Hazan Sports Management Group (HSM), led by NBPA-certified agent Daniel Hazan, has filed a breach of contract suit against its former client Malik Beasley in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. Beasley, the Detroit Pistons star and finalist for the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year award, signed an NBPA Standard Player Agent Contract (“SPAC”) with HSM in 2023 to serve as his on-court player agent. The parties also signed an exclusive marketing representation agreement, with HSM providing Beasley with a cash marketing advance of $650,000 against his future endorsement income.
Facts
According to the Complaint, Beasley fired HSM as his on-court player agent in February 2025 and simultaneously breached the provisions of the parties’ marketing representation contract. Shortly thereafter, Beasley hired Brian Jungreis and his firm, Seros Partners, for on-court representation and as a marketing agency. Seros Partners’ chief executive is Christian Dawkins, an NIL agent who was famously sentenced to eighteen months in prison for his role at the center of the 2017 corruption in college basketball scandal. HSM has alleged that Beasley’s breach of the marketing services agreement between the parties triggered a liquidated damages clause in the contract, which requires Beasley to pay HSM a sum of $1,000,000, plus attorneys fees.
Difference between a SPAC and Marketing Representation Agreement
The practice of signing two agreements—one for “player agent” services and one for marketing services—is common for sports agencies who represent professional athletes. A SPAC is a standard form agreement required by the National Basketball Players Association for agreements between NBA players and NBPA-certified agents for player agent services. Player agent services primarily include representation during contract negotiations with teams in the league. Other professional sports players unions similarly require that a standard agreement be used (e.g., the NFLPA’s Standard Representation Agreement) for such services.
Importantly to this case, the NBPA’s SPAC requires that disputes between players and NBPA-certified agents regarding the SPAC be resolved through the union’s arbitration process. While it is possible (if not probable) that HSM has initiated arbitration proceedings against Beasley through the NBPA, those claims will likely not become public.
In addition to representing athletes in negotiations with teams, many sports agencies represent players in marketing endeavors, sourcing and negotiating sponsorship and endorsement deals on their behalf. Notably, the NBPA does not regulate the contractual relationship between its members and the agents it has certified for marketing agreements between them. In fact, an individual does not even need to be certified by the NBPA to represent NBA players for marketing purposes. Accordingly, the marketing representation agreement between HSM and Beasley is not subject to the NBPA’s arbitration requirements.
Potential Outcomes
Malik Beasley may try to advance several arguments in a motion to dismiss HSM’s claims. The strongest plausible argument is that the $650,000 cash advance against future marketing income was an inducement to sign a SPAC (and only disguised as a marketing advance), which is impermissible under the NBPA’s agent regulations. Such an argument would likely be paired with a motion to compel arbitration, as the NBPA’s arbitration process would be appropriate for disputes related to the union’s agent regulations and the SPAC. Additionally, it is possible that Beasley raises more traditional defenses to breach of contract claims.
Takeaways
Regardless of the outcome of HSM’s case against its former client, athletes and agents alike should be cognizant of the legal ramifications related to marketing representation agreements, addenda to player agent contracts (such as SPACs, SRAs and similar union-mandated representation agreements), and agreements for additional services (such as financial services or pre-draft training).
