Category: General NBA insight

General NBA insight

The Lenovo +/- Stat

NBA News – The Lenovo Stat shows the power of teamwork. It’s a way of showing the best-engineered/best combination of players on the court. The Lenovo Stat is a plus/minus statistic that looks at the point differential when players are both in and out of the game, to see how the team performs with various combinations. The Lenovo Stat can look at a variety of combinations including the best two player, three player and even five player combinations for each game.

Magic match best start ever

NBA News – Orlando is 15-4 in its first season under coach Stan Van Gundy, matching the best start in the franchise’s 19-year history. The Magic had the same record to begin the 1994-95 campaign and matched that the following season. Just four years ago, they opened 1-18. Orlando also is 11 games over .500 for the first time since finishing the strike-delayed 1998-99 season 33-17, and leads the NBA with a 10-2 road mark.

Raptors swishing from line, outside

NBA News — Toronto ranks first in the NBA for both three-point and free throw shooting. The Raptors are shooting .426 from behind the arc and have three players ranked among the NBA’s top-20 three-point shooters. Anthony Parker ranks sixth (.509), followed by Jason Kapono (.500) and Andrea Bargnani (.452). No other team in the NBA has three players ranked among the top 20 in three-point shooting. At the charity stripe the Raptors have made 263-of-312 (.843) for the year. T.J. Ford leads the team’s qualified players with a .889 shooting percentage, followed by Chris Bosh at .876. The Raptors have six players shooting over .800 at the free throw line.

Was Isiah close to being fired?

Was Isiah Thomas close to being fired recently?

The New York Daily News reports: According to a source, before the Knicks’ dramatic comeback victory over Milwaukee, at least two assistant coaches said that if the team suffered another blowout loss they were convinced that Thomas and the coaching staff would be fired. Three hours later, the Knicks overcame a 17-point, second-half deficit and won in the final minute. Garden chairman James Dolan, who has not spoken publicly on Thomas’ job status since last March, was not seated in his customary baseline seats at the Garden for a third straight home game. There is a possibility that Dolan could have watched any one of the last three home games from a luxury suite. Garden president Steve Mills also was conspicuously absent.

Nets need more home fans

The Newark Star-Ledger  reports: Entering the weekend, the Nets were 22nd in home attendance — their average draw being 14,770, which represents an average capacity of 73.9 percent at Izod Center. And as further proof that the Nets are less appreciated by New Jersey basketball enthusiasts than by others around the league, consider this: They are also third in road attendance (average: 18,347), and second-best in the NBA in filling buildings, with an average capacity of 95.5 percent.

Bobcats need new big man

The Charlotte Observer reports: If the Charlotte Bobcats really are intent on contending for the playoffs – and not just going through the motions – they better sign another big man soon. Coach Sam Vincent saw the hole in his roster in September, and things have only grown worse since then. Sean May is out for the season. Othella Harrington?s knee is still at least a month away from strong. Ryan Hollins is day-to-day with a bad shoulder. Primoz Brezec has regressed. Jermareo Davidson is a kid in need of muscle.

The Charlotte Observer reports: And perhaps there really isn’t a free agent good enough to justify a contract, plus cutting a player with a guarantee (Harrington or Derek Anderson?) to open a roster spot. I do know this: The Bobcats have about a $51 million payroll, at the bottom of the NBA, and the lack of depth inside is bordering on the absurd.

Glancing at the Bucks

Bucks notes:

The Bucks are 7-6 and tonight in New York will start Mo Williams and Michael Redd at guard, Desmond Mason and Yi Jianlian at forward, and Andrew Bogut at center. The usual crew. Michael Ruffin remains out with a left wrist fracture.

Early in November the Bucks assigned Ramon Sessions to the team’s D-League affiliate, the Tulsa 66ers.

Mo Williams went a perfect 9-of-9 for 23 points in Atlanta on Wednesday. Over the last seven games he’s close to averaging a double-double with 16.4 points and 9.7 assists per game.

Andrew Bogut has six double-doubles, the most of any Bucks player. on Tuesday he stepped up with 18 points, 11 rebounds and 4 blocks.

Tonight, in New York, the Bucks begin their fourth back-to-back set of games so far this season.

It’s a block party when the Bucks play. They’re 3rd in the league with 5.6 blocks per game. They’re led by Bogut’s 2.2 bpg, which is 7th in the league.

Bucks star shooting guard Michael Redd now has 9,274 career points. He’s only 16 points behind Terry Cummings for 9th all-time in Bucks history. Redd has led the team in scoring 11 of their 13 games so far in 2007-08.

Three games ago the Bucks beat Dallas by two points. But their last two games were losses to the 76ers and Hawks, two of the weakest teams in the league.

In 7 home games this season the Bucks have averaged 15,332 fans per game. They’ve had one home sellout. And home is where the Bucks have succeeded. They’re 6-1 in their own building and just 1-5 on the road.

Celtics domination at home

NBA News: At an NBA-best 11-2, the Boston Celtics are off to one of the best starts in franchise history. They opened the season 8-0 — the fourth best start for this storied organization — and have yet to lose at TD Banknorth Garden, where they are 7-0. The Celtics, not only will look to remain perfect at home tonight when they host the New Knicks on national TV (8 p.m. ET, TNT), they’ll go for a knockout punch.

Boston has outscored its opponents at home by an average of 18.3 points, the highest point-differential in the league. The Utah Jazz ranks second in that category (16.7), followed by the San Antonio Spurs (14.1), the Denver Nuggets (13.5), and the Detroit Pistons (11.2).

At home, the Celtics are out-rebounding teams by an average of 6.4; dishing out 10.6 more assists; recording 10.6 steals per game compared to 7.9 for the opposition; and shooting .525 from the field, while holding teams to under 40 percent (.398).

Perhaps the most significant reason for the Celtics’ dominance at home has been how seamlessly Kevin Garnett has acclimated to his new surroundings. His averages at home include 22.1 points, 13.1 rebounds and 4.3 assists, and he’s shooting a blistering .604 from the field and .871 from the free throw line. His road averages are 19.2 points, 10.8 rebounds and 4.2 assists, and his percentages from the field and charity stripe are .511 and .806, respectively.

Phil Jackson Lakers extension

Lakers coach Phil Jackson has made a decision on his future. The Los Angeles Times reports:

Coach Phil Jackson has decided to sign a contract extension that keeps him with the Lakers for two more seasons. Jackson met Wednesday with Jerry Buss and informed the Lakers owner of his decision. Jackson, 62, will get a modest raise from the three-year, $30-million contract he signed in June 2005, which was the richest per-annum coaching deal in U.S. pro sports history. Jackson is expected to make $11 million or $12 million a season in his new deal.

It’ll be interesting to see what type of roster changes the team makes this season and summer.