Along with many other sports, the NBA is in the midst of a statistical revolution and its effects are being felt on the floor across the league. In addition, the sports world is on a path to fully embracing gamblings and, in conjunction with both analytics and the bridge to legal handicapping, the Dallas Mavericks are reportedly making a very interesting move.
Adrian Wojnarowski and Zach Lowe of ESPN bring word that Haralabos Voulgaris, arguably the most prominent NBA bettor in the world, will join the front office in Dallas as the franchise’s Director of Quantitative Research and Development. While the headline of the story may be the connection with gambling, Voulgaris is also well known as one of the brightest analytical minds in the world of basketball, collecting quite a following on Twitter and displaying an impressive aptitude for the statistical side of the game.
In recent days, the Los Angeles Clippers made a splash in hiring Lee Jenkins away from Sports Illustrated for a front office position. However, the closer parallel for this particular hire is probably the investment of the Memphis Grizzlies in John Hollinger, particularly for the analytical bend to what Voulgaris will almost assuredly be working on in Dallas.
It will be interesting to see what kind of announcement and proclamation is made on the Mavericks end but, in short, this is a very intriguing hire for the franchise and Voulgaris will be taking his talents behind a wall of sorts with Dallas as the sole beneficiary.
