
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The Sports Franchise Game: Cities in Pursuit of Sports Franchises, Events, Stadiums, and Arenas
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In Black and White: Race and Sports in America
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Sports and the Law: A Modern Anthology
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Basketball Jones: America, Above the Rim
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The Business of Sports Agents

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The Business of Sports
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Being Sugar Ray
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Negotiate Like the Pros

 

 

Agents of Opportunity: Sports Agents and Corruption in Collegiate Sports

Click here to purchase 'Agents of Opportunity'."Enter the world of unscrupulous sports agents and watch as they bribe unsuspecting student athletes, mismanage their contracts, violate NCAA regulations, and leave scandal- and probation ridden universities in their wake. Although he relates many such tales of greed and woe, Shropshire is not only interested in bashing sports agents. His straightforward and evenhanded analysis also provides some sound solutions to the problems surrounding the recruitment of college athletes into professional sports. Shropshire calls for a restructuring of the 'amateur' college athletic program of the NCAA, which often leaves undercompensated athletes highly susceptible to the pre-signing bonuses and bribes of soliciting agents." --Harvard Law Review

Winner of an Outstanding Book Award--Choice Magazine "The chapter on amateurism is extremely well written and presents a different point of view regarding its origins concerning sports. . . .Shropshire presents his recommendations for reforms and ideas on the future and the industry in a well-defined manner." --Choice  


The Sports Franchise Game: Cities in Pursuit of Sports Franchises, Events, Stadiums, and Arenas

Click here to purchase 'Sports Franchise Game'.Power, prestige, and millions of dollars--these are the stakes in the sports franchise game. Rigorous research, fascinating interviews with the major players, stories behind the headlines, and an insider's perspective converge in this rare view of the business side of professional sports. In its meticulous detail and informed analysis, The Sports Franchise Game provides a startling and memorable study of the business aspects of our national pastimes. The book will be of particular interest to policymakers, sports management professionals, and students of law and management.

"The case studies are expertly used, as each case highlights a different aspect of the workings of relocation so that, taken as a whole, they provide a strong presentation of the spectrum of issues involved. . . .The lessons provided by The Sports Franchise Game are a must for any planner or policymaker. . . ." --Journal of the American Planning Association

"Sport historians will be much indebted to Shropshire for his clear exposition of the franchise game's legal side. . . as will civic leaders who can consult his concluding chapter for negotiating advice." --Business History Review


In Black and White: Race and Sports in America - Foreword by Kellen Winslow

Click here to purchase 'In Black & White'.Informed by Frederick Douglass's belief that "power concedes nothing without a demand," In Black and White dissects claims of colorblindness and reverse racism as self-serving, rhetorical camouflage, scrutinizing professional and collegiate sports, sports agents, and owners alike. No mere critique, however, the volume looks optimistically forward, outlining strategies of interest to all those who have a stake, professional or otherwise, in sports and racial equality.

Winner of an Outstanding Book Award--Choice Magazine Winner of the Myers Center Award for the Study of Human Rights in North America

"A prominent sports-law specialist sends down an indictment of racism in sports that is impossible to ignore. Anyone desiring to be informed about race issues and sports should read it." --Kirkus Review "

"Too many owners still believe that blacks can play the game but not run the front office or manage the teams. Too many exclusionary hurdles to ownership of major franchises still exist. Shropshire offers history, analysis, and a plan for action to bring equal opportunity to the professional sports decision-making field." --Mary Frances Berry, Chairperson of the United States Commission on Civil Rights "

"A new standard of excellence in writing about sports in America begins with this book. Shropshire has approached his task with unique skill, passion, seriousness, and intelligence." --Houston A. Baker, Jr., University of Pennsylvania

"In Black and White hits harder than Lawrence Taylor. . . .A how-to manual not only for sports but society as well. . . .Should be required reading for every incoming freshman." --James Lofton, Former NFL All Pro, CNN Broadcaster


Sports and the Law: A Modern Anthology with Timothy Davis and Alfred Mathewson
Click here to purchase 'Sports and the Law'.Sports law literature has evolved over the last twenty years as writers have successfully grappled with the myriad of legal and quasi-legal issues that arise in the context of sports. As a result of their efforts, scholars addressing these topics have heightened our understanding of the complex factual, legal and social issues that sports matters generate. This anthology seeks to continue this development. It includes excerpts, primarily of law review articles, that address the broad dimensions of sports and the law. 1999/638 pages, Carolina Academic Press, 919 489-7486

