The Sacramento Kings have hired Dean Oliver to provide statistical analysis and play a role in personnel decisions.

Oliver had been the director of production analytics at ESPN.

Pete D’Alessandro worked with Oliver in Denver before becoming the Kings’ GM last year. Oliver worked with the front office and coach George Karl.

“He’s going to be a big part of this team in terms of brokering deals,” D’Alessandro said. “His reputation throughout the league is stellar, and his contact base is as big as anyone’s.”

D’Alessandro believes Oliver will be a valuable asset to the Kings’ coaches and players.

“There’s plenty of coaches and players who’ve learned the right things,” Oliver said. “They don’t need an analytical approach in order to do things the right way. But there’s a lot more information. You’ve got players who want to know more about the details.”

Michael Malone said he is a “numbers guy” and believes they can be beneficial.

“I’m looking forward to working with anybody that can help us win games,” Malone said . “... We’re going to use whatever information that Dean and the entire front-office staff give us to help us become a winning basketball team.”