As the new president of the Ottawa BlackJacks, local businessman and sports fan Jason Winters is looking forward to bringing his franchise experience and his team-building skills into play. Though he grew up playing hockey, Winters has been a lifelong fan of basketball and a long-time season ticket holder for the BlackJacks. A graduate of […]
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As the new president of the Ottawa BlackJacks, local businessman and sports fan Jason Winters is looking forward to bringing his franchise experience and his team-building skills into play.Â
Though he grew up playing hockey, Winters has been a lifelong fan of basketball and a long-time season ticket holder for the BlackJacks.
A graduate of both Algonquin College and Carleton University, Winters joins the team with a track record in business in the National Capital Region. He has served as general manager at Myers Kanata Nissan since 2019 and has owned and managed several Booster Juice franchises across the city since 2018.Â
The appointment comes after the team was acquired by Australian sports investment group Diamond Sports Canada Inc. last month.Â
OBJ spoke with Winters Thursday about what he brings to the management of the team, how he plans to reach out to the local business community and how he sees the BlackJacks fitting into a growing sports and entertainment scene in Ottawa.
The transcript has been edited for length and clarity.
How are you feeling about your new role?
It’s really exciting for two reasons. First, the business side of sports is something that I think a lot of people aspire to get into and I feel privileged to be able to do that. Second, I live a six-minute walk away from the arena. Speaking to my neighbours and my kids’ teachers about it has been really rewarding and I’m looking forward to producing something electrifying and creative on the court and giving back to the community and showing them the BlackJacks are something the city can be proud of.
How will your past experiences with Myers and as a franchise owner with Booster Juice prepare you for this role?
I had a 25-year career in the automotive space. A lot of people just think a car dealership is selling and servicing cars, but it’s much more. It’s a cultivation of people, customer service and creating experiences. The way you create your teams is a direct reflection of yourself … You’ve got 16-year-old co-op students and you’ve got a 65-year-old journeyman mechanic. You’re dealing with different people with different skillsets and getting them to reach a common goal.
For Booster Juice, I have to give a lot of credit to my better half because she did most of the heavy lifting. I was there in a guidance role, but a franchise is a franchise. There are laws and regulations but they also look for entrepreneurial spirit to grow their brand. The Canadian Elite Basketball League has a franchise model. If you look at the other teams in the league, they all have different strengths and weaknesses. They have corporate sponsors and different fan bases.
What are your goals as you step into this new role?
Out of the gate, we need more brand awareness. Last year, there were 2,200 people in attendance each game. We just need to get more people here to see it. There’s always action and music. We’re going to have a dance team whenever the players stop. We’re going to have big game activations with corporate sponsors. It’s not necessarily about the score of the game, but we want people to leave here and go, ‘Wow, that was worth the trip to Lansdowne.’ Two of our players have just been signed to the NBA, which just tells you that we’ve done a good job upskilling players and we’re going to continue to do that going forward.
What’s the BlackJacks' current relationship with the Ottawa business community and how will you continue to engage?
The previous regime was tasked with doing that. It was tough to do that as a league team. Now we have more parties that live here. All of our staff is from here. I think that plays a bigger part in the community. If your sponsor is going to be a local grocery store, you know the franchise owners will be from Ottawa. We’ll have the ability to partner with local businesses.Â
What do you think of Ottawa’s growing sports industry, especially as you share a venue with more than one team?
It tells you that the world is recognizing Ottawa as a place where there is the capacity to carry these teams. Sports is not only a pastime, but something that people want to go see. Ottawa has got so many things to do now from a sports perspective and I think we have a niche market where not everyone knows about basketball. We’re looking for a more experience-based outcome for the customer as opposed to a win-loss record.
What attracted you to basketball and how are you going to put it on the map in Ottawa?
I have genuinely grown to admire the skillset that these athletes have with the frame and the weight that they carry. The speed and elegance that they do it with is something to see. Basketball has got a place in Ottawa, for sure. I think Ottawa has got a melting pot of ethnic communities that may not all know about hockey. With basketball, it’s just a ball. The city recently put basketballs and soccer balls for rent at local parks. It’s things like that that will grow our sport. We also plan to be out in the community more. We plan on getting out to local tournaments. We plan on hosting our own tournament. We’re also working on our dance team and bringing more experiences to the arena at TD Place.
The Ottawa BlackJacks start their 2026 season next May, with home games at TD Place in Lansdowne Park. 
