Try-outs for our 14U team will be held on January 17, 2009 at Berkeley Carroll's auxillary gym at 181 Lincoln Place. We are looking to add a few more investment ballers in advance of our 2009 season. We expect to begin playing games in March 2009. If you are in 8th grade or born after September 1, 1994 you are eligible to play. Do you have what it takes to be an investment baller? If you think your game is nice enough to play on the AAU level and you would like exposure within the NYC and beyond, we would love to see you at our try outs. We expect to travel from Connecticut to as far south as Baltimore/Washington, DC. You can reach Coach Baker at 917-697-8168 or for any questions . . . Investment ballers aren't born . . .their made.
On September 16, 2008 the New York Post tried to blame the Shock Exchange for the 504 point decline in the stock market amid the demise of Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch, and AIG. But unlike these firms, the Shock Exchange takes a "top down" and "bottoms up" approach to investing. Nice try though. Does that mean we are entitled to some of that bail out money too? Check out the following link:
The Shock Exchange had its last investment meeting of the summer on August 16th and Drew Cary, a former bond salesman at Bear, Stearns and Dreyfus was there. Drew gave us an overview of the life of a bond salesman and his personal journey from the University of Connecticut to The Street. [Please visit the Shock Exchange Fund webpage in a few weeks for the details of the meeting]. As an aside, I have received about 30 phone calls from friends and family asking for my opinion on the recent financial crisis and what to do with the money they currently have in the Market. The short answer is . . . GET OUT! There may be short-term upticks in the Market due to current or future stimulus packages, but I cannot think of any reason why corporate earnings and ultimately the Market should rise long-term.
Drew (4th from left) Talks Credit Markets With Shock Exchange
The Shock Exchange had its recent investment meeting on March 16, 2008 and it was truly a star-studded event. Jessica Jones and Jerry Jack of Black Enterprise were on hand to meet the team and to get a better understanding our investment process. In her article Round ball and Round Lots, Ms. Jones documents the various enticements used to teach kids about saving and investing, with sports being one of them. The article goes in depth about the Shock Exchange's basketball program and the performance of the Shock Exchange Fund. I encourage everyone to pick up the July issue of the magazine.
As an aside, we have received 20k visitors to our website since the article came out. We really appreciate the interest and we hope you learned a lot from what the kids are doing. However, nobody sent us any donations. The Shock Exchange is a non-profit organization that relies on contributions from parents and the public. All donations are tax deductible. Thank-you in advance.
2008 began with Shock Exchange Comes to Harlem, one of the top tournaments in Manhattan this season. No longer able to fly below the radar, the Shock Exchange had to step up its game and get exposure for the team and the players beyond Brooklyn. We began the season undermanned as we lost a few players from the previous season. Coach Baker then had to go hunting for talent, adding Garrett (guard), Marquise (guard), Shumba (center), Sean (forward), and Griffin (forward) and bringing Dylan (guard) back into the fold. That said, as the season wore on an the team began to jel, the Shock Exchange was able to enhance its reputation as a team to watch for and as a "park favorite" amongst the crowd. We expect to have try-outs in December 2008 and get back to work in January 2009 in advance of the '09 AAU season.
In July Coach Baker was invited to attend an after-party for the Malan Breton collection at the AKA Hotel during Fashion Week. While standing around minding his own business, he was approached by four ladies who wanted some guidance on the pending financial crises. They then hit him with that line "What's your name . . . What's your sign? . . . Things that make you smile? . . . What numbers to dial? You gon' be here for a while?
Coach Baker Goes One - on - Four . . . . . . You a Chuck Son!
In the uptown action adventure, Shock Exchange Comes to Harlem, Mr. Baker has recently learned that Harlem is about to be attacked by some of the most devastating travel basketball teams in the US and maybe even Canada. They are plotting to wrest the title of "basketball mecca" from the NYC. They plan to bring weapons such as the "slam dunk" , the "sky hook", the "fade away", and the "killer crossover" . . . killer crossover?. They may even employ unconventional strategies such as the "full court press", the "give-and-go" and the "1-3-1 zone". America's Favorite Investment Ballers, brave as they are, have been summoned to defend Harlem against these interlopers.
Last year they came with charming names like Dynasty Select, Falcons, Playaz, Kips Bay, Road Runners, Ruffriders, Gauchos, Defenders, Coast 2 Coast, Rockets, CT Xclusive, Terminators, Northstars, Kings, Abyssian, Ballers, Rising Stars, Panthers, Jammers, Rockers, LI Elite, CT Skills, Pythons, and Sam Cassell (who let him back into the NYC). The Durham City Bulldogs, one of the top teams from out of Toronto, Canada was also present. I thought it was bad when the Canadian dollar recently surpassed the US dollar, but now they want the title too? While I'm on it, since 1995 the Canadian dollar has appreciated against the US dollar by almost 40% . . . this is unacceptable.
