LAS VEGAS — Perhaps with an eye toward his post-collegiate playing days, former Kaukauna Ghost basketball star Jordan McCabe has launched a new basketball training and workout app.
McCabe, a senior guard with the University of Las Vegas Runnin’ Rebels has two years of eligibility remaining and has seen his playing time increase significantly since transferring from West Viriginia over the summer.
But basketball isn’t the only focus of his attention these days.
He says the the new Jordan McCabe app allows him to share the lessons he’s learned on his collegiate basketball journey.
“As an undersized guard at the D1 level, the details and nuances of the game have allowed me to play above my athletic set,” McCabe writes on the app’s website. “I am obsessed with improvement and the pursuit of perfection.”
The program includes workouts, videos, motivation and community. Subscribers can even message McCabe with questions.
In his hometown of Kaukauna, McCabe is most well-known for leading the Ghosts to two Division 2 WIAA state titles in 2016 and 2018. He was named the state boys basketball player of the year as a senior.
But much has changed in college basketball since McCabe first set off for West Virginia, and an app like this wouldn’t even have been possible a year ago.
The most dramatic changes for college athletes came in June when the National Collegiate Athletic Association, under pressure from state lawmakers and a unanimous Supreme Court decision, ruled they would be allowed to profit from their name, image or likeness.
Until then, schools, apparel merchants and even video game makers could reap a windfall from the popularity of some college players, but the players themselves would receive nothing.
One of the major concerns, according to universities, would be that high profile athletes would see huge payouts, while lesser names would be in the same boat as they were before.
But that’s not the way McCabe saw it.
Outside of the Fox Valley, Las Vegas or West Virginia, McCabe is hardly a household name. But despite that he has amassed 250,000 followers on Instagram, 183,000 on TikToK and another 32,000 on Twitter.
He also signed with Viral Nation, an influencer marketing and talent agency that also jumped into the name-image-likeness field by launching a new division focused on cultivating athlete-influencers.
How did he do it? Well, he’s been building on his following since he was a kid, appearing at the age of 11 on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” to demonstrate his dribbling skills.
He’s always been savvy when there’s a camera around.
For now, however, McCabe says he’s not doing this as get-rich quick scheme, but is looking toward the future.
“This is a back-burner thing for me. Social media always has been, no matter what people say or think,” McCabe told Ed Graney of Las Vegas Review-Journal. “Basketball is the front burner. I want to go to the gym and work out twice a day and go to practice and help my guys be the best players they can be and win a Mountain West championship.”
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