NBA strikes deal with MGM Resorts to provide data

The NBA and WNBA will share official data with MGM Resorts International, a major win for the leagues as they prepare for the anticipated growth of sports betting across the country.

The Las Vegas-based casino giant will pay the NBA for that data to use in determining outcomes of various bets. The NBA’s stance has been that getting accurate stats to bettors is critical so players know what they’re betting on and so casinos will know when to pay out, and MGM Resorts is the first casino to make an arrangement with the league for those numbers.

Terms of the deal announced Tuesday were not disclosed, other than it’s a multiyear arrangement.

MGM has been seeking to build a casino in Bridgeport.

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, who has been talking with MGM chairman and CEO James Murren about such an arrangement for weeks, said the leagues believe they’re getting adequately compensated for the data.

It’s the first such deal between a major U.S. sports league and a casino.

How MGM will get that data remains unclear.

NBA stat data is distributed globally by Sportradar, which sends it to media outlets, broadcasters and betting outlets outside the U.S. — but not inside this country, at least for now. With the start of preseason games still about two months away, there’s plenty of time for those matters to get worked out.

MGM will be an official casino partner for the league, but will not have exclusive rights to the data. The NBA still can, and likely will, try to make deals with other casinos who will be offering sports betting in various states or through mobile apps.

The deal also won’t stop other casino companies from offering wagers on NBA games, including prop bets that rely on results other than the final score.