Comparison
Statshawk vs theOddsAPI, SportRadar, and nba_api — a side-by-side for evaluators.
Honest read
This page exists because every dev evaluates two or three options before committing to a sports-data layer. We'd rather lay it out ourselves than lose the conversation to a Reddit thread.
The short version: Statshawk is the shortest path to an LLM-grounded, normalized sports backend. If you want raw odds, use theOddsAPI. If you want enterprise data with hand-holding, use SportRadar. If you're single-league and don't mind scraping, nba_api is free.
Feature matrix
| Capability | Statshawk | theOddsAPI | SportRadar | nba_api |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MCP server (LLM-native) | ✓ hosted, OAuth | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| REST normalized across leagues | NBA, MLB, NFL, NHL, soccer, NCAA | only odds | yes (paid) | NBA only |
| Auth | API key + OAuth (MCP) | API key | API key + IP allowlist | none (scraper) |
| Pricing model | usage units | per-month per-market | enterprise quote | free |
| Live game data | yes (≤30 s scoreboard) | n/a (odds only) | yes | yes (NBA Stats lag) |
| Statcast / pitch data | yes | ✗ | yes (separate SKU) | ✗ |
| Pre-computed analysis cards | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| Self-serve signup | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ (sales call) | ✓ (open source) |
| Time-to-first-curl | < 60 s | < 60 s | 1–2 weeks | local install |
| Time-to-first-MCP-call | < 60 s | n/a | n/a | n/a |
| Bring-your-own odds line | ✓ (?line=) | n/a | ✗ | ✗ |
When to pick which
What we are not
- An odds aggregator — we accept a line as input, we don't publish them.
- A real-time push service — REST polling only at v1.
- A betting platform — we serve data; you build the app.
- Officially licensed — for regulated use you'll want a tier-1 provider.
If you've tried us and one of these gaps is a blocker, email
hello@statshawk.ai. We read everything.