Deontre Gray is currently a Creative Ad Solutions Manager at Roku Inc. At the time of this recording, he was working with the NBA on ESPN live sports marketing team, where he’d worked in digital + brand marketing at ESPN for nearly 4 years. Deontre is a former student-athlete from The Ohio State University where he studied business and ran track & field. He also interned with the athletic department there through multiple roles and previously worked with IMG College in marketing. Deontre Gray is an entertainment and sports marketing savant and friend of the show. But above all, he’s someone who’s dedicated to giving back to the community and achieving his definition of success by helping others and carving out his own legacy as such.

“Success is measured by how many people you bless.” - Tre

Connect with Tre:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/deontre-gray/

Timestamps:

0:00 Intro

0:55 Running Track & Field at Ohio State, other now-famous athletes he interacted with during that era

4:01 What took Deontre from collegiate student-athlete to working in sports marketing at ESPN

9:55 What Deontre did to make sure he landed an ESPN internship

• 12:10 How authenticity differentiates you when networking; don’t just be transactional

15:24 What Tre did in first ESPN internship role in Consumer Insights & Corporate Citizenship

23:05 How Deontre secured a full-time ESPN role after his internship; How to ensure you get a full-time return offer from your internship

31:46 Biggest factors when weighing whether working at ESPN vs other companies Tre had offers at

33:53 How NYC was for Tre when he first moved there

37:52 Deontre’s work as a marketer for the NBA on ESPN

45:02 Tre’s proudest project from his time on the NBA on ESPN Marketing team:

• “More Than Just A Game” campaign amidst the turbulence of summer 2020

49:25 What’s it like working at such a large company  (ESPN within the greater Walt Disney Company) in terms of getting things done quickly?

52:19 Tre’s thoughts and perspective on things like imposter syndrome, being the only person of color in a meeting etc. within corporate America, and how to overcome it

• 56:15 How to leverage being one of the only minorities in a corporate meeting to bring new ideas and your culture’s unique perspectives to what your company is doing

57:46 As a minority, is it an added responsibility to make sure your culture is represented when you’re working within corp. America?

• Some people view it as a con:
• You can flip this into a pro:
• 59:45 Articulate your perspective for those who can’t see from that lens

1:00:16 How NBA will evolve over the next decade — international growth, the future of “One and Done”

1:04:04 Three skills someone needs to wield to succeed in sports marketing

1:05:58 Top 3 NBA players of all time

• 1:08:44 LeBron Inc book, how GOAT debates are hard due to evolution of modern sports medicine and increased player longevity

1:10:15 Will Luka or Zion have a better career

1:12:29 Who the best rapper in sports is

1:14:02 The Three Biggest Motivators in Tre’s Life

• 1:15:32 “Success is measured by how many people you bless.”
• 1:16:09 Overlooked forms of currency that are paramount to life

1:16:39 conclusion

Podcast info:

• Podcast website: https://smartalecshow.com
• RSS feed: feed:https://feeds.simplecast.com/ngBH2BfM
• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/634MOIW582k2STgC06Rvl9?si=Zr4Fmx2nR6mqaeWNpFCfQQ&dl_branch=1
• Apple podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-smart-alec-show/id1577614268
• Amazon Music & Audible: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/96993c84-1664-4a67-921d-9b731fbdca99

Connect with Alec on Social:

- Linktree to all platforms: https://linktr.ee/smartalec

Recorded in February 2021