Legends of Basketball Director of Marketing and Communications Chicago, IL · Full time Company website

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Founded in 1992 by NBA Legends Dave DeBusschere, Dave Bing, Archie Clark, Dave Cowens and Oscar Robertson, Legends of Basketball (formerly known as the National Basketball Retired Players Association) is a non-profit association comprised of former professional basketball players of the NBA, ABA, WNBA, and Harlem Globetrotters. We are the only alumni association of its kind supported directly by the NBA and National Basketball Players Association (NBPA). MISSION STATEMENT Legends of Basketball serves former professional basketball players, supporting them in life after their playing days, and helping them to leverage their inspirational influence to promote and teach basketball in their communities.

Legends of Basketball is a nonprofit association of former professional basketball players, united by a shared journey and shared belief that legacy does not end when the ball stops bouncing. Founded in 1922 with the support of the NBA and the NBPA, Legends of Basketball brings together former players from the NBA, ABA, WNBA, and Harlem Globetrotters. As a registered 501(c)(3), Legends of Basketball is committed to supporting its members beyond the game through 5 pillars: Camaraderie, Community, Family, Financial Stability, and Health. The Legends of Basketball fosters a strong and growing membership community that

includes some of the most iconic players in basketball history.

This role serves as both an external storyteller and an internal strategic communications advisor, ensuring all organizational communications consistently reflect Legends’ mission, pillars, values, and evolving brand identity. The leader will oversee member communications, digital platforms, storytelling strategy, brand alignment, and executive communications while helping to establish a unified organizational narrative across National leadership, chapters, partners, and stakeholders. The Director of Communications will work closely with the CEO, executive leadership team, external partners, and chapter leadership to strengthen member engagement, enhance public identity, elevate partnership positioning, and document the organization’s collective impact.

Primary Objectives:

• Establish a consistent and unified Legends narrative
• Improve member communication engagement and participation
• Strengthen alignment across chapters and leadership
• Increase visibility and quality of organizational storytelling
• Enhance partnership and sponsorship presentation materials
• Produce measurable impact reporting and year-end storytelling assets
• Elevate the overall public identity of Legends of Basketball

Scope of Responsibilities

Strategic Marketing & Brand Leadership

• Lead development and execution of the organization’s marketing and communications strategy aligned with business priorities
• Translate leadership vision into clear, cohesive narratives across all platforms and initiatives
• Oversee brand positioning and ensure consistency across content, events, partnerships, and communications
• Shape how Legends shows up at marquee moments (e.g., Annual Meeting, All-Star Weekend) as high-impact brand and business platforms

Event Marketing & Narrative Integration

• Own the organization’s content and storytelling strategy across digital, social, and email channels
• Develop and maintain a distinct brand voice aligned with the Legends mission and five pillars
• Oversee content calendar planning tied to key initiatives, events, and partnerships
• Lead execution of external communications including announcements, messaging, and media-facing materials
• Manage social media strategy, publishing cadence, and platform performance

Partnership & Revenue Enablement

• Drive partner visibility and storytelling across all marketing channels
• Develop marketing materials, decks, and recaps that reinforce sponsor value and ROI
• Support partnership development efforts through narrative building and strategic positioning
• Ensure alignment between marketing execution and revenue-generating initiatives

Member Communications

• Manage and execute member-facing communications across:
• MailChimp ○ EZ Text ○ Top Fan App ○ Website communications
• Social media platforms ○ Digital newsletters ○ Event communications
• Develop communication calendars and engagement campaigns supporting membership participation, events, initiatives, and organizational priorities
• Create repeatable storytelling formats including:
• Member spotlights
• Legacy features
• Community impact stories
• Program highlights
• Newsletters
• Monitor engagement analytics and optimize communication performance across channels

Marketing Operations & Platform Management

• Oversee marketing infrastructure including email, SMS, social media management tools, and content systems
• Manage audience segmentation and communication workflows across platforms
• Support integration with CRM and event platforms to improve engagement and tracking
• Continuously optimize tools and processes to improve efficiency and performance
• Serve as a strategic communications partner to the CEO and Executive Leadership Team
• Draft executive messaging including:
• Speeches
• Talking points
• Board communications
• Leadership updates
• Partnership messaging
• Internal organizational communications
• Support leadership with on-brand messaging and narrative consistency
• Coordinate communications supporting chapter alignment and organizational initiatives

