There are conferences. And then there are rooms where careers actually change.

On Sunday, July 12th, 2026, Sports Management Worldwide is bringing one of those rooms to Las Vegas — and the lineup of people sitting on those panels might be the strongest SMWW has ever assembled for a single day of basketball.

An NBA General Manager who just built one of the league's best teams. A Dallas Mavericks executive who sits at the intersection of basketball operations and organizational leadership. An Indiana Pacers GM. A Lakers analytics director. An LA Clippers sideline reporter. NBA agents. NBA scouts. NIL executives. Broadcasters. A former NBA scout turned international basketball CEO.

All of them. One day. One hotel. And then eight NBA Summer League games on the same campus that evening.

Here is what you need to know.

Where and When

The 2026 SMWW Basketball Career Conference takes place on Sunday, July 12th at The Westin Las Vegas Hotel & Spa, 160 E Flamingo Road, Las Vegas, Nevada.

Registration opens Saturday, July 11th from 2:00–4:00 PM, followed by the SMWW Welcome Reception that evening at Virgil's BBQ in the Linq Promenade — the kind of first-night gathering where handshakes happen before the real agenda even begins.

The conference itself runs from 8:00 AM through 4:00 PM on Sunday, with a networking lunch built in at 11:45 AM. After closing remarks, the day transitions directly to NBA Summer League action at UNLV's Thomas & Mack Center and Cox Pavilion — four games starting at 4:30 PM, including the Clippers, Lakers, Pacers, Spurs, and five other franchises represented on the court the same day their executives were in the room with you.

Summer League tickets are not included with conference registration and are purchased separately.

The Sessions. The Speakers. The Access.

8:15 AM — Inside Basketball Scouting: How NBA Teams Find Future Stars

Brian Pauga, Utah Jazz Director of College Scouting, opens the day alongside Rick Sund, one of the most experienced general managers in NBA history and a longtime SMWW mentor, and Carl Berman, Managing Partner of Netscouts Basketball. Moderated by Dr. Lynn Lashbrook, this is the session that breaks down how NBA teams actually find, evaluate, and project talent — the film, the frameworks, and the judgment calls that separate the players who get drafted from the ones who don't.

If you want to work in scouting — at any level — this is the conversation you have been trying to get into.

9:00 AM — Inside Basketball Representation: How Agents Build Careers Around the World

Bret Kanis, NBA and FIBA agent and SMWW mentor, joins Joel Corry, CBS Sports "Agents Take" writer, and Matt Bollero, CEO of ProMondo Sports and former NBA scout, for a session that covers the full landscape of basketball representation — domestic and international, rookie contracts and veteran deals, the recruitment, the negotiation, and the long-term career management that defines what great agents actually do.

The global basketball market is bigger than it has ever been. The agents who understand both the NBA and the international game are the ones building the most interesting client books right now.

10:00 AM — NIL in Basketball: Building Athlete Brands and Maximizing Opportunities

Greg Glynn, CEO of Pliable Marketing and SMWW mentor, Larry Lundy, President of LMG and SMWW mentor, and DeShawn Henry, UNLV Men's Basketball Director of Basketball Operations, sit down to talk about one of the fastest-evolving areas in the entire sports business — NIL. How athlete brands are built, how deals get structured, how college programs are navigating the new landscape, and where the career opportunities are for people who want to work inside this space.

NIL has created an entirely new category of sports business professionals. This session is about what that actually looks like from the inside.

11:00 AM — Leadership in the NBA: A Conversation with Dallas Mavericks Executive Khalia Collier

Khalia Collier, VP and Chief of Staff for Basketball Operations with the Dallas Mavericks, sits down with Dei Lynam — NBA, G-League, and Ivy League broadcaster — for one of the most anticipated conversations of the day.

Khalia's role puts her at the center of how a modern NBA franchise actually operates — from basketball decisions to organizational strategy to the leadership culture that shapes everything underneath it. This is not a panel. It is a direct, candid conversation with someone doing one of the most interesting jobs in basketball.

