Growing up, I had many different ideas of what it meant to follow a career path, let alone

which one I hoped to pursue. Early on, I wished to emulate my father, who consistently remarked

on the pleasures of being a doctor. My father always told me how much he loved going to work

every day and was very knowledgeable and motivating in his efforts to convince me of such a

path.

Given my father’s encouragement, I grew up wishing to pursue radiology. I did not have

many career-wise influences besides my father, so medicine seemed to be the only career

archetype I could access information about. Given this exposure, I chose radiology with little

understanding of what that meant. I have always been a passionate sports fan and player, and

upon having my fair share of broken bones, I had many opportunities to speak with radiologists.

Working in radiology could open many sports doors, so I wished to be a radiologist for a

professional sports team. It would give me the best chance to pursue sports as a career.

In the summer going into 7th grade, I experienced a watershed moment that would

profoundly impact my career identity. For a school project, I created a website about the NBA’s

charity affiliate, NBA Cares, highlighting various organizational initiatives and successes.

Through my work on this website, I interviewed an executive team member within the company.

After completing the website, this executive offered my family a tour of the NBA’s offices in

New York City. Following an amazing day of meeting the higher-ups at my favorite professional

sports league, they surprised my family with front-row seats to the 2016 NBA Draft that night.

As someone who always had a deep interest in the NBA, particularly roster construction and

management, the draft was something I always loved watching. Therefore, I knew that I would

be developing a lifelong memory. While watching the draft live and meeting the newest faces of
the league, I began recognizing that my work brought my family to this moment. This realization

led me to think of other career paths that could produce similar nights.

I then stumbled upon the idea of working in the front office of an NBA team. As

someone who always loved trades, drafts, and free agency signings, I had a solid understanding

of what it might take to be an NBA general manager. However, I realized I would have a long

way to go to reach my new career goal. With that in mind, I began an endless journey of

simulating various league outcomes on NBA2K, studying the collective bargaining agreement

rules and player salaries. In my pursuit of becoming a front-office guru, I became all the more

enamored with the idea of working in a front office. I studied past general managers and

transactions, looking to develop and identity and philosophy of my own. This inevitably led to a

culminating moment in my junior year of high school when I began drafting my book, “General

Manager Philosophy,” which I hope to publish soon.

Following the NBA Draft, I took off with my new career identity. I found a way to work

even more directly in sports. I tailored my professional experiences around gaining as much

knowledge and experience about the structure of the NBA and basketball as possible. In my

sophomore year of high school, I joined my varsity basketball team as a student manager. With

this decision, I began working on growing an analytical mind in basketball that would prove

fruitful in future ventures. I began an advanced analytics revolution within my team and quickly

integrated data analysis as a key component of our coaching staff’s operations. Following my

sophomore season, I was upgraded to Director of Basketball Operations, and my responsibilities

grew alongside my title. On top of spearheading our analytics department, I became responsible

for managing our marketing, assisting with in-game coaching adjustments, managing the student

managers, and assisting our players in recruiting. This invaluable experience led me to have the
opportunity to transition into becoming a student manager at the NCAA Division III level. I hope

to continue my basketball path and reach the pinnacle of working in an NBA front office.

Another moment that shaped my career identity was my conversation with a lawyer for

the NBA Players’ Union (NBPA). After learning about his job and the work these lawyers get, I

decided to pursue a law degree to become a versatile candidate for many different jobs in the

sports world. Recognizing the difficulty of getting a front office job, I realized that not only are

other options potentially more viable, but there are also amazing opportunities.

Going forward, my career identity remains similar to that of Draft Night 2016: pursuing a

career in the NBA is the top option. I will continue to attain a strong academic foundation with

sports in mind but remain versatile enough to fall into various categories, from law to finance.