Tyler Sickmeyer and Fidelitas Development Make Big Waves By Leading The San Diego Sharks On The Court And In The Community
Combining his prowess for marketing and passion for hoops, long time pro basketball player Tyler Sickmeyer applies "service leadership" to impact wins off and on the court in The Basketball League
San Diego, California — When it comes to the business of basketball and managing the matrimony between the game and patiently growing a professional organization for the past year from the ground-up, some guys just get it.
Tyler Sickmeyer is one of those guys.
Striking the balance between becoming a leader on the basketball court and in the board room as a marketing thought leader and Founder of marketing agency Fidelitas Development, Tyler has the distinct natural ability to not only suit-up for the local San Diego Sharks during their first season playing in The Basketball League but also apply his passion for doing business the right way as a Team Market Owner, between and outside of the lines. Prior to the start of the 2022 season, Tyler — a long time minor league pro player himself following a standout college career at Division 3 Lincoln Christian University in Lincoln, Illinois — and Fidelitas Development announced their partnership with a handful of other San Diego businesses to bring the Sharks to life as a TBL expansion team.
“We’re excited to take on the Sharks as a new venture for several reasons, but first and foremost we see the team as a way to better engage our local community through sports. Influenced by my ten-plus seasons of Minor League basketball, our team and our partners also see the Sharks as a viable and lucrative business that, when run on a disciplined budget and marketing strategy, can enjoy sustainable success in San Diego,” Ownership group, Fidelitas Development announced on their company website.
“We’re going to lead by serving. Before asking the community for anything, we’re giving away a great experience for fans. A mascot, DJ, and fun games and prizes await fans at every game, but that’s not uncommon. What is uncommon is free admission and free popcorn. These will serve as our team’s initiative to establish a “talk trigger” during our initial season.”
The approach is certainly getting people talking and taking notice of the Sharks as the organization jumped head first into the deep in with a strong focus on giving back within their community and a growing loyal fanbase in San Diego during their inaugural TBL season through the mantra, “Our City - Our Team”.
Recently Tyler Sickmeyer took time to catch-up and share his insight on what it means to put a professional basketball on the court in TBL, how the franchise’s commitment to “give back” during Year One is making an early positive impact on kids and in the community in San Diego, and his tireless drive toward “service leadership”.
Thanks Tyler for taking time to talk some basketball and business with the Sharks. I imagine you have a full schedule with the team between your CEO and ownership responsibilities and also playing for the team. What’s been the key or keys for you in balancing being a team owner/player with an expansion franchise?
My pleasure! I think it starts with a level of humility that I need to lead in each of my roles- as CEO of Fidelitas (our marketing agency), TMO of the Sharks, and forward for the Sharks: by serving first. I’m a big believer in servant leadership and accountability. I’m not going to ask my staff, our coaches, or our players to do anything that I myself am not willing to do. I try to be transparent with our players about the dual hats that I wear and to make sure to explain the “why” behind any given ask.
One important piece to the equation is having a great coaching staff. Our coaches are incredible and treat me the same as any other player during practices and games- I wouldn’t have it any other way. My teammates can call me out for screwing up just like they would any other teammate. The other important piece is the support of my family. I’m keeping a lot of balls up in the air at the same time, and that juggling act wouldn’t be possible without the support of my wife Erica and our two boys.
Finally, it comes down to being intentional with my time. I love the saying to “be where your feet are.” When I’m at home, I’m a husband and father first. When I’m on the court at practice, in a game, or in workouts I’m just another player trying to do my part to help our team win. When I’m representing the Sharks as TMO or making management decisions, I can’t process those decisions through the lens of a player.
Did you always imagine your business career and basketball career overlapping or merging at some point with Fidelitas Development and your background playing college basketball at Lincoln Christian University and in the minor leagues?
Honestly, my business career has enabled me to continue to play minor league basketball over the past fourteen years. Running Fidelitas has enabled me to travel as needed for basketball and live comfortably even when game checks were few and far between. When I left Lincoln early, that was a business-first decision that also impacted my basketball career. I’m a walking example of Jeremiah 29:11 though — I’ve been blessed to meet the right people in both business and basketball every step of the way.
