WORK OPTION: The NBA currently provides eligible employees the option of working remotely one day per week.
Position Summary
The 2026 NBA Summer Internship is a 10-week program that runs from June 8 – August 14, 2026. The program gives participants the opportunity to learn about basketball, develop critical career skills, and contribute to meaningful projects across a range of departments in the NBA and its affiliate leagues (WNBA, G League, NBA 2K). In addition to on-the-job experience, interns are invited to participate in a broad array of professional development programs and community and social experiences.
The program prioritizes rising seniors, with limited exceptions for graduate students, based on business need.
Interns should reflect excellent academic standing and have strong written and verbal communication skills. Additionally, we look for candidates who possess leadership skills as demonstrated through relevant extracurricular or community activities.
More information on the Summer Internship program experience can be found here.
Role Overview
Selected interns will support internal and external communications, PR, and marketing initiatives across the NBA, WNBA, NBA G League, and NBA 2K League.
Past interns have worked across a range of departments including:
- Communications, which leads domestic and international basketball media relations, as well as internal business communications.
- Content and Direct-to-Consumer teams, who support brand development, strategy, digital reach, and promotional initiatives; or other departments to support internal and external communications or marketing initiatives across our digital platforms.
Major Responsibilities
May include, but not limited to:
- Supporting marketing and strategic communications for NBA Draft, NBA Finals, NBA Summer League, and other company-facing media initiatives
- Supporting the league’s Fan Engagement function by drafting and editing correspondence to fans who contact the NBA and all its affiliate leagues
- Pitching innovative ideas aligned with current marketing objectives to group leadership
- Creating fan engagement tracking reports to identify key issues, sentiment, and trends among fans
- Conducting field research across key emerging industries, categories, international companies, and executives for relevancy and points of entry to identify new content strategies, technologies, and business opportunities
- Contributing to the creation of daily internal news briefs for distribution to league and team executives
- Assisting with internal communications initiatives, including the creation of employee spotlights and important company stories
- Developing media plans and strategy for several different events across the WNBA season
- Assisting with WNBA All-Star coordination and media pitching with lifestyles and local morning shows
- Publishing press releases for multiple different functions of NBA and WNBA Communications including Events, Player Engagement, Social Responsibility, etc.
Required Education & Professional Experience
- Enrolled in an undergraduate program and entering Senior year in the academic year following the internship
- These roles are open to all but typically best suited for individuals in the following majors: Communications, English, Journalism, Marketing, Public Relations, Sports Management, or Sports Marketing
Preferred Skills & Knowledge Attributes
- Strong writing and editing skills
- Strong interpersonal skills
- Solid editorial judgement
- Experience with content publishing and fact-checking
- Brand investment in the NBA and affiliate leagues
- Some experience with managing budgets
- Facility and familiarity with Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, and Excel
- Knowledge of new and emerging platforms and social networks being used by their peers
- Considerable experience with Adobe Creative Suite, Photoshop preferred
Salary Range
$26/hr
Job Posting Title
Summer Intern
We Consider Applicants For All Positions On The Basis Of Merit, Qualifications And Business Needs, And Without Regard To Race, Color, National Origin, Religion, Sex, Gender Identity, Age, Disability, Alienage Or Citizenship Status, Ancestry, Marital Status, Creed, Genetic Predisposition Or Carrier Status, Sexual Orientation, Veteran Status, Familial Status, Status As A Victim Of Domestic Violence Or Any Other Status Or Characteristic Protected By Applicable Federal, State, Or Local Law.
The NBA is committed to providing a safe and healthy workplace. To safeguard our employees and their families, our visitors, and the broader community from COVID-19, and in consideration of recommendations from health authorities and the NBA’s own advisors, any individual working onsite in our New York and New Jersey offices must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. The NBA will discuss accommodations for individuals who cannot be vaccinated due to a medical reason or sincerely held religious belief, practice, or observance.
About The NBA
The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a global sports and media organization with the mission to inspire and connect people everywhere through the power of basketball. Built around five professional sports leagues: the NBA, WNBA, NBA G League, NBA 2K League and Basketball Africa League, the NBA has established a major international presence with games and programming available in 214 countries and territories in 60 languages, and merchandise for sale in more than 200 countries and territories on all seven continents. NBA rosters at the start of the 2024-25 season featured a record-tying 125 international players from a record-tying 43 countries. NBA Digital’s assets include NBA TV, NBA.com, the NBA App and NBA League Pass. The NBA has created one of the largest social media communities in the world, with more than 2.3 billion likes and followers globally across all leagues, team and player platforms. NBA Cares, the NBA’s global social responsibility platform, partners with renowned community-based organizations around the world to address important social issues in the areas of education, inclusion, youth and family development, and health and wellness.
