Pistol Posted April 6, 2015 Share Posted April 6, 2015 I recently met the father of one of VCU's players. Very nice guy. He knew Shaka and told me a story about how Shaka was recruiting a player who, of course, was being recruited by another team. The player's father came to Shaka and said, "Well, XYZ University offered us $xx,xxx, what will you offer?" Shaka told him that he was done recruiting his son. According to this guy, who I believe, Shaka didn't play that game at VCU (which I admire). So, what does that mean for coaching and recruiting at a school like Texas? Man, no matter how many nice things there are to say about Shaka (and I'll be honest, I struggle to find things I don't like about him), people here find a way to dump on him. This is a great story and some of the comments after are still bafflingly negative. SLU should be so lucky to have him as HC. He'll do fine at Texas. I hope the greater pressure doesn't change him. I wish him the best. His departure is bad news for the A10. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MB73 Posted April 6, 2015 Share Posted April 6, 2015 Yes, you run into a father of a VCU player. He's a complete stranger. And he tells you this about Shaka. And you take it to the bank? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlumniFan Posted April 6, 2015 Share Posted April 6, 2015 Man, no matter how many nice things there are to say about Shaka (and I'll be honest, I struggle to find things I don't like about him), people here find a way to dump on him. This is a great story and some of the comments after are still bafflingly negative. SLU should be so lucky to have him as HC. He'll do fine at Texas. I hope the greater pressure doesn't change him. I wish him the best. His departure is bad news for the A10. Agreed. It is a big loss for the A10. I think he was a good role model for the kids too, but he will have that opportunity at Texas and on a bigger stage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlumniFan Posted April 6, 2015 Share Posted April 6, 2015 Yes, you run into a father of a VCU player. He's a complete stranger. And he tells you this about Shaka. And you take it to the bank? Ugh... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dabills Posted April 6, 2015 Share Posted April 6, 2015 Yes, you run into a father of a VCU player. He's a complete stranger. And he tells you this about Shaka. And you take it to the bank? This is a forum. Anecdotes and rumors are ok. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billikenfan05 Posted April 6, 2015 Share Posted April 6, 2015 This is a forum. Anecdotes and rumors are ok. So is questioning those rumors and anecdotes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pistol Posted April 6, 2015 Share Posted April 6, 2015 Whether it's true or not doesn't change the type of coach Smart is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeSmetBilliken Posted April 6, 2015 Share Posted April 6, 2015 Man, no matter how many nice things there are to say about Shaka (and I'll be honest, I struggle to find things I don't like about him), people here find a way to dump on him. This is a great story and some of the comments after are still bafflingly negative. SLU should be so lucky to have him as HC. He'll do fine at Texas. I hope the greater pressure doesn't change him. I wish him the best. His departure is bad news for the A10. The way I see it, there are 2 Shaka Smarts. Shaka the actual person by everything I've read is a very solid individual. He's gotten where he's gotten by hard work and really takes his role as a mentor and father figure seriously. I think the Shaka that people dislike is the glorified persona the media and VCU created, with the trademarked defense (seriously, VCU trademarked the "Havoc" name) and treating of him like he's a legendary coach. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old guy Posted April 6, 2015 Share Posted April 6, 2015 Agree with this post. Besides it must be remembered that we live in an era where people adore and look up to celebrities of all kinds. Shaka has become one of these celebrities, an object of adoration by people at large. This is something that has positive and negative sides to it. I think he positive side of Shaka (the honesty with which he conducts himself in recruiting, the fact that he is an accomplished head coach) is obscured by the negative side of Shaka (the media adoration, attention seeking, the trademarked Havoc, the pictures of a hairless Shaka in hair products advertisements). The Shaka many of us see is like the (male) Kim Kardashian of the basketball world. Shaka together with his celebrity buddy Spike Lee are a machine for seeking public attention and adoration. This is not necessarily bad, it makes lots of money for them, and creates a fantasy world for the adoring public. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Box and Won Posted April 6, 2015 Share Posted April 6, 2015 The way I see it, there are 2 Shaka Smarts. Shaka the actual person by everything I've read is a very solid individual. He's gotten where he's gotten by hard work and really takes his role as a mentor and father figure seriously. I think the Shaka that people dislike is the glorified persona the media and VCU created, with the trademarked defense (seriously, VCU trademarked the "Havoc" name) and treating of him like he's a legendary coach. Smart move. Now do they sell the rights to Texas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnbj14 Posted April 6, 2015 Share Posted April 6, 2015 Smart move. Now do they sell the rights to Texas? Pun intended? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeSmetBilliken Posted April 6, 2015 Share Posted April 6, 2015 Smart move. Now do they sell the rights to Texas? I'd guess they'll keep it. If they hire a former Shaka assistant, the system will remain in play. Plus, getting rid of it would require a bunch of changes, as VCU put "Havoc" on everything. Let Texas come up with their own marketing buzzword for their defensive system. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheA_Bomb Posted April 6, 2015 Share Posted April 6, 2015 UT now has Strong and Smart heading the revenue sports. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bizziken Posted April 6, 2015 Share Posted April 6, 2015 Let Texas come up with their own marketing buzzword for their defensive system.How about 'Diarrhea'? Smart's intense, full-court, pressure Diarrhea defense will make opponents their pants.It's also fitting because the defense requires that players run all over the place. