Thomas Fields, creator of Grind Basketball, got his company name from what he does: Grind. In middle school, he got up at 5 am to go practice with the high school team. In ninth grade, he made varsity and had a promising future in the sport. Unfortunately, a series of injuries ended his dream of being a division one prospect, but he’s still grinding.
He got his degree in Business Administration at the University of Houston in 2018, but he’s been working on Grind Basketball since 2016. He’s done a lot to educate himself on developing his business, too. Thomas participated in the Engineering and Entrepreneurship Success Initiative Program at MIT, The Success initiative at MIT and the Red Labs Startup Accelerator in Houston. He works on his business with the same intensity he worked on his basketball.
The Grind Basketball machine itself is a portable basketball rebounder that lets a shooter practice without having to chase rebounds. This enables a player to get hundreds more reps in during a practice session. The machine returns the ball to five alternating spots around the key. What makes it different from other, similar machines is that it disassembles and it’s portable.
My Take on Grind Basketball
I’ve actually used a rebounder machine. My son played a couple of years of high school basketball and his school had one. Dad got to fool around with it after practices. I was never a basketball player, so it wouldn’t interest me.
What impresses me is the young man himself. Athletes that perform at a high level (he was at one time a top 50 high school prospect) are just wired differently. I know because my wife was an Olympic caliber swimmer. A blown out knee prevented her from competing in the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta. She has a determination or the ability to grind because of that intensity she acquired while swimming. I sense the same drive in Thomas.
Will Sharks Jump at this Business?
The initial instinct is Mark would jump at this. I can’t see Lori going for it, it’s not in her wheel house. A-Rod is a baseball guy, so he probably wouldn’t go for it, but he does own a bunch of gyms. The thing is, if a gym were to have these machines, they would probably spring for the more expensive, “industrial” versions. I can’t see Barbara or Kevin bidding either, that leaves Mark.
I am afraid Thomas either doesn’t get a deal or, if he did, it didn’t close. The reason I say that is he’s taking pre-orders on his website with a November, 2021 delivery date. If he struck a deal with a Shark, I think he’d have product ready for delivery on show night.
