Originally appeared in the San Antonio Report

“There’s a new player on San Antonio’s professional sports landscape.

The San Antonio Clutch, launched in March, is part of The Basketball League (TBL), an Indianapolis, Indiana-based league owned by Evelyn Magley, the first African American woman to own a male professional sports league in the United States.

TBL started with eight teams in 2018 and today it has 34. The Clutch competes in the Midwest Conference, where the last four champions are located, including two-time defending champions Potawatomi Fire from Shawnee, Oklahoma.

Friends and business partners Jason Perez and Devin Brown own and operate the Clutch, both serving as team market owners.

Perez, a former Wichita State University basketball player and sixth all-time leading scorer, serves as the team’s head coach. Devin Brown is a former collegiate track and field athlete who competed for Abilene Christian University and Clayton State University. When he’s not helping manage the Clutch, he oversees his IT consulting business Natural Resources Consultants.

“I’m the nerdy guy by day and the basketball guy by night,” he said.

The two friends and San Antonians have known each other for about 20 years and have launched a few other business ventures, including a marketing and sales company.

In putting the Clutch together, Perez explained that TBL posted on social media about tryouts, and nearly 50 players responded. “From there, we whittled it down to 12. They’re mainly former college players, but there’s no age limit or special requirements,” he said.

“The players are paid depending on experience, negotiations, and our overall budget,” said Brown. “Some of these individuals have played professionally overseas.”

“We could have launched the team in Austin or some other city, but San Antonio is still a small city with a big basketball fanbase,” Brown continued. “The Spurs can only pack so many in the Frost Bank Center, and not everyone can afford tickets. We’re providing good family entertainment at an affordable price.”

The NBA’s San Antonio Spurs is the city’s only other professional sports team. There are also several minor league teams, including the San Antonio Missions (MiLB) and the San Antonio FC (USL). As city and county officials continue to explore developing Project Marvel, an expansive new downtown sports and entertainment district, there’s an obvious community hunger for more sports-related options.

The team’s next scheduled game is today against the Enid Outlaws. Tickets start at $12.

The Clutch currently plays out of Theodore Roosevelt High School in the North East Independent School District,  which Perez said was a purposeful choice.

“We want to not only entertain the community but also connect and give back,” he said.

Brown explains that he’s an active member of Leadership San Antonio, an organization that identifies and develops community leaders and helps them launch initiatives to benefit the community. He said he wants to continue this effort through the Clutch.

“When Jason brought this opportunity to me, I wanted it to be a positive force for the people who live here,” he said.

Brown said he and Perez are finalizing a partnership with a YMCA youth sports program. The team is also partnering with Youth Code Jam, a San Antonio organization that offers inclusive computer science and coding programs for kids. Moving forward, they hope to develop additional outreach and youth mentorship programs and partner with other local nonprofits.

In addition, Brown said that the Clutch not only nurtures talent and provides an opportunity for team members to make a living playing the game they love, but it also serves as a potential launchpad for an NBA career.

Lindy Waters III, for example, started with the Enid Outlaws of TBL and went on to play for the Golden State Warriors and Detroit Pistons. Kylor Kelley played for the TBL’s Salem Capitals and has since played for several NBA teams, including the Dallas Mavericks and New Orleans Pelicans.

In addition to the players, the Clutch also affords opportunities for front-office personnel, including assistant coaches, managers, statisticians, and announcers.

“It’s a great showcase,” Brown said. “If any of these people want to move up to a bigger professional organization, like the Spurs or Dallas Mavericks, they now have experience through the San Antonio Clutch they can put on an application. It’s like the NBA, just on a smaller scale.”

As market owners, Brown and Perez financially support the team and also help oversee sales, marketing, and sponsorships.

“It’s a big venture for us. But the bigger the risk, the bigger the reward,” Brown said. “It’s also a great icebreaker. I was at a networking event, and someone asked me what I do. When I told them I’m a part-owner of a professional basketball team, everyone wanted to hear more about it. It’s a great conversation starter.”

“We’ve been successful in other ventures, and we’re going to be successful at this,” Perez added. “It’s our first year, and there are going to be detours here and there, but we’re very excited about the future. Right now, it’s all about putting out the product and seeing what the audiences like.”