Basketball Analytics Scientist

New-Orleans-Saints-and-Pelicans; Metairie (LA); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, Dental & Vision insurance

401(k) with employer contributions

Paid parental leave

Paid time off and holidays

Wellness program

Job summary

The Basketball Analyst will join the Pelicans Basketball Operations department, reporting to the Director, Basketball Analytics. This role is responsible for research, model development, and analytical support for coaching, player personnel/scouting, health & performance, and salary cap management.

You will work with optical tracking and other large datasets, build predictive models, deliver in-season reports, and translate findings into actionable recommendations for basketball decisions.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent work experience.
• 2+ years experience applying statistical modeling and ML to large datasets.
• Proficiency in R or Python.
• Proficiency in SQL and writing/optimizing queries against large relational databases.
• Ability to communicate technical results to non-technical audiences.
• Experience with Git or similar version control software.

Responsibilities

• Own basketball research initiatives end to end, translating ambiguous questions from staff into defined research designs, models, and recommendations.
• Build, validate, deploy, and monitor models that evaluate players, teams, lineups, tactics, and roster decisions.
• Work with large and complex datasets including optical tracking, play-by-play, lineup and scouting inputs using statistical modeling and ML.
• Provide in-season analytical support to coaching and front office.
• Deliver recurring in-season reporting for coaching and front office use.

Skills

Statistics / ML

Python / R

SQL

Communication skills

Git / version control

NBA rules knowledge

Independent / team mindset

Time management

Education

Bachelor’s Degree in Statistics / Mathematics / Computer Science

2+ years ML on large datasets

Tools

Git

Job description

The Basketball Analyst will join the Pelicans Basketball Operations department, reporting to the Director, Basketball Analytics. This role is responsible for research, model development, and analytical support for coaching, player personnel/scouting, health & performance, and salary cap management.

You will work with optical tracking and other large datasets, build predictive models, deliver in-season reports, and translate findings into actionable recommendations for basketball decisions.