Michael Raymond knew he wanted to pursue a career in sports from a young age. It wasn’t until his time in high school though that he discovered his interest in the business side of the industry. This was just the beginning. As he transitioned from playing the game of basketball to learning the ins and outs of the business, Michael quickly became intrigued by the sports agent business. He didn’t know much about all the moving pieces surrounding the agency space, but he was eager to learn more. After graduating from high school, Michael began his collegiate career at the University of Central Florida (UCF)—where he majored in Economics and Sports Business Management. Throughout his undergraduate career there, he pursued an array of opportunities to grow his network and expand his knowledge of the industry. From his active participation in UCF’s Sports Business Club to internships with the university’s athletic program to his work with two other agents, Michael continued to strengthen his passion for sports management and interest in owning his own agency. Before he knew it, he did just that. In June of 2020, Michael launched Raymond Representation—a sports and talent agency specializing in business, marketing and lifestyle management. He hasn’t looked back since. Driven by his passion for helping others, Michael has continued to expand the talent roster of Raymond Representation—which includes professional basketball players, golfers, influencers, Esports teams, and student-athletes for NIL—over the past year. As he works to finish up his J.D. degree in Sports and Entertainment at the University of Miami School of Law, Michael is excited to grow his agency further in the years to come and help even more clients go “From Athletes to Entrepreneurs.”
How was that transition from college into the world of athlete and talent management like for you?
It was definitely different because I didn't expect at all to start Raymond Representation while I was in law school. It was obviously something that I had always thought of. It was always like a dream of mine to have my own agency, but I was always thinking (of) the traditional route—like going to work for a bigger agency or just keep connecting with people or maybe even work at a law firm and try to get some of that experience (there). That summer right before COVID, which I think was 2019, I had had a decent amount of law firm experience. I did an internship at a law firm for three months during the summer, and I quickly realized that I definitely didn't want to work in a law firm and definitely didn't want to have that traditional eight to six or nine to five job. It just wasn't for me. I'm very entrepreneurial, specific on my time management, and just kind of having freedom. You know, that's how I've always been so I knew it wasn't for me and I just didn't have a passion for it. I always had a passion for helping people, working with athletes, and just mentoring other guys as much as I could. After that, I had also worked at an agency part-time.
I was helping another agent up in Orlando who was signing a couple guys that I had known from UCF. I was helping him with some work and projects here and there, and I quickly realized (that) I wanted to open my own shop. I was like, “I want to start doing this now.” I didn't have any plans to get certified as quickly as I did, you know. I thought the way that I would break in was by helping guys from the G League and overseas with their off the court (ventures). So what I did was I reached out to players that I had known like Aubrey Dawkins, for example. He's a very close friend of mine. Or like Justin Gray—he was one of my first clients out of Texas Tech. What I was doing was helping these guys with branding and their off the court (projects)—setting up camps in the summertime to get kids to come in, setting up community engagement, setting up social media sponsorships, and just creating things like graphics and video for them. I was just trying to connect the dots with different people. Another thing that I was doing (as well) was I was trying to help them either pick their agents, find new agents, or help them get some exposure with teams. That helped me branch out a little bit while I was starting to get my agency license.
As you started your own agency, what were some challenges that you faced early on and how did you work to overcome them?
There's definitely a lot of challenges. A lot of challenges (*laughs*). The biggest one was other agents that they might be working with for their basketball contracts. Seeing somebody like me that wanted to be an agent and that was helping their guys almost more than they were—I was more personable, I was more relatable with these guys, I was talking to them every single day—that was definitely a big struggle. Another struggle was just trying to juggle both law school and building the agency. (For example), I had to study for the NBPA exam while also studying for law school finals. It was tough. The last thing I would say is honestly just being taken seriously. You know, trying to transition that friendship role to more of a business role. Like I said, I was always very friendly with a lot of the guys. I worked with the team, I was always in the basketball gym getting shots up with them, I was a big hooper, and I was always playing basketball with the guys. I wanted them to kind of take me seriously. I think law school, bringing them deals, and creating successful camps and stuff like that definitely helped with that.
Diving more into Raymond Representation, could you share a little bit more with us about your company's mission and goals?
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