Gregory Budzban, chair of the mathematics department, looks over his graph of possible basketball player positions Tuesday in the Neckers Building. There are five common player positions in the game of basketball. A recent study looking at the NBA done by Muthu Alagappan, a graduate student at Stanford University, showed the possibility of 13 positions based on common attributes and playing styles. The study inspired Budzban to create a similar project using the Missouri Valley Conference. “I was looking for a project to show the connection between math and the real world,” Budzban said. Budzban started the project to give students a chance to apply their mathematical skills to a real worldsituation.Ian Mullen • Daily Egyptian