Alumni Spotlights are Q&A's with former Brandeis student-athletes, across a myriad of disciplines, as they reflect on their Brandeis experience and how it has shaped their lives today. Read more spotlight features here.
Name: Scott Green '05
Job Title: Portfolio Manager
Organization: 8 Knots
A native of Dallas, Texas, Scott Green graduated from Brandeis University in 2005. At Brandeis, he achieved his lifetime goal of playing college basketball by making the men's basketball team as a junior year walk-on and was named team captain as a senior. In 2012, Green received the E.A. Foxy Flumere Distinguished Contribution Award, which is presented to an alum for loyalty, support and improvement of Brandeis athletics.
Green volunteers as Head Coach of the 16U New York Maccabi Basketball Team, which competes in the JCC Maccabi Games - an Olympic-style sporting competition held each summer and the second-largest sports program for Jewish teenagers in the world.
Green is the Founder and Portfolio Manager at 8 Knots, a hedge fund that invests in healthcare companies that trade on the stock market, which he started in 2019.
Describe your overall experience as a student-athlete. What does it mean to you now?
I was cut during tryouts my freshman and sophomore years, made the team as a walk-on junior, became a starter and was senior year captain. I'm proud that I achieved my potential.
How did your time as a student and student-athlete at Brandeis prepare you for your career and life after college?
Investing in the stock market is like a sport: there is a scoreboard - stock prices update in real time; it's competitive - everyone is trying to research the best stocks to buy; and I have to stay in shape - good physical and mental health help manage stress. Many investors played college sports.
Do you have any advice for current or future Brandeis Student-Athletes?
Many years from now you will remember your family of teammates and whether you tried as hard as you could to achieve your potential. Set stretch goals and pursue them like crazy - you will be proud no matter what the result.
What was your favorite memory of being a student-athlete?
How I finally made the team my junior year. At the end of tryouts, everybody was called on to shoot free throws as part of a conditioning drill. When it was my turn to shoot, Coach said if I make two free throws I'm on the team otherwise I would be cut. I made both shots and the rest of the team tackled me.
What lessons did you learn as a student athlete that have benefited you as a professional? As a person?
Beyond some amount of required skill, it is hard work, persistence and teamwork that determines success.
Do you still keep in touch with any of your former Brandeis teammates?
Yogev Berdugo founded a Jewish basketball camp called Step It Up and I coach the 16u New York City Maccabi Basketball Team - we help each other recruit campers and players! Steve Hill and I shared the nickname "Checkline" at Brandeis because we were tough hustle kids and our roles were to create havoc on the court like a hockey check line - he owns a recycling business called Recycle NOW. And a shout out to my good friend Amanda DeMartino (best Brandeis point guard of all time) she is Athletic Director at The College of New Jersey we hang out when she visits New York.
This interview was lightly edited for clarity.