"This is the first time that players of all positions can practice on the same piece of equipment," said creator Tamir Goodman. "Since it's 190 degrees around, you can replicate getting the ball from all angles, just like you would in a game."
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Tamir Goodman, a former Israeli pro basketball player turned entrepreneur, has created what he believes is the perfect piece of training equipment to help basketball players of all sizes and skill levels get better faster. And both his patent-pending Zone190 and his unabashed faith in it are drawing some serious attention.
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View full sizeCleveland South High and Miami University star Chester Mason practices drills with the Zone190 in a promotional video. "Tamir will be demonstrating his Zone 190 during an on-court shooting session for 2000+ women's basketball coaches of all levels at the WBCA National Convention during the Women's Final Four," said Bonnie M. Norman, the WBCA's manager of professional development and legislation.
"The Zone allows players of all levels, from beginner to pro, to work on foundational fundamentals such as ball handling, hand-eye coordination and catch and shoot skills," she said.
"If I were still coaching at the scholastic level, I know I would have purchased one," Norman said. "We believe our coaches are going to be amazed with the Zone 190 and will really enjoy an amazing shooting session."
Goodman says that with basketball season winding down and players about to start their postseason training regimens, this is the ideal time to show them how the Zone190 can maximize their practices.
"This is the first time that players of all positions can practice on the same piece of equipment," he said. "Since it's 190 degrees around, you can replicate getting the ball from all angles, just like you would in a game." He said most teams use training equipment that returns the ball at the same angle and is only useful for the drills certain players need.
He said the Zone190 is more versatile, helping players improve their shooting, passing, dribbling and conditioning, and has shared training videos on the company website, www.zone190.com and via the @Zone_190 twitter account.
Additional sales also would benefit the Ohio companies that make and support the Zone190. The steel frame is made by Best Fab in Elyria, the trampoline netting is made by Forest City Companies in Cleveland, the painting is by A&I Metal Finishing Co. in Vermillion. The company's patent lawyer is local attorney Carlos Garritano of Hahn Loeser.
"I was a professional basketball player until I blew my knee out," he said. "The doctors told me in 2009 that I was never going to play again." Determined to prove them wrong, he tried to improve his hoop skills on his own. But he quickly found that every piece of equipment returned the ball the same way every time, limiting what he could practice.
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View full sizeTamir GoodmanGoodman moved to Cleveland because this is where his wife, Judy, is from, and said Northeast Ohioans could not have been more welcoming and supportive of his big idea. "Everyone in Cleveland has been great, just going the extra mile to help me launch this," he said.
Zone One Ninety LLC is based in Ipswich, Mass., because that's where its other two partners, Scott Cohen and Frank Hertz, live. But Cohen said Zone190 will continue to be manufactured solely in Ohio.
Based in part on feedback from schools and younger fans, Cohen said they are planning to create a more affordable street version of Zone190 by 2015. "The bounce-back that a professional athlete expects is probably different than what a 14-year-old expects," he said.