Priority Sports & Entertainment is a full-service sports management firm, representing NFL and NBA athletes and coaches, based in Chicago, Illinois and Sherman Oaks, California. Priority Sports is one of the largest independently owned sports agencies in the US. It was founded in 1985 by Mark Bartelstein, a former investment banker at Morgan Stanley. In 2013, Priority Sports & Entertainment was named on Forbes list of the 10 World's Most Valuable Sports Agencies and the 8 Most Valuable NFL Agencies. In 2014, Priority was recognized as #7 among the World's Most Valuable Sports Agencies by Forbes, with $560 million in contract value under management. In 2015, Forbes ranked Priority #20 on the list, with $947.52 million in contract value under management and $33.2 million in commissions. Priority Sports & Entertainment, fueled by its heavily sought-after client Gordon Hayward, was the big winner in 2017's NBA free agency, leading all agencies in the total dollars negotiated so far. Priority led the pack with $354.6 million negotiated for nine players. Priority Sports finished #2 among all agencies in the 2107 NFL "free agency" signing period, negotiating over $243 million in contracts, and finished #1 among all agencies worldwide for the highest percentage guarantees in their contracts. Since founding Priority Sports, Bartelstein has been rated as one of the most influential sports agents by Street & Smith'sSports Business Journal. He first gained acclaim after negotiating the contract for NBA star John "Hot Rod" Williams, because it made him the highest paid player in the history of team sports at the time.
Basketball division
Player agents
The company has represented more than 24 first round NBA Draft picks. In the 2010 NBA Draft, Priority Sports represented four athletes who were drafted in the first round, more than any other agency. In the 2015 NBA Draft, Priority Sports represented four first round picks. "Priority has represented 20 players, or 9.5 percent, of the first-round selections in the NBA draft over the pastseven years. This year Priority represented No. 18 pick Sam Dekker, No. 22 pick Bobby Portis, No. 27 pick Larry Nance Jr. and No. 28 R.J. Hunter. Bartelstein and Priority agents Reggie Brown, Joel Cornette, Zach Kurtin, Kieran Piller and Andy Shiffman represent the players."
Athletes
Priority Sports represents the following NBA athletes:
Bradley Beal re-signed with the Wizards for five years and $128 million.
Gordon Hayward was the 9th overall pick in the 2010 NBA Draft. He signed a $11,000,000 contract over four years with the Utah Jazz, and remained with the team until signing a four-year, $128 million deal with the Celtics in the 2017 offseason.
Priority Sports has worked with NFL athletes for over twenty years. In addition to Bartelstein, partner Rick Smith, partner Mike McCartney, Kyle Dolan, Dominique Price and partner Kenny Zuckerman are agents at the company.
Athletes
Priority Sports represents the following NFL athletes:
Kirk Cousins signed the largest fully guaranteed contract in NFL history, worth $84 million for three years.
Mike Evans became the NFL's second highest-paid receiver, with a five-year, $82.5 million contract extension.
Ryan Jensen is a former Ravens center who became one of the highest-paid interior linemen in football. The Buccaneers signed him to a four-year, $42 million deal, with $22 million guaranteed.
Josh McCown signed a contract for one year and $10 million.
Tyson Alualu was the tenth pick in the 2010 NFL Draft He signed a five-year contract worth nearly $28 million, including over $17 million guaranteed.
Levi Jones, a 2002 first round pick, signed a six-year contract extension worth $40 million, including over $16 million guaranteed.
Kurt Warner was the 1999 and 2001 NFL MVP, and Super Bowl XXXIV winner and MVP. He signed a two-year contract worth $24 million with $19 million guaranteed.
A. J. Hawk, the fifth pick in the 2006 NFL Draft, signed a six-year contract worth $40 million with over $15 million guaranteed.
Jake Delhomme, a 2005 Pro Bowl quarterback, was released by the Carolina Panthers in 2010, then signed a two-year deal worth $12.5 million with the Browns during free agency. Because of contract language that was in his deal with Carolina, the Panthers still had to pay him $12,7 million in guaranteed money, bringing his 2010 salary to a total of $19,7 million.
Haloti Ngata, the 12th pick in the 2006 NFL Draft, signed a five-year contract worth $14 million with over $9 million guaranteed. His present contract is a four-year deal worth $48.5 million, which includes a $25 million signing bonus.
Olin Kreutz, a perennial Pro Bowler, signed a three-year contract extension for $25 million with a $9 million signing bonus.
