Remote

Player 15 Group – the sports & entertainment company behind the Phoenix Suns (NBA), Phoenix Mercury (WNBA), Valley Suns (G League), and PHX Arena — is redefining the industry standard. Headquartered in downtown Phoenix and engaging fans across the world, Player 15 Group is driven by possibility, innovation, and the desire to create memorable moments for our fans and community.

Our culture is anchored in purpose-driven leadership and fueled by individuals who bring passion, creativity, and vision to everything they do. We challenge convention, amplify voices, and create experiences that resonate well beyond the final buzzer. This is where talent meets purpose and bold ideas become reality.

We are seeking a motivated Basketball Applied Science Intern to join our Basketball Analytics team. Our mission is clear: transform complex data into actionable insights and cutting-edge analysis — empowering the organization with a competitive edge that fuels our march to championships.

As an Applied Science Intern, you will contribute to impactful analytics projects spanning the entire data workflow: from cleaning and feature engineering to modeling, deployment, and delivery of insights to basketball operations stakeholders. This is a seasonal (spring semester) internship position that will run from January through May 2026.

• Own an end-to-end project: define scope, plan milestones, and deliver actionable outcomes.
• Build and run analyses in Python/R/SQL — from ingesting data and engineering features to training/evaluating models and delivering insights.
• Create visualizations and concise write-ups to communicate findings to non-technical partners.
• Query and model basketball data across multiple domains (tracking/spatiotemporal, play-by-play, events, lineup/personnel, etc.).
• Coordinate with Database and Software Engineering teams for integrations, while maintaining ownership of project outcomes.
• Contribute to internal tools and ensure all work is documented clearly and reproducibly.
• Other duties as assigned.

• How to execute the end-to-end applied/data science workflow in a professional basketball environment.
• Best practices in experimental design, model validation, and reproducible research.
• How to collaborate with Database Engineering, Software Engineering, and front office stakeholders.
• Effective strategies for translating complex analyses into actionable decisions for basketball operations.

• Strong skills in Python or R (pandas; comfort with scikit-learn; exposure to TensorFlow or PyTorch is a plus).
• Basic SQL proficiency.
• Foundational knowledge of statistics and machine learning (e.g., regression, classification, cross-validation, metrics).
• Clear written and verbal communication; organized, curious, and proactive.
• Basketball knowledge and prior sports analytics experience (coursework, clubs, projects, Kaggle, etc.) are a plus.

• Currently pursuing or recently graduated with a Bachelor’s, Master’s, or PhD in a STEM field (Statistics, Computer Science, Applied Math, Data Science, or related).

The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those that must be met to optimally perform the essential functions of this role. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Must be able to carry on a conversation both on the phone and in-person.
• Ability to Read, Write & Speak in English
• Perks:
  • Discounts at Fanatics Team Shop
  • Tickets available for Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury games
• Visit our Culture page to learn more about our culture and work environment

Player 15 Group is committed to employing a diverse workforce. Qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, veteran status, or disability.

Please note this job description is not crafted to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties, or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

For questions about this career opportunity, please contact the People & Culture Recruiting team at [email protected]

Equal Opportunity Employer
This employer is required to notify all applicants of their rights pursuant to federal employment laws. For further information, please review the Know Your Rights notice from the Department of Labor.