Basketball Jones: America Above the Rim with Todd Boyd
Click here to purchase 'Basketball Jones'.This book is a collection of essays examining the impact of basketball on American and global popular culture. The contributing essayists, including Gerald Early, Charles Ogletree and Julianne Malveaux, address issues like basketball's arguable replacement of baseball as our national pastime; Islam and basketball; crime and athletes; and basketball in the movies. 2000/320 pages, New York University Press, 1-800-996-6987

The Business of Sports Agents with Timothy Davis

Click here to purchase 'Sports Agents'.The legendary Charles C. "Cash and Carry" Pyle, considered by most to be the first sports agent, negotiated a $3,000-per-game contract for Red Grange to play professional football for the Chicago Bears in 1933. Today, salaries in the tens of millions of dollars are commonplace, and instead of theatrical promoters and impresarios, professionally trained businessmen and lawyers dominate the business. Successful sports agents are comfortable with high finance and intense competition for the right to represent talented players, and the most respected agents are those who can deal with the pressures of high-stakes negotiations in an honest fashion. But whereas rules and penalties govern the playing field, there are far fewer restrictions on agents. Incidents of agents manipulating athletes, ranging from investment scams to outright theft of a player's money, are far too commonplace, and there is growing consensus for reform.

In The Business of Sports Agents, Kenneth L. Shropshire and Timothy Davis, experts in the fields of sports business and law, examine the history of the sports agent business and the rules and laws developed to regulate the profession. They also consider recommendations for reform, including uniform laws that would apply to all agents, redefining amateurism in college sports (a point Shropshire and Davis suggest may be essential to rooting out corruption), and stiffening requirements for licensing agents.

Whether an aspiring sports agent, a lawyer, an athlete seeking an agent, or someone simply interested in understanding the world of sports representation, the reader will find in The Business of Sports Agents the most comprehensive overview of the industry as well as a straightforward analysis of its problems and the proposed solutions.


The Business of Sports with Scott Rosner
Click here to purchase 'Sports Agents'.The Business of Sports is the first comprehensive collection of readings to focus on the multibillion-dollar sports industry and the dilemmas faced by today’s sports business leaders. This valuable resource provides a complete overview of major sports business issues and is designed for current and future sports business leaders as well as those interested in the inner-workings of the industry. The book covers professional, Olympic, and collegiate sports, and highlights the major issues that impact each of these broad categories.

The readings in The Business of Sports provide insight from a variety of stakeholders in the industry and cover the major business disciplines of management, marketing, finance, information technology, accounting, ethics and law. In addition, the book features concise introductions, a broad range of focused readings and targeted discussion questions, as well as graphs and tables that are used to convey relevant financial data and other statistics.

 

Being Sugar Ray
Click here to purchase 'Sports Agents'.Shropshire (The Business of Sports Agents) calls this "the biography of an idea": Sugar Ray Robinson as the first sports figure to engineer a synergistic success machine out of a flashy image, a fancy entourage and a business plan. Indeed, rather than a straight recount of the storied fighter's life, Shropshire uses scenes from it to create a prism through which the phenomenon of the celebrity athlete reveals itself. Consequently, this volume often reads like a CliffsNotes version of the African-American boxer's troubled youth, 25-year career, restless retirement and demise. Though hardly a saint in or out of the ring, Robinson carved a legacy that Shropshire contends athletes have been trying to emulate (consciously or otherwise) ever since. Race obviously plays a big role in Robinson's story, and the author (African-American himself) handles the topic admirably; on the subject of contemporary sports stars, however, he isn't as evenhanded, making examples of the usual suspects-Kobe Bryant, Terrell Owens, Randy Moss-and arguing how each could learn from Robinson's example. Vivid, present-tense you-are-there retellings of boxing matches balance nicely a narrative that often runs dry on textbook-like prose.

The Business of Sports Agents (2nd Edition) with Timothy Davis
Click here to purchase 'Sports Agents'."A timely look at the business, legal and ethical aspects of the athlete representation business. The authors spotlight the unsavory side of the business, from improper payments to student athletes to agents defrauding their pro clients. They offer a series of possible cures, including tougher regulation of agents and changing the way we think of amateurism."--Street and Smith's Sports Business Journal

 Negotiate Like the Pros
Click here to purchase 'Sports Agents'.What the sports world can teach you about becoming a major league negotiator A fun, fascinating, and instructional read, Negotiate Like the Pros retells the strategies behind some of the most noteworthy, complex, and lucrative sports deals of all time. A successful sports negotiator, Kenneth L. Shropshire uses these stories to teach you how to become better a deal maker, as well as how to develop negotiating methods and styles suited to your individual strengths. Each chapter synthesizes major sports negotiation stories, which are then analyzed for the lessons they hold that can be applied to any field.

 

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