You might not know it by looking at me (I’m rounding up when I tell people I’m 5’8”) but I’m a huge basketball fan. I’ve been following the sport since I was 10, coaching it for the last decade and playing on teams throughout my life, still dedicating my winters and springs to playing in 35- and 40-and-over leagues.
If you enjoy the sport as much as I do, I bet you’ll agree that there really wasn’t anything better than watching the Dream Team compete in the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona. Three years before those games, the International Basketball Federation agreed to allow professional players to compete in the Olympics, meaning for the first time USA Basketball could fill their roster with NBA players. And man, did they. Scottie Pippen, Karl Malone, Charles Barkley, Larry Bird, and of course, Michael Jordan, were just a few of the NBA legends on that historic team.
Still, I would argue that the most valuable player on that roster was Earvin “Magic” Johnson. Magic made that collection of talent work. He was the coach on the floor. He moved the ball around, executed the game plan with efficiency and put players in position to be successful. The Dream Team not only won the gold medal easily, they overwhelmed the competition, winning by an average of 43.8 points per game.
If you’re a business leader or analytical expert for your organization, you’re a world-class athlete in your own right. And whether you’re looking to overwhelm your competition, gather gold medal insights to help run your business more efficiently, or just want to put a little “magic” into your analytics, you won’t want to miss Analytics Experience 2017.
Held Sept. 18-20 at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center in Washington, DC, you’ll learn the latest trends and best practices in analytics from a dream team of analytical experts. Plus, you’ll get to network with peers from around the world and hear from Magic Johnson himself, who is delivering the keynote address on Wednesday, Sept. 20.
Can’t make it to Washington, DC? No problem! You can watch a livestream of Magic’s talk and the other keynote presentations from wherever you are. Visit our website to view the list of available talks, register for the virtual event and add reminders to your calendar. And if you can’t view these talks live, all of them will be available on demand after the event, along with select breakout sessions featuring industry analytics experts.
You can also stay up-to-date with what’s happening on our social channels. You’ll find great information to watch, read and share on Twitter @SASsoftware (#AnalyticsX), Facebook and LinkedIn. We'll will also be blogging during and after the event. You can find all blogs from Analytics Experience 2017 here.
Whether you’re attending in person or joining us virtually, Analytics Experience 2017 is sure to be something I can only dream about: a slam dunk.
