When it comes to debating who the better player is between Michael Jordan and Kobe Bryant, there is basically no contest: anyone who has seen both play knows Jordan was the better overall player. The statistics overwhelmingly supports that idea (particularly in the playoffs). Phil Jackson, who has famously coached both players, has said a number of times that Jordan was the better player on both ends of the floor. Even Bryant himself at some point wished people would stop with
When it comes to figuring out who deserves to make it to the prestigious Basketball Hall of Fame, the first thing to do is to understand the necessary criteria . Unfortunately, trying to figure out the criteria for that is like trying to understand what it takes to make it to the All-Star Game or winning a Defensive Player of the Year award – everyone has a general idea, but there is no handbook explaining what you need to do to achieve
The growth of analytics in the NBA has been nothing short of phenomenal. It started with a deeper look at numbers that already were available and produced new and useful statistics such as true shooting percentage, defensive rebound percentage, offensive rating and win shares. With the use of a grid or a matrix, we now have the ability to determine a player’s offensive tendencies and hot spots. For some players, it is quite revealing. For others, such as DeAndre Jordan, it pretty
There have been plenty of speculation around the league about a number of important free agents in the past couple of weeks – most notably, of course, LeBron James. James still has yet to make a decision (although our Chris Sheridan reports of a probable return to Cleveland), and not much else looks to happen with anyone else until he does. While the big guns take the necessary time to mull their options, other NBA players around the league are enjoying their time off
After playing just well enough to get past the eighth-seeded Atlanta Hawks in the first round, the Indiana Pacers continued to show on Monday that their struggles are far from over. Facing a young and energized Washington Wizards team in the conference semi-finals, the Pacers floundered on both ends of the court and lost 102-96, losing homecourt advantage once again in the process. The Wizards shot a whopping 10-of-16 from the 3-point line, and the Pacers collectively shot 40.7 percent from
The NBA playoffs got off to a good start today, with a competitive Nets-Raptors game followed by a thrilling Clippers-Warriors battle. The former reminded everyone why Paul Pierce is still a quality NBA player, and the latter was an intense battle between two rivals, albeit both playing below their potential. Blake Griffin only got 19 minutes due to foul trouble, which the Clippers have to be praying won’t happen in the rest of the series. Otherwise, they could be in
There have been some fair comparisons drawn between the current 17-game winning streak of the San Antonio Spurs and the remarkable 27-game run put together a year ago by the Miami Heat. Both teams expect to compete for the NBA championship. Both teams found their rhythm at the most opportune time of the season. Both teams stormed to the league’s best record and home court advantage throughout the playoffs. There are obvious differences as well. For one, San Antonio still needs 10
All season, the Indiana Pacers have maintained that homecourt advantage for the Eastern Conference playoffs, and their chemistry will give them a great chance to dethrone the two-time NBA champion Miami Heat. Are both slipping away? In the last two weeks, Indiana’s grip on the East’s best record has loosened considerably. And the Pacers’ big move at Thursday’s trading deadline, acquiring Evan Turner, illustrated that their belief in chemistry may have been overstated. [Read more…]