Executive Communications & Organizational Narrative

• Support development of board-level and executive-facing materials, including presentations and recaps
• Play a key role in shaping the organization’s Annual Report and major storytelling deliverables
• Ensure consistency and clarity in high-priority organizational messaging

Vendor & Cross-Functional Leadership

• Manage external creative, content, and production partners
• Oversee timelines, deliverables, and quality control across all marketing outputs
• Serve as a central connector across marketing, events, partnerships, and operations
• Drive alignment and execution within a fast-paced, evolving environment

Digital Media Management

• Oversee website content strategy, updates, and messaging alignment
• Ensure digital platforms reflect the organization’s pillars, initiatives, and strategic priorities
• Coordinate with external vendors, designers, photographers, videographers, and digital consultants as needed
• Maintain content libraries, media assets, and brand resources

Strategic Storytelling

• Develop integrated storytelling strategies around:
• NBA All-Star Weekend
• WNBA All-Star Weekend
• Annual Meeting
• National activations
• Community Initiatives
• Other mission events
• Produce and distribute media kits, press materials, event recaps, and impact stories
• Capture and package stories demonstrating inspiration, action, legacy, and measurable impact
• Help position the organization as the leading voice and representative body for basketball legends

Partnership and Sponsorship Communications

• Redesign and support partnership and sponsorship materials aligned with Legends manifesto and organizational pillars
• Create partnership narratives and materials demonstrating engagement opportunities and impact
• Develop case studies and activation recaps supporting sponsor retention and new business development
• Standardize organizational impact reporting and representation materials for corporate partners Impact Reporting
• Establish systems for collecting organizational impact stories, participation data, and outcomes
• Aggregate chapter and national impact metrics into cohesive narratives
• Lead development of annual impact reports and year-end storytelling initiatives
• Support organizational transparency, visibility, and stakeholder engagement

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Communications, Public Relations, Marketing, Journalism, or related field
• 8+ years of communications, brand strategy, public relations, or organizational storytelling experience
• Experience managing multi-channel communications platforms and digital engagement tools
• Strong writing, editing, and executive communication skills
• Experience supporting senior leadership and managing sensitive communications
• Demonstrated ability to build brand consistency across large or distributed organizations
• Experience with:
• MailChimp
• SMS/Text communication platforms
• Website content management tools
• Basic analytics/reporting tools
• Strong written, verbal communication, and problem solving skills
• Learns new skills quickly and develops abilities as necessary to contribute to a small but mighty team

Differentiators

• Experience in sports, entertainment, nonprofit, membership organizations, or athlete relations
• Understanding of brand positioning, sponsorship storytelling, and community engagement
• Experience managing creating vendors and content production
• Familiarity with retired athlete organizations, alumni associations, or mission-driven organizations
• Experience serving VIP clients, alumni networks, and donor or member communities with high expectations
• Experience with automated and personalized member communications
• Ability to serve a unique population of professional athletes, entertainers, or high profile individuals

Competencies

• Growth Mindset with an ability to receive feedback and use it to improve and enhance oneself and one’s work product
• Strong decision-making and leadership capabilities
• Adaptability
• Strong sense of internal responsibility and self-direction
• Highest code of ethics
• Strategic storyteller
• Executive presence and discretion
• Brand stewardship
• Relationship-builder
• Strong project management execution
• Creative thinker with operational discipline
• Ability to balance legacy, culture, and modernization

Success in This Role Looks Like

• A clear, differentiated, and consistently executed brand presence
• High-impact storytelling that reflects the voice, values, and evolution of Legends
• Seamless execution and amplification of major events and initiatives
• Strong partner visibility and measurable support of revenue efforts
• Efficient, scalable marketing systems and workflows
• Alignment across teams, with marketing serving as a central driver of organizational impact

Physical Activity / Working Environment Expectations

• Chicago-based, in-person
• Hear and speak in order to use the phone, Zoom, or other modes to communicate with people both in and out of the office environment
• Visual ability to review information on the computer as well as in hard copy form
• Sit and/or stand at desk for extended periods and perform long hours of work at a computer
• Apply manual dexterity for computer keyboarding and office equipment use
• Physical ability to lift at least 20 lbs and move around office area repeatedly throughout the day
• Flexible work hours requiring work in excess of 40 hours/week when necessary.
• Must have reliable transportation to visit off-site client locations
• Able to perform overnight travel as deemed necessary by the CEO