GO Home GO News GO Money GO Entertainment GO Family   INFOSEEK SEARCH   ESPN.com Web    About GO Network Free E-mail

ESPN NETWORK:  ESPN.COM | NASCAR ONLINE | ABCSPORTS | FANTASY | THE STORE | INSIDER

Tuesday Agents? Who needs 'em Wednesday Catching up with the agent for Venus and Serena Williams Thursday Chat Day: Interact with top agents and Arli$$ producer Robert Wuhl Friday Sound off: Readers react series, show ALSO SEE: Chat wrap: No Limit Sports agent Leland Hardy Chat wrap: Drew Rosenhaus Chat wrap: Arli$$ star Robert Wuhl Chat wrap: ESPN.com's Greg Garber MULTIMEDIA: Outside the Lines' Bob Ley details the IMG marketing plan for top NFL pick Tim Couch. avi: 1,022k RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN  IMG executive Peter Johnson says it's important to get Couch on the talk shows. wav: 272k RealAudio: 14.4 | 28.8 This four-part, online series is a companion to the Outside the Lines television show that re-airs on Saturday at noon ET.

April 22, 1999 Agent of change Tom Farrey, ESPN.com "An agent might be the best buffer and most-valued second opinion for a family. Some might cynically say that all agents are avaricious and that they only want to milk these kids dry and discard them. But I know of a lot who aren't like that." -- Arthur Ashe, 1994 For years after meeting Venus and Serena Williams and their father, Richard Williams, Keven Davis worked for the family for free. The cynic might say that Davis is one shrewd agent, trading a little sweat labor early on for the right to represent the tennis phenomenon once the real bonanza kicks in. In his 10 years with the family, Davis has consummated only one endorsement deal for Venus -- a contract with Reebok when she 14. Her sister, Serena, has only one deal -- with Puma. The cynic might look at that and conclude Davis is one lazy agent, for the Williams sisters are the most compelling thing to happen to tennis in decades.   Richard Williams lords over the careers of his daughters with guidance from agent Keven Davis. Venus' emergence into the public spotlight has been marked by a temper tantrum at Wimbledon, a bumping incident with an opponent at the U.S. Open, and a flow of racially loaded comments by her father. The cynic might say that Davis has not done enough to prepare the family for the inevitable media glare. The cynic perhaps misses the point. "These girls need to be themselves," Davis said. "You can whittle yourself down to nothing if you do what everyone else wants. You never can please all people. If they try to do something that's not themselves, it's going to come across the wrong way." Right now, the Williams sisters are about as real as athletes get. They don't endorse products they don't believe in. They use the rackets they want, because they're under no obligation to some manufacturer. They giggle, like teenagers. And cry, like teenagers. And provoke, like teenagers. Richard Williams wouldn't have it any other way, as the orchestrator of these girls' lives. Ever since he saw announcer Bud Collins present a $30,000 check to the winner of a televised tournament more than a decade ago, he's had a plan to make his girls the top two players in the world. But he hasn't been alone in this extraordinary, improbable journey. A Seattle-based business attorney who was introduced to Richard Williams by a former college friend and doctor who treated Venus when the family lived in Compton, Calif., Davis has quietly provided advice on a range of matters related to endorsements, appearances and image presentation. Continue with story without voting

			Copyright 1995-98 ESPN/Starwave Partners d/b/a ESPN Internet Ventures. All rights reserved. Do not duplicate or redistribute in any form. ESPN.com Privacy Policy (Updated 01/08/98). Use of this site signifies your agreement to the Terms of Service (Updated 01/12/98).