3 Thoughts on “Let me know if you hear of any openings!”
Getting a job in the NBA
It’s that time of year when NBA Internships are starting to be filled.
Teams are doing interviews, getting ready to meet candidates at Summer League & Zoom, and working towards the process of filling out their staff for the 2023-2024 NBA season.
Oftentimes, I will get texts or e-mails that say, “Let me know if you hear of any openings!” And if I’m getting these, undoubtedly, many other NBA personnel are getting these same types of messages.
And strangely enough, it’s usually from people in their first or second interaction with me.
Some pointers:
1 – Don’t Ask About Open Positions from Someone You Don’t Have an Established Relationship With
Networking is part of the business. As much as I say that I don’t like networking and I know many of you don’t either, it’s still a game that has to be played as you make connections and work towards landing an internship.
That being said, steer clear of asking people you are establishing with to let you know when opportunities arise. If they tell you about an opportunity and you tell an NBA team that you heard about it from them, that comes across as a ‘recommendation.’
One, they don’t know you. So they’re likely not going to recommend you. And two, if the other team would call them, they’d tell them that they talked to you on the phone but don’t really know you. And then you come across as someone who’s not really telling the full truth.
There’s a lot of people I really like after 1 phone call. Or even that I enjoy e-mail and LinkedIn interactions with. But if I haven’t met them, had them in class, or spoken with them multiple times, I’m unlikely to recommend them to someone else.
2- If They Like You, You Won’t Need to Ask at All
Speaking of those you connect with, are fully qualified and you like. Well, they don’t even have to ask about opportunities because others will be calling on their behalf.
There have been people I have met either in person, phone, LinkedIn, or had in my GITG101 courses that I have then turned around and talked to another team about or passed on their information when a team has reached out to me.
Highly qualified candidates don’t have to ask for someone to send them information on openings. Openings will find them. They just need to be ready and available.
3- You Don’t Have to Ask Because That’s What Everyone is Looking For
To say, “Let me know if you hear of any openings!” is stating the obvious. Everyone knows you are looking for openings.
A better approach is to find the openings yourself. Every NBA team is different. Some have multiple internships which may be in Video, Basketball Operations, Player Development, Analytics, and more. But you really do have to do your own homework. This includes reaching out to teams individually and finding out what they have available and what their process is.
You don’t need to ask someone else to do that work for you. If they hear of an opening, and they know you’re a good fit, they will let you know. Your focus should be on being that good fit.
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