If you were Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban and your team just surprisingly went to the Western Conference Finals under the leadership of 23-year-old MVP candidate Luka Dončić, how would you approach the offseason?

This was the challenge presented to my teammates and me during the practicum at Sports Business Classroom 2022 this July. We had one week to scout and analyze our assigned NBA franchise in a mock trade deadline exercise that allowed us to sign free agents, offer extensions, and trade with other student- and instructor-controlled NBA teams.

As the Scouting, Video and Analytics (SVA) major on the team, I got to know the skillset of the Dallas Mavericks players very well, as well as many players that could be of interest to the team. When all was said and done, our team cleared roster and cap space to acquire and extend Pacers center Myles Turner in a move that aimed to propel the franchise to a championship.

Another highlight involved preparing a scouting report on Dallas’ 2022 draft pick (No. 37), Jaden Hardy. He was one of my three player assignments as an SVA major, and coincidentally played for the franchise I was mock-controlling that week.

I had seen team governor Mark Cuban at Hardy’s first game but was hesitant to approach him. I wasn’t going to miss my opportunity the next time, and during a timeout, I told him about my role in the practicum controlling his franchise. He lit up with a smile as he had a long relationship with the program.

This simple interaction had me beaming with joy all week, and taught me a valuable lesson to be prepared and have the confidence to act. I have since kept in touch with Cuban via email, to which I was surprised with one of the quickest replies I’ve ever received.

I had a similar interaction courtside with Philadelphia 76ers executive Daryl Morey, who had spoken to our class. We chatted about my new job supporting NASA, and he advised me to pursue unique ways of supporting the league with new technology.

I also spoke with Detroit Pistons assistant coach Rex Kalamian, who recently led the Armenian National Team to a FIBA tournament win. I expressed my appreciation for bringing victory to my family’s country of origin. We still keep in touch now.

After watching my scout assignments play live, I volunteered to analyze film from those games in front of the class. Even though I was SVA, I learned a lot through the general Media and Broadcast sessions with exposure to the world of basketball broadcasting and communications.

I left the program inspired and began building on my SBC experience by posting videos on YouTube based on the mock trade team practicum and my individual scouting analysis. With a new level of confidence, I was putting work into my basketball passion and looking to capitalize on opportunities to join a team to advance my experience.

I came across a call for podcast hosts as a part of the SportsEthos network, whom I follow for their fantasy basketball coverage. SportsEthos was looking for voices for their team-focused podcasts, and it felt like a great place to start my podcasting career. As a lifetime Los Angeles Lakers fan, I had always assumed that would be my destination.

Instead, I pitched the idea to SportsEthos to build upon all the research I had done to host a Mavericks podcast. SportsEthos gave me the green light, trained me on recording and uploading my podcast, and I have since been independently operating MavsCast (@EthosMavericks).

MavsCast has driven me to become more active in following both Mavericks and general NBA news. I watch every game the team plays this season, taking notes to analyze and discuss on the show. I also started a position as a live data operator at SportRadar, and many of the games I cover are Mavs games. I also branched out to provide fantasy basketball advice for SportsEthos, in the role of a “Fantasy Pro” to answer questions for premium members of the FantasyPass subscription.

It has only been a few months, but it has truly amazed me how one thing can lead to another in basketball, especially when you take it seriously and have great support around you. I plan to keep expanding my role as I strengthen my experience in analysis and communications. I am excited that my SBC experience has led to immediate growth, and I can’t wait to continue my journey!