Agent Spotlight: David Dunn

So the Sports Law Blog that I am fond of, is finally taking some notice to the Sports Agent business.

This post by the Sports Law site, references a Sports Business Journal article (I do not have access to it…anybody want to buy me a subscription?…please…), which speaks about David Dunn’s past, present, and possible future.

In 2003, Sports Agent David Dunn was suspended by the NFLPA for two years for trying to steal clients from his former partner, Leigh Steinberg. The NFLPA’s power did not seem very strong in this case (which runs contrary to my comment in this post about the power of player unions). By filing for personal chapter 11 bankruptcy, the 2 year suspension had no effect at the time. It seems that this claim will not last for long, though.

Basically, do not try to steal away a player from another Agent/Agency. It is a violation of NFLPA rules. Many have accused Drew Rosenhaus of stealing clients, but no players have actually told the NFLPA that the claims are true. David Dunn has been called out by players, and therefore, is at risk of losing his ability to represent players.

The main issue that I have is that I cannot understand why an athlete would want someone like David Dunn to represent him/her. With such a large pool of qualified Sports Agents out there (including tons of registered Agents without a single client that would do anything possible to gain one), why would players like Reggie Bush and Matt Lienart even consider representation from David Dunn? With 50 players currently represented and another 8 players in this upcoming draft, David Dunn seems to be in control even though that control may be forcefully taken away from him by the NFLPA (which I still believe to have the strongest hand concerning Sports Agent issues in football).

How is it possible that people would want a cheater, rule-breaker, and unloyal person as their agent?

[tags]david dunn, sports, law, agent, drew rosenhaus, nfl, nflpa[/tags]