Cutting it Up with Zain Dhanani: A Full-Circle Journey to Fantasy Life

Cutting it Up with Zain Dhanani From Matthew Berry's Fantasy Life

Zain Dhanani’s path into the fantasy football industry has taken him from ESPN and the NBA to creating his own analytics tools—and now to Fantasy Life.

On this episode of the Fantasy Football Unlimited Podcast, Zain joins Kevin Murray to share his journey from sports fan and fantasy football player to data scientist, content creator, and one of the newest members of the Fantasy Life team.

Zain takes us back to his early love of sports and fantasy football, including an early connection to Matthew Berry that makes his eventual arrival at Fantasy Life a true full-circle moment.

He also shares his experience working in analytics with the Milwaukee Bucks, what he learned from being inside a professional sports organization, and how his background in data science helped shape the way he evaluates football today.

The conversation dives into:

• Zain’s sports background and introduction to fantasy football• His early experience at ESPN and connection to Matthew Berry• Working in analytics with the Milwaukee Bucks• Making the jump from fantasy player to content creator• Creating The Cutup and combining film study with data analytics• Becoming a go-to source for NFL news and information• The creation of Receiver Score and where he wants to take it• His rapid rise through the fantasy football industry• How the opportunity to join Fantasy Life came together• What he’s learned since joining the Fantasy Life team• Advice for anyone trying to break into the fantasy sports industry• His long-term goals as an analyst and creator• Players he loves at their current ADP for the 2026 fantasy football season• His Super Bowl prediction• Rapid-fire questions and much more

From attending a Matthew Berry book signing to eventually working for the company Berry founded, Zain’s story is a fascinating example of how passion, analytics, creativity, and opportunity can come together to launch a career in fantasy football.

🔥 FOLLOW ZAIN DHANANI

X: https://x.com/DhananiZain

Fantasy Life:https://www.fantasylife.com/

Receiver Score:https://www.fantasylife.com/articles/fantasy/introduction-to-receiver-score-how-the-model-was-built-4-key-202