The entire NYC is still abuzz. The battle will take place not coincidentally at City College, which in 1950 was the mecca of the basketball world when it became the first team to win the NIT and NCAA titles in the same year. For recommended hotels and hostels, click "read more" below.
Bring the top travel teams on the East Coast to City College with its rich basketball history, have them play in front of that NYC crowd with Harlem as the backdrop and some fly gear (with the Shock Exchange Baller Boy logo affixed) as the pay off, and what do you get? You get, Shock Exchange Comes to Harlem, of course. Friday, the first day of the tournament, began as more of a curiosity. Everyone wanted to know who the Shock Exchange was and if the tournament would live up to the hype. Well it did, and then some. The turn out was absolutely crazy, the atmosphere electric, and the teams and coaches all rose to the occasion. By Saturday, everyone was "in it to win it", scouting the competition, checking standings, calculating the road to the Chip for the 5th time, and trying to gain every edge possible - from handpicking courts to handpicking game times - hey if you ain't cheatin' you ain't tryin'.
As everyone looked for an early indication as to where their teams ranked, the Harlem Kings put everyone on notice that they are a force to reckoned with - sweeping the 13U, 14U, and 15U divisions - a feat we will probably never see again. Kips Bay tried to get greedy, taking the 16U Chip and falling just short to Sam Casell All-Stars (who let him back in the NYC) in the 12U finals, while the Playaz had second place finishes in the 16U and 14U divisions. The full results are below:
The team had its recent investment meeting on Sunday July 30, 2007 and just as I suspected --- the kids > Coach Baker! A year later, the stocks picked by the kids (Apple and GameStop) have trounced the performance of Coach Baker's stock (Phoenix Insurance). Apple achieved a 112% return, GameStop an 82% return, compared to Phoenix's negative 1% return. It appears that Apple and GameStop have been the beneficiary of new technologies and trends that are popular with kids. Whoever coined the phrase "out of the mouths of babes" was a genius, because truer words were never spoken. The results just go to prove that it is nothing short of amazing what our kids know about what's hot and what's not and which companies will benefit.
But as we look to set the portfolio for the future, several questions and issues arose. Can Apple and Steve Jobs maintain its recent momentum? Dimitry Martelli believes that the Sidekick from T-Mobile is cooler and has more features than the Apple iPhone and thinks it is time to dump Apple, while Christopher Smith (Nick's dad) believes it is foolish to bet against Apple, regardless of its recent run-up. David Higham (Jett's dad) thinks GameStop will soon become a dinosaur as consumers will eventually start buying games online instead of in stores. Furthermore, we should dump GameStop before it realizes a similar fate as Blockbuster. Dimitry countered that Sony was marking down the price of the PS3 so GameStop's sales, and earnings, would get a short-term jolt (Dimitry how do you know this stuff?).
However, a topic everyone could agree on is that Mr. Baker is too emotionally attached to Phoenix. We had to stop the meeting on several occasions to wait for the laughter from the kids and parents to subside. But like a true executive, Mr. Baker tried to position himself so that Mr. Neverson would take the fall. When that didn't work, he threatened to cut back everyone's playing time . . . ironically the laughter suddenly subsided. We finished the meeting with a task for the kids to decide which stocks to trade out of and which ones to add. The new candidates are Johnson & Johnson, Prada (fat chance Dimitry), American Express, Nike and Adidas. The entire results from the meeting is in the process of being updated on the "Shock Exchange Fund" webpage.
In June the Shock Exchange's 12U, 13U, and 14U/15U teams began play at Brooklyn's famed Brower Park and Dunker's Delight at Wingate Park where you are awarded 3 points for a dunk. With Nick and Ralphie, holdovers from last year's team, the Shock Exchange expanded the talent pool as it looked to put the local outdoor tournaments in the proverbial "choke hold". With its spirited play, "never say die" attitude, and colorful name, the Shock Exchange has become a crowd favorite at both Brower and Wingate. Winning the crowd at these parks is no easy feat, as the local fans (i) take their basketball seriously and (ii) recognize the real from the fake on the court. The competition has been rugged at times but as the local competition can attest, America's Favorite Investment Ballers like to give as good as they get. As we head into the playoffs, the team with the colorful name - "New York Shock Exchange" - expects to add to both its street rep and to local urban lore.
Saquan goes into his dance routine at Dunker's Delight
