Sometimes Las Vegas has a way of helping a business grow. All it takes is a little luck and a whole lot of perseverance. That is how Ball Dawgs was born just three years ago. As always, at Vegas Betting, we have the latest news on a company that is making waves on the Vegas basketball scene.
Some saw the vision of such a business and yet it is hard to believe how far Ball Dawgs has come in such a relatively short period of time. It also does not hurt to have some keen marketing sense. That is just what Neal Carter possessed when he moved from New Jersey to Las Vegas a few years ago.
Stories like these tend to come along often. Stories that succeed like this one do not. Carter put his marketing expertise to work quickly. He took a job with Founders Academy as a member of their coaching staff. It was that one-year experience that taught him a lot about the social media world, Las Vegas, and so much more.
This is just a small illustration of what Ball Dawgs does and can do. It is hard to believe how it started but then again leave it to a New Jersey kid to make a dream possible. Neal Carter may only be 32-years-old but with his connections and other connections, one would never know it. He tends to find ways to make no turn into yes.
This started as a hobby just to shine a spotlight on the Las Vegas basketball prep scene. Then, it became more.
From looking at this in several ways, the venture has been some undertaking. These are players who watch the 2021 NBA Playoffs with a gleam in their eye — hoping to be that next player that catches on whether it be the college or direct to the NBA route.
Again, the intentions were simple. Repost events, videos, etc. from games, and that was it. Then, it became let’s shoot it ourselves with production, etc. Word of mouth spread quickly. By Christmas of 2019, Ball Dawgs had over 8.000 followers and the rest was history on social media.
Evidently, that model just kept working to the tune of now 171,000+ followers on Instagram just 18 months later. It is amazing when something has such simple beginnings then mushrooms into something so much more.
However, there is one interesting aspect that cannot be overlooked. That is the players of course. Now, players come to Ball Dawgs specifically and that is not just players from Las Vegas. This is how fast social media works. It does not take much for anything to catch on and take a life of its own.
Consider how hard it is to make it in Las Vegas and all of the “competition”, Neal Carter found a niche and ran with it. Now it is far more than just a niche.
Again, people forget that Neal Carter was an underrecruited athlete himself. It is telling how that experience applied to what he is doing today not just for players in Las Vegas but under the radar players throughout the country.
“The passion for me was, I was under-recruited,” Carter says. “There was a lack of technology back then. There was a simple camera that you could use to make a tape and send out to colleges if you were trying to get a scholarship, but if your coach didn’t do it, you didn’t get it. It would have helped me tremendously if I had this opportunity. Early on, I thought, I would love to give kids the footage that we’re filming. Everybody gets mixtapes now, and that has helped grow our brand tremendously.”
from Las Vegas Sun article by Mike Grimala
It is an idea that truly helps everyone. The company now is headquartered at the Tarkanian Basketball Institute. They have seven full-time employees and over 30 videographers and growing.
However, the point of emphasis here is offering a spotlight again to all players — not just the top-flight talent. That has always been the goal of Ball Dawgs.
If that was not enough, the business keeps expanding. They do host their own events and again have help from celebrities, former NBA players, and much more. And the best part is more events are coming…
Now, providing some last-minute tweaks, expect there to also be a summer camp to showcase even more talent come August. Imagine that. Who knows. Maybe some of these players spotlighted may be betted on in Vegas.
It’s a great question. The answer may slowly start to come into focus. The future is indeed quite bright and innovation only creates better opportunities. Maybe Vegas truly needed d a little New Jersey creativity. For there to be agreements with development leagues, the NBA, etc. is something else. The fact that the company has expanded into women’s leagues including the WNBA is incredible.
The sky is truly the limit for Ball Dawgs. It also does not hurt that now there is this fact.
Again, this all fits into increasing the visibility of companies like Ball Dawgs. Even more, athletes can market themselves. They need a company that can help. Neal Carter and his business provide that in ways most athletes cannot even dream of. This truly is just the beginning.