12:50 PM — GM Power Hour: How NBA General Managers Build Winning Teams

Chad Buchanan, General Manager of the Indiana Pacers, sits down with Dr. Lynn Lashbrook for a session that does exactly what its title says — goes inside how an NBA GM actually thinks, builds, and operates.

Buchanan has guided the Pacers through one of the more exciting organizational transformations in recent NBA history. This conversation covers roster construction, front office culture, what GMs actually look for when they hire, and what it takes to build a team capable of competing at the highest level.

One speaker. One moderator. No filter.

1:30 PM — Inside NBA Team Business Operations: Marketing, Partnerships & Growth

Jon White, NBA Team Marketing and Business Operations Senior Director, walks through the business infrastructure that keeps NBA franchises running — marketing strategy, partnership development, revenue growth, and the operational side of professional basketball that most people outside the industry never see.

For anyone who wants to work on the business side of an NBA organization — this is the session that maps what that career actually looks like.

2:00 PM — Courtside Careers: Inside NBA Broadcasting, Reporting & Media

Dei Lynam, Lauren Rosen (LA Clippers Sideline Reporter), and Stephen Gillaspie (No Ceilings NBA Reporter) break down the media side of basketball careers — how to build a voice in the industry, what it takes to work courtside, how reporting and broadcasting paths are built in a media landscape that looks nothing like it did ten years ago. Moderated by Ike Worth, SMWW Business Operations Manager.

The audience for basketball content has never been larger. The people who know how to create and deliver it are still a relatively small group.

3:00 PM — Beyond the Box Score: Analytics & Player Development in Modern Basketball

Phil Chang, LA Lakers Basketball Data Strategy Director, Brad Kanis, CEO of EuroProBasket International Academy, and Irv Roland, NBA assistant coach and SMWW mentor, close the session lineup with a look at how data and player development are reshaping the way basketball organizations operate at every level.

Analytics is no longer a department in the corner. It is embedded in how coaches make decisions, how scouts evaluate players, and how teams build development programs for their rosters. This session shows what that integration looks like from the inside — and where the career opportunities live within it.

Why This Weekend. Why Las Vegas. Why Now.

The NBA Summer League draws every front office in the league to Las Vegas at the same time every July. That concentration of basketball decision-makers in one city is unlike anything else on the sports calendar — and the SMWW Basketball Career Conference is specifically timed to sit inside that window.

The people on these panels are not flying in from somewhere else just to speak. Many of them are already in Las Vegas for Summer League. The conference is where you get in the room with them before they are surrounded by the rest of the basketball world.

Past SMWW basketball conference alumni have gone on to work with the Brooklyn Nets, the Boston Celtics, the Los Angeles Clippers, and programs across the NBA, G League, WNBA, and international basketball. The pattern is consistent: people who attend walk away with relationships that the rest of the applicant pool simply does not have.

Who Should Be There

There is no single profile of person this conference is built for — because basketball careers do not look like one thing:

The aspiring scout who wants to learn how NBA evaluations actually work and build the credibility to get in front of the right people. The agent or agent-in-training who needs to understand the full landscape of representation, domestic and international. The NIL professional or marketer who sees where athlete branding is going and wants to be ahead of it. The broadcaster or media professional building a voice in basketball. The analytics candidate who wants to understand how data is actually applied inside a front office. The executive or administrator who wants to know what leadership at the NBA level actually demands.

One day. Every lane. All in the same room.

Registration Is Open Now

The 2026 SMWW Basketball Career Conference is capped, and the Summer League window fills Las Vegas fast. This is not the kind of event where spots sit open until the week before.

Register for the 2026 SMWW Basketball Career Conference here.

Las Vegas. July 12th. The room is being built.

Note: The SMWW Basketball Career Conference is not affiliated with or connected to the NBA, NBA Summer League, or NBA G-League. Summer League tickets are not included with conference registration and are purchased separately. Speakers and agenda times are subject to change.