What motivated or inspired you to delve into ownership with TBL and launching the Sharks?
I played in the TBL last year for a now-defunct team and got to know David and Evelyn Magley during that season. I was impressed with the level of play and professionalism in the league and even more impressed with their heart to serve their players. This league isn’t a get-rich-quick-scheme or rug pull like so many other leagues have been in the past. Then, we recognized an opportunity to bring a team to San Diego and run it the right way; leading by serving in the community first and earning the support of our fanbase. The Magleys saw our vision as well and it’s been a great partnership- my partners and I couldn’t be happier with our investment in bringing the San Diego Sharks to life in the TBL this year. (Make sure to check out Episode 121 of the Lion's Share Marketing Podcast powered by Fidelitas, as Tyler is joined by co-host Jon Merlin and TBL’s David Magley to delve deeper into the league and the formation of the Sharks).
How do you feel the community has responded to having a professional team to follow and what’s been the feedback thus far from fans?
The response has been incredible. We knew coming into this that San Diego hasn’t had a great pro basketball experience in decades, and that people were going to be skeptical to a new team and a new(er) league. We saw this as the perfect opportunity to flip the minor league sports model on its head and lead by serving the community. As a result, the community’s really rallied around our team and is packing out the gym in support of the Sharks this year. We plan to keep free tickets and free popcorn for Sharks fans for years to come thanks to the support of our partners in the community!
The organization should also be applauded for having a successful turnout for your recent San Diego Kids Clinic. Were you surprised by the turnout and what did it mean to you to be able to have the team give back to the community in that way?
I was and I wasn’t. The impact that the Sharks are having on the San Diego community just months after coming into existence still blows me away, but this city loves basketball and it’s amazing to see so many families taking advantage of having a fans-first TBL team like the Sharks in San Diego. Everything this year by nature of the timing of the Sharks coming into the league is last minute, so for hundreds of kids to show up to our first camp reinforces just how bullish we are on the impact that we can make here long-term.
So much preparation and planning goes into putting a TBL team together and on the floor to compete. And you guys have certainly competed in a tough conference out West with teams like Salem, California (Sea Kings), and SoCal (Moguls) despite starting the season 0-5. What have you been proud of from the team standpoint looking back on the first half of the season and how do you feel the team’s responded to that early adversity.
Baskeball’s not easy, and sometimes fans and even players can forget that the guys in the other jerseys are pros too. Don’t let anyone’s record fool you; there aren’t any “gimme” wins in the West this year by any means. During that rough stretch we just kept reminding guys that it’s a long season. Adversity happens, but it’s how you respond to it that defines your season and on a macro level, your life. We really emphasized a “foxhole mentality” within the team being willing to trust your teammates, playing hard and unselfishly, and sticking together. That’s what got us our first win on the second day of a tough back-to-back, on the road against the first place team in the division no less. I’m a huge culture guy and am really proud of what we’re building here both on and off the court from that standpoint.
You’ve got a lot of younger and first-year players on the Sharks, with the regular season drawing to a close at the end of May. How are you leading them as an experienced veteran on the team and getting them ready for what’s next in their pro careers?
It’s been great to see young guys get a chance here this year. I keep saying that, if you’ve ever felt overlooked or underrated, then this is your team because that summarizes a lot of the guys here. This will be my last year as a player before I retire to focus on being a dad first and foremost, so I’ve tried to soak up every opportunity to show guys things and teach them things to hopefully shorten the learning curve for them at the start of their pro careers. I think it’s important to lead by example, so I make a point to be one of the hardest working, most consistent guys on the team while embracing the role that Coach Cheeks asks of me. We’ve got a great group of veterans though — Aaron Felix and I first played together on an ABA team over a decade ago, and he and other guys like Rasean Simpson, John Sharper, and Glenn Jones have done a great job pouring into the younger guys on the team. I’m really thankful for the way they all help lead this team.
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Wendell Maxey has covered and written about professional basketball and sports for 19 years and has previously been featured on ESPN.com, NBA.com, USA Today, FOX Sports, and SLAM Magazine among other publications and outlets. Connect with him on Twitter and LinkedIn or read through his archive on Linktree.