March 09, 2022
Steve Jbara, owner and president of the NBA G-League’s Grand Rapids Gold, will speak about his experiences and the business of sports at an event hosted by
Trine University’s Center for Sports Studies beginning at 7 p.m. Thursday, March 24.
Held inside Fabiani Theatre in the university’s Rick L. and Vicki L. James University Center, Jbara’s presentation will be free and open to the public.
It will be recorded and broadcast on the Trine Center for Sports Studies YouTube channel and podcast on March 29.
Jbara, who graduated from Trine in 2010 with a marketing degree, was part of a group that purchased what was then the Springfield (Massachusetts) Armor in 2014 and moved the franchise to Grand Rapids, Michigan, where it became the Drive, an affiliate of the Detroit Pistons. The Drive became the first team in NBA G League history to turn a profit in its inaugural season.
The team became the NBA G-League affiliate of the Denver Nuggets in April 2021 and subsequently changed its name to the Grand Rapids Gold.
Jbara was honored with the university’s Outstanding Young Alumni Award in 2019.
In addition to describing how he helped build a franchise from the ground up, Jbara will talk about what it takes to land a job in sports and what sports careers really look like. He also will field questions from the audience.
The Trine Center for Sports Studies hosts professionals annually to discuss topics related to the sports industry.
The Trine Center for Sports Studies is a multidisciplinary teaching and experiential learning collaborative at Trine University focusing on the study of sports and the international sports industry. The Center draws from well-respected Trine University programs and courses in business, health sciences and communication to provide the broadest range of sports-related academic major, minors and internships to prepare Trine students for this fast-growing, dynamic international marketplace.
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