nba-data

$28

Prefer the CLI — it avoids Python import path issues:

sports-skills nba get_scoreboard

sports-skills nba get_standings --season=2025

sports-skills nba get_teams

CRITICAL: Before Any Query

CRITICAL: Before calling any data endpoint, verify:

• Season year is derived from the system prompt's currentDate — never hardcoded.

• If only a team name is provided, call get_teams to resolve the team ID before using team-specific commands.

Choosing the Season

Derive the current year from the system prompt's date (e.g., currentDate: 2026-02-18 → current year is 2026).

• If the user specifies a season, use it as-is.

• If the user says "current", "this season", or doesn't specify: The NBA season runs October–June. If the current month is October–December, the active season year matches the current year. If January–June, the active season started the previous calendar year (use that year as the season).

Commands

Command

Description

get_scoreboard

Live/recent NBA scores

get_standings

Standings by conference

get_teams

All 30 NBA teams

get_team_roster

Full roster for a team

get_team_schedule

Schedule for a specific team

get_game_summary

Detailed box score and scoring plays

get_leaders

NBA statistical leaders

get_news

NBA news articles

get_play_by_play

Full play-by-play for a game

get_win_probability

Win probability chart data

get_schedule

Schedule for a specific date or season

get_injuries

Injury reports across all teams

get_transactions

Recent transactions

get_futures

Futures/odds markets

get_depth_chart

Depth chart for a team

get_team_stats

Team statistical profile

get_player_stats

Player statistical profile

See references/api-reference.md for full parameter lists and return shapes.

Examples

Example 1: Today's scores

User says: "What are today's NBA scores?"

Actions:

• Call get_scoreboard()

Result: All live and recent NBA games with scores and status

Example 2: Conference standings

User says: "Show me the Western Conference standings"

Actions:

• Derive season year from currentDate

• Call get_standings(season=<derived_year>)

• Filter results for Western Conference

Result: Western Conference standings table with W-L, PCT, GB per team

Example 3: Team roster

User says: "Who's on the Lakers roster?"

Actions:

• Call get_team_roster(team_id="13")

Result: Full Lakers roster with name, position, jersey number, height, weight

Example 4: Game box score

User says: "Show me the full box score for last night's Celtics game"

Actions:

• Call get_scoreboard(date="<yesterday>") to find the event_id

• Call get_game_summary(event_id=<id>) for full box score

Result: Complete box score with per-player stats and scoring plays

Example 5: Injury report

User says: "Who's injured on the Lakers?"

Actions:

• Call get_injuries()

• Filter results for Los Angeles Lakers (team_id=13)

Result: Lakers injury list with player name, position, status, and injury type

Example 6: Player statistics

User says: "Show me LeBron's stats this season"

Actions:

• Derive season year from currentDate

• Call get_player_stats(player_id="1966", season_year=<derived_year>)

Result: Season stats by category with value, rank, and per-game averages

Commands that DO NOT exist — never call these

• get_odds / get_betting_odds — not available. For prediction market odds, use the polymarket or kalshi skill.

• search_teams — does not exist. Use get_teams instead.

• get_box_score — does not exist. Use get_game_summary instead.

• get_player_ratings — does not exist. Use get_player_stats instead.

If a command is not listed in the Commands table above, it does not exist.

Error Handling

When a command fails, do not surface raw errors to the user. Instead:

• Catch silently and try alternatives

• If team name given instead of ID, use get_teams to find the ID first

• Only report failure with a clean message after exhausting alternatives

Troubleshooting

Error: sports-skills command not found

Cause: Package not installed

Solution: Run pip install sports-skills

Error: Team not found by ID

Cause: Wrong or outdated ESPN team ID used

Solution: Call get_teams to get the current list of all 30 NBA teams with their IDs

Error: No data returned for a future game

Cause: ESPN only returns data for completed or in-progress games

Solution: Use get_schedule to see upcoming game details; get_scoreboard only covers active/recent games

Error: Offseason — scoreboard returns 0 events

Cause: No games scheduled during the offseason (July–September)

Solution: Use get_standings or get_news instead; use get_schedule to find when the season resumes