Magic Johnson, David Stern headline $5M round in ShotTracker
October 19, 2016 | Bobby Burch
A sojourn to the City of Angels has taken on magical meaning for ShotTracker.
The Merriam-based firm announced Wednesday that basketball legend Earvin “Magic” Johnson and former NBA Commissioner David Stern are among a group of investors that have injected $5 million into its coffers. The duo of high-profile investors will help accelerate the wearable tech company’s newest product, ShotTracker TEAM, as the company wraps up its final weeks at the Los Angeles Dodgers’ accelerator.
ShotTracker co-founders Davyeon Ross and Bruce Ianni.
The round — which features at least three funds with offices in the Los Angeles area — includes investments from Elysian Park Ventures, Greycroft Partners, Sovereign’s Capital, Irish Angels, ward.ventures and Service Provider Capital.
ShotTracker co-founder Davyeon Ross said that the capital will afford the company an array of opportunities.
“This raise allows us to commercialize the team version, build out our team and support the initial launches of our product into the market,” Ross said.
For its first product, ShotTracker developed a wearable device for an individual basketball player. The device has three pieces — a wrist sensor, net sensor and mobile app — that track shot attempts, makes and misses.
Its second product — ShotTracker TEAM — can be used by a group of players to capture the same shooting metrics in real time. The firm partnered with sporting equipment giant Spalding to implant sensors into basketballs that interact with sensors on a player’s shoes and the rafters above the court. The team product, however, offers coaches more insight into player performance, including box stats, shooting charts, line-up comparisons and player efficiency ratings.
Ross said that he’s thrilled to have such seasoned basketball veterans as Johnson and Stern on the ShotTracker team to help guide its success.
An NBA Hall of Fame inductee in 2002, Johnson was a five-time NBA champion, was named by Ebony Magazine as one of America’s most influential black businessmen in 2009 and owns part of the Dodgers. Stern served as the commissioner of the NBA for 30 years, overseeing the rise of seven new NBA teams under his tenure and in 2014 was named to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
“Earvin and David are both visionaries and leaders in their own right,” Ross said. “Earvin revolutionized the point guard position and set an example for athletes transitioning into successful businessmen and women. David has been responsible for what the NBA is today and its success. To have both of these individuals on board is incredible validation for our vision and a sign of things to come.”
ShotTracker co-founders Bruce Ianni and Ross have raised about $10 million for the firm, which in January was named a Startland Top 10 KC Startup to Watch. Check out the video below to learn more on this announcement.
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