Basketball Strategy Season Associate

Location: on-site in Indianapolis, IN
Anticipated time commitment: approximately 25-30 hours per week
Season: October 2026 – July 15, 2027

About the role

Pacers Sports & Entertainment is seeking a Basketball Strategy Season Associate who will work directly with the Indiana Pacers Strategy and Analytics team in support of the front office staff. This position will report to the Basketball Strategy Manager. The overall focus will be on preparing analyses related to player contracts, trades, and team salaries, the development of new projects, and maintaining current basketball strategy infrastructure. Experience in sports is not required but preferred; applicants should be passionate about basketball, the NBA salary cap, roster construction, and transactions.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with Basketball Strategy and Analytics team on critical planning, salary cap management, contract execution, and preparation of major NBA transactional periods (Draft, Free Agency, Extension Windows, etc.)
• Aggregate and analyze historical data sets of contracts, salaries, and transactions to aid in basketball strategy decision-making
• Provide logistical assistance to front office and Basketball Strategy Manager during high-volume transactional periods
• Prepare and update salary cap sheets, team rosters, free agent lists, and other related reports
• Maintain an up-to-date understanding of NBA salary cap regulations and league rule changes
• Study and analyze league precedents to optimize basketball decision-making at all levels
• Update and manage existing internal basketball strategy infrastructure to improve efficiency
• Assist in the creation of both standardized reports and ad-hoc analyses
• Collaborate on team projects and work autonomously on individual work
• Other duties and projects as assigned

Requirements

• Bachelor’s Degree in a Business or Law-Related field
• Working knowledge/understanding of the 2023 NBA Collective Bargaining Agreement
• Working knowledge of the NBA, team rosters, and league trends
• Strong interpersonal, written, and verbal communication skills with an ability to critically listen and work with others
• Strong organizational and time management skills with robust attention to detail
• Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite (Excel, Word, and PowerPoint required)
• Ability to work evenings, weekends, and holidays as needed during the NBA Trade Deadline, NBA Draft, and NBA Free Agency period
• Ability to relocate to Indianapolis, Indiana

Qualifications

• Experience working with and manipulating large datasets
• Experience with data visualization and reporting
• Proficiency with data management software, specifically SQL, is a plus
• Working towards or completion of a juris doctorate or formalized legal training is a plus
• Familiarity with basketball terminology and analytics is a plus

Skills

• Strong knowledge of Microsoft Office (specifically Excel), as well as the ability to learn and utilize new computer programs quickly and efficiently
• Ability to define problems, collect data, establish facts and draw valid conclusions, and communicate findings in an organized and easy-to-understand summary
• Ability to interpret directions and technical diagrams
• Ability to locate and define passages within the NBA Collective Bargaining Agreement, solve problems, and deliver projects on time with accuracy, detail, and professionalism

Physical and Environmental Demands

The physical demands and work environment characteristics described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit, stand, walk, use a computer, use a telephone, speak, hear, and write
• Noise level in the office work environment is usually moderate; noise level in the Fieldhouse/game environment is usually loud
• The stress level may become high during certain times of the year