Steve Jbara is President and Founder of the Grand Rapids Drive, the Detroit Pistons’ affiliate NBA G League (formerly NBA Development League) team. In 2014, Steve established the SSJ Group, which is the controlling LLC of the Grand Rapids Drive. This group consists of over 28 C level/business owners from across the country with the sole purpose of owning and operating the Drive.
The Drive became the first team in NBA G League history to turn a profit in its inaugural season. Steve has been able to raise metrics for the front office to top 5 in the league in sponsorship revenue, gate receipts, and #1 in team gear/branded items.
Steve has started and sold 2 additional start up companies; one in the CO2 recycling space (focused in microbreweries) and the other a tech startup focused on social status peer influencing shopping based recently acquired by Amazon. Steve is the Chief Strategy Officer for WaitTime, a Detroit based startup that has developed a crowd intelligence software platform for sports venues, and at Air Co a CO2 technology company based in Brooklyn.
In 2019, Steve opened his own advertising agency called Atomic Honey. This company focuses on a services-for-equity exchange with startups. From 2010 to 2014, Steve worked for R.L. Polk and the Ford Motor Company in Detroit. In this capacity, Steve was responsible for multiple brand campaign projects and automotive related marketing analytical projects.
A graduate of Trine University with a BA in Marketing and Computer Science, currently sits on the Detroit Sports Commission, the Gilmore Car Museum Board, Double-Down Development Board, the NBA’s Team Leadership Committee, The G League’s NBA Broadcast Committee, Endeavor Detroit BOD, Leaders for Kids Advisory Committee, Green Door Distillery BOD, Yote BOD, and is a board member at Special Olympics of MI.