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheA_Bomb Posted April 6, 2015 Share Posted April 6, 2015 Maybe Texas tornado or stampede Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dwayne's_World Posted April 10, 2015 Share Posted April 10, 2015 http://www.si.com/college-basketball/2015/04/09/texas-shaka-smart-trademark-havoc-vcu Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigMouthBilliken Posted April 10, 2015 Share Posted April 10, 2015 http://www.si.com/college-basketball/2015/04/09/texas-shaka-smart-trademark-havoc-vcuSucks for VCU Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thetorch Posted April 10, 2015 Share Posted April 10, 2015 VCU has been using it longer, just didn't federally file it. Question for the lawyers but couldn't they contest this and keep the rights to it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moytoy12 Posted April 10, 2015 Share Posted April 10, 2015 VCU has been using it longer, just didn't federally file it. Question for the lawyers but couldn't they contest this and keep the rights to it? I'm not a trademark expert, but with their state registration they secured exclusive use rights in Virginia and nowhere else. Generally speaking, registering a trademark at the state level only protects you in that state. Registering at the fed level gives you national protection. I'm sure there's caselaw to support some notion of national use, prior notice in the marketplace, etc, for VCU's state registered mark, but they really put themselves in a bad position to secure exclusive use on a national level. VCU has no one to blame but their legal counsel. I find it incredibly egregious that counsel for VCU only filed at the state level. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old guy Posted April 10, 2015 Share Posted April 10, 2015 With a number of the 2015 class recruits being released, VCU has many problems for next season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlumniFan Posted April 10, 2015 Share Posted April 10, 2015 I'm not a trademark expert, but with their state registration they secured exclusive use rights in Virginia and nowhere else. Generally speaking, registering a trademark at the state level only protects you in that state. Registering at the fed level gives you national protection. I'm sure there's caselaw to support some notion of national use, prior notice in the marketplace, etc, for VCU's state registered mark, but they really put themselves in a bad position to secure exclusive use on a national level. VCU has no one to blame but their legal counsel. I find it incredibly egregious that counsel for VCU only filed at the state level. I'm not a trademark expert, but with their state registration they secured exclusive use rights in Virginia and nowhere else. Generally speaking, registering a trademark at the state level only protects you in that state. Registering at the fed level gives you national protection. I'm sure there's caselaw to support some notion of national use, prior notice in the marketplace, etc, for VCU's state registered mark, but they really put themselves in a bad position to secure exclusive use on a national level. VCU has no one to blame but their legal counsel. I find it incredibly egregious that counsel for VCU only filed at the state level. I am not a trademark expert either, but this is exactly what happened to us. Our counsel advised us to secure only a state mark. When one of our competitors decided to enter our market, our state mark held up, but it was made very clear that despite the fact that we clearly had evidence of first use, we could not use the mark beyond Missouri and Illinois. And, even then, there was dispute as to whether or not we could use the mark in Chicago because we had not used it there. I am really surprised that an entity as large and presumably sophisticated as VCU made this common mistake. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RiseAndGrind Posted April 10, 2015 Share Posted April 10, 2015 I am not a trademark expert either, but this is exactly what happened to us. Our counsel advised us to secure only a state mark. When one of our competitors decided to enter our market, our state mark held up, but it was made very clear that despite the fact that we clearly had evidence of first use, we could not use the mark beyond Missouri and Illinois. And, even then, there was dispute as to whether or not we could use the mark in Chicago because we had not used it there. I am really surprised that an entity as large and presumably sophisticated as VCU made this common mistake. Hey, if it can happen to AlumniFan it can happen to anyone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheA_Bomb Posted April 10, 2015 Share Posted April 10, 2015 AlumniFan is living the American dream and providing jobs. Thanks for the insight. If I'm Texas, and I kinda am because I'm a student there, I wouldn't take Havoc from VCU. I think it's beneath UT. So maybe Shaka wants to keep this going cause it's really his brand? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hsmith19 Posted April 10, 2015 Share Posted April 10, 2015 I'm not a trademark expert, but with their state registration they secured exclusive use rights in Virginia and nowhere else. Generally speaking, registering a trademark at the state level only protects you in that state. Registering at the fed level gives you national protection. I'm sure there's caselaw to support some notion of national use, prior notice in the marketplace, etc, for VCU's state registered mark, but they really put themselves in a bad position to secure exclusive use on a national level. VCU has no one to blame but their legal counsel. I find it incredibly egregious that counsel for VCU only filed at the state level. I find it hard to believe they didn't consider the possibility of Shaka leaving and taking the mark with him. I would imagine they had to have reached some kind of an understanding with Shaka at some point on what would happen to the "HAVOC" stuff if and when he went to a different school. If VCU's (or anyone else's) lawyers didn't explain to them the possibility of this happening when advising them to pursue a state mark only, then that's a potential malpractice case. Even if Texas were to get a national trademark, though, they wouldn't be able to stop VCU from using it in Virginia, since Texas/Shaka wouldn't exactly qualify as an "innocent junior user" here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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