After 47 years, the Denver Nuggets have clinched a championship title, but it’s just the latest in a string of wins for billionaire businessman Stan Kroenke and Kroenke Sports & Entertainment. We spoke with Colorado State University Associate Professor of Marketing Todd Donavan, who teaches a class in sports marketing, about what this most recent success will mean for Kroenke, the Nuggets and Colorado.

SOURCE: Nuggets owner Stan Kroenke has been a bit controversial, but I don’t think you can argue with the recent results that he’s seeing with his teams – the Nuggets, Avalanche, Arsenal, Mammoth and LA Rams. What do you think is the secret to his success?

Todd Donavan: He’s hands off — he hires good people — good coaches, good general managers — and lets them do their job. He’s not like Jerry Jones, who is down the sidelines all the time trying to be the center of attention. 

I think part of it too is that they built the Nuggets organically, and they’ve stayed together. Whereas like LeBron (James), he just jumps where he thinks the grass will be greener. There’s a feeling of, if I just have these players then I can win. The fans of Denver and Colorado don’t necessarily develop a love and passion and respect for those types of players. People have been watching (Nikola) Jokić for several years, and so they’ve been able to appreciate what he has done for the Nuggets.

From a marketing perspective, how will finally winning a championship after 47 years impact not only the Nuggets, but potentially how some other small or mid–market teams do things?

It really depends on the owners and coaches. Are they going to be willing to wait it out and hire the right people? Our society right now is so into instant gratification; We’ve got to win right now. But sometimes there’s a pleasure in overcoming obstacles and showing the grind that you went through. Think of the Cubs. The Cubs were a horrible team for more than 100 years, and yet part of that losing mentality created a charisma around the brand. They sell out every game. And the fans — I have a video I show in class where they’re interviewing different fans getting in line at the stadium, and they’ll say, “Oh, yeah, I came from eastern South Dakota. It was 12-hour drive here.” They’re so passionate about the team. So even when you’re not necessarily a championship team, you can develop this love and passion because you created an experience around the brand, such as cool traditions. The Cubs have a tradition where if the opposing team hits a homerun, the fans throw it back onto the field. It’s things like that that can help these smaller brands elevate themselves.

You’re talking a lot about an underdog mentality. How would you describe Colorado fans?

To be quite honest, Colorado fans are Broncos fans. As far as the other teams go, they’re largely bandwagon fans. But maybe these last few seasons will begin to change that mentality. Maybe the fact that some of these other teams are coming up will change that. It’s harder to be a loyal fan if a team is not offering great traditions or winning. You got to do one of those things to really get our fan base to be there. So, they either need to keep winning or create a great experience for fans here if they want to succeed.

And a win for a Colorado team is a win for Colorado, right?

Right, a big benefit from a championship for the Nuggets will be for local retailers and merchants. Obviously, the local mom–and–pop shops are selling a lot more Nuggets gear right now. We’ll see that benefit even more next year with an increase in hotel bookings and dining out around game days. There’s going to be an influx of people wanting to see them next season — whether they’ll be able to afford tickets will be another question. The price for Nuggets tickets will go up dramatically this next season.

About Todd Donavan

Todd Donavan is an associate professor of marketing in the College of Business at Colorado State University. Donavan teaches principles of marketing and the seminar class in sports marketing. Through these classes, he has worked to give students practical experience in the sports industry working with organizations including the Denver Nuggets and the Colorado Avalanche. Donavan’s primary research areas are customer orientation (CO) and identification.