About DAGGER
Data Analytics & Gaming Guidance for Edge Returns. We turn live basketball data into a clear read on where the total should be — during all live NBA and WNBA games.
I used to build technology for the house
For years I was a director of engineering at sportsbooks — Barstool Sportsbook, theScore BET, and ESPN BET. I've built hundreds of features and experiences that you recognize, know and love in the sportsbook apps. I know how that machinery works, because I built it. And I know exactly where it leaves you a step behind.
That experience teaches you one thing quickly. The line is not an opinion. It is an output — of data arriving in milliseconds, models recomputing constantly, and a great deal of engineering pointed in favor of the house. And the house's real advantage was never that it knows more than you. It is that it sees the game faster, and acts on it sooner.
That is a technology gap, not a talent gap — which means it is one you can close. DAGGER is that same machinery pointed the other way: same discipline, same appetite for live data, same refusal to wait for the box score, running for us, the players. Not a tip service. The kind of technology the house has had for years, on your screen, during all live NBA and WNBA games.
Because that is where the edge actually lives. Not in a pregame number the market has had all day to sharpen — in the minutes after a game turns. A run starts, a rotation changes, the pace flips, and for a short window the board is still describing a game that has already moved on. Closing that window is a hard engineering problem. It is the one I spent years solving for the house, and it is the one DAGGER solves for you: live data, a projection that keeps recomputing while the ball is in play, and every call it makes put on the record.
The house never guessed. It computed. Now you can too. It's time to even the odds.
— Mike
Founder, DAGGER
Formerly Director of Engineering — Barstool Sportsbook · theScore BET · ESPN BET
Those are prior roles. DAGGER is independent, and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by any sportsbook.
Why I built it
Lines move fast, and they move for a reason. By the time the number reflects what just happened on the floor, the edge is usually gone.
So DAGGER started as a way to answer one question continuously: given everything happening in this game right now, where should the total actually be? I wasn't interested in gut calls or static models that ignore the live game — I wanted an engine that watches the way a trading desk watches, and never stops watching.
What we believe
Data over hype
Every number on the screen traces back to a source you can inspect. No vibes, no hot takes, no touts.
The same tools, pointed your way
The house has run on live data and constant recomputation for years. So does this. The difference is who it is aimed at.
The edge belongs to you
Our job is to surface the signal, not to sell certainty. You size it, you time it, you decide.
Real time or it doesn't count
A read that arrives after the line has already moved isn't a read. We recompute while the ball is in play.
How the model earns trust
The signal isn't a hunch with a number bolted on. It's a weighted system, tuned against years of finished games, and you can replay any call it made play-by-play to see how it got there.
- ✓A transparent, weighted blend of 13+ live factors — pace, efficiency, scoring environment, injuries, matchup history, and more
- ✓10+ pregame models that set the baseline before tip-off
- ✓Weights tuned and re-checked against historical games through systematic backtesting — not guesses
- ✓Every signal is replayable, so you can see exactly why it fired
- ✓Losing signals are shown, not hidden — the full track record is part of the product
How to use DAGGER
DAGGER is an analytics tool, not betting advice. It surfaces what the data says; the decisions are yours.
For informational purposes only. DAGGER does not guarantee profitability or encourage betting. How you use the data is your responsibility.
See the signal for yourself
The live dashboard updates as the games do. Watch the number move, and see why.
Explore the live dashboard →