The Great Analytics Ranking (ESPN)

[Dro]

found this on Pacers Digest...

http://espn.go.com/espn/feature/story/_/id/12331388/the-great-analytics-rankings

Summary:

1. ALL-IN
Dallas Mavericks
Houston Rockets
Philadelphia 76ers
San Antonio Spurs

2. BELIEVERS
Atlanta Hawks
Boston Celtics
Cleveland Cavaliers
Detroit Pistons
Golden State Warriors
Memphis Grizzlies
Oklahoma City Thunder
Portland Trail Blazers

3. ONE FOOT IN
Charlotte Hornets
Indiana Pacers
Miami Heat
Milwaukee Bucks
Orlando Magic
Phoenix Suns
Sacramento Kings
Toronto Raptors
Utah Jazz

4. SKEPTICS
Chicago Bulls
Denver Nuggets
Los Angeles Clippers
Minnesota Timberwolves
New Orleans Pelicans
Washington Wizards

5. NONBELIEVERS
Brooklyn Nets
Los Angeles Lakers
New York Knicks

[AirBourne92]

analytics are great supplemental tools to measure and assess a whole team system/unit

but they are pretty flawed when it comes down to individual players

[Dro]

analytics are great supplemental tools to measure and assess a whole team system/unit

but they are pretty flawed when it comes down to individual players
Definitely, I think they can help but by no means should be used as an end all be all tool.

Here's an example for others who haven't read the link yet, this is Dallas, the 1st team on the list


Mavericks owner Mark Cuban is one of the NBA's foremost champions of analytics. A frequent panelist at Daryl Morey's annual MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference, in 2011 Cuban appeared onstage sporting a T-shirt that said "Talk Nerdy To Me."

In 2000, upon buying the team, Cuban reached out to his former Indiana University professor Wayne Winston, who (along with sports statistician Jeff Sagarin) created the first version of adjusted plus-minus. Later, Cuban brought in 82games.com founder Roland Beech, who was on the bench as the NBA's first "stats coach" when Dallas upset the Miami Heat to win the 2011 NBA championship.

After that victory, former ESPN Insider John Hollinger highlighted Rick Carlisle as "unquestionably the most cerebral and stat-friendly of the league's 30 head coaches." Carlisle cited lineup data as a key reason he made the move during 2011 NBA Finals to start J.J. Barea and use Brian Cardinal as a backup to Dirk Nowitzki.

Cuban has usually been the loudest analytics voice on the player personnel side, and the results speak for themselves. The Mavericks have averaged 54 wins a season under Cuban, even if critics say his bold moves -- including the recent acquisition of Rajon Rondo -- aren't always supported by the numbers. Beech, who has been promoted to vice president of basketball strategy, continues to play an important role and now oversees three new analysts -- a ramped-up investment that became a talking point in the feud between Cuban and Houston general manager Daryl Morey, who suggested the Mavs were imitating the Rockets.

Cuban's belief in the value of the physical-performance data tracked by Catapult Sports is so strong, he invested several million in the company last year, and Dallas has been a pioneer in investing in technology and new ideas on the health side, with Don Kalkstein serving as their full-time "psychology coach."

"Analytics have been an important component of who we are since I walked in the door 15 years ago," Cuban told ESPN.com. "What's changed is that all teams now use all the data available to them to make personnel decisions, so the market has become more efficient. We have strived to introduce new and exclusive sources of data so that we can improve performance of our players."

[I<3NBA]

lol at Miami only having one foot in. Spoelstra is a great believer in stats.

[Milbuck]

OKC being in that believer section really speaks to how laughable it is that Brooks is still around. It's like a rhetoric professor who can't process sarcasm. Just makes zero sense.

[christian1923]

Importance

1.Management
2.Players
3.Coaching
4.Chemistry
5.Analytics

[Sarcastic]

http://cdn.makeagif.com/media/5-08-2014/5VEfHP.gif

[Dro]

Importance

1.Management
2.Players
3.Coaching
4.Chemistry
5.Analytics
I like the list but I would switch 1 and 2. You gotta have great players for the most part. Only a few exceptions...

[bagelred]

Rumor has it that Daryl Morey has never actually watched a basketball game.

[Eric Cartman]

Rumor has it that Daryl Morey has never actually watched a basketball game.

:lol

[KevinNYC]

Importance

1.Management
2.Players
3.Coaching
4.Chemistry
5.Analytics
Why is analytics a separate category as opposed to something that helps 1, 2 and 3?

Would you put players and trainers as separate categories?

[oarabbus]

Importance

1.Management
2.Players
3.Coaching
4.Chemistry
5.Analytics


Except proper use of analytics can result in the right players and chemistry. Better find a good coach and good management though... perhaps by using analytics.

There's a clear trend, it's not a perfect correlation but on the whole the analytics-believers shit on the analytics-naysayers. Philly should be exempted from the list as they are blatantly tanking, and the list gets even more clear.

[BIZARRO]

I think "Believer" is the ideal place to fall with this, as it means you think the analytics have value, but you don't base "everything" on them and still use the eye test.

It is kind of weighed out by this ranking, as most of the bad ass West teams and Atlanta all are under Believer. Which shows good judgement and management imo.