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| Kevin Durant driving on Daymond Green |
I love basketball, like most of the people reading this blog. But I am also broke, also like a lot of people who will probably read this blog.
So I unfortunately can not afford the NBA league pass. Trust me I tried to talk myself into buying the $184 dollar sports package when I was randomly flushed with a little cash. I probably would not have regretted it, but I opted not to.
Now I know your thinking, "Why would you name this blog for the fan without League Pass". Well although I don't have league pass, like I said, I love basketball so I have an insatiable need to gain knowledge and watch as much basketball as I can. I think that I have reasonably fashioned a way around not having league pass. A lot of that has to do with reading a bunch of articles and watching a ton of basketball online when I can.
So maybe the title is ironically titled but the bottom line is that it is around the time when the average or passing NBA fan begins to pay attention to basketball. So I basically read all the articles and watch all the basketball that you can't get to because of my open college schedule. Most of us just hear the same story lines on SportsCenter and see glimpses of highlights. But you don't get the whole story of whats going on in the league. I plan to give you guys the full picture.
So maybe I should name this the Avid NBA fans guide for average fan. I'll probably change it to that at some point but I will give you 6 to 8 things that has happened in the NBA that an average fan might not know or that an avid fan might have missed.
For this first post I will give you 8 things that have happened so far this NBA season up until this point and then I will do one every couple of weeks depending on how much happens over the weeks.
First here are some stats I will probably use throughout this article and what they mean.
TS% or True Shooting Percentage
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True Shooting Percentage calculates what
a player's shooting percentage would be if we accounted for free throws and
3-pointers. True Shooting Percentage = (Total points x 50) divided by [(FGA +
(FTA x 0.44)]
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USG: Usage Rate
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Usage Rate is the number of possessions a player
uses per 40 minutes. Usage Rate = {[FGA + (FT Att. x 0.44) + (Ast x 0.33) +
TO] x 40 x League Pace} divided by (Minutes x Team Pace)
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PER: Player Efficiency Rating
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Player Efficiency Rating is Hollinger's
overall rating of a player's per-minute statistical production. The league
average is 15.00 every season.
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PIE
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In its simplest terms, PIE shows what % of game events did
that player or team achieve. The stats being
analyzed are your traditional basketball statistics (PTS, REB, AST, TOV,
etc..) A team that achieves more than 50% is likely to be a winning team. A
player that achieves more than 10% is likely to be better than the average
player. A high PIE % is highly correlated to winning.
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| Raptor's guards Kyle Lowry and DeMar Derozan |
Yes if you watch ESPN then you know the Knicks and the Nets have played better in the new year but the team that has improved the most has been the Toronto Raptors. Trading Rudy Gay should be classified as some form of performance enhancing act because every team that does so gets better.
The Raptors started of 7-12 before they traded Gay to the Sacramento Kings on December 9th and have been 12-6 since the trade. They have also been a lot better on defense since the trade. They have been able to raise to the 3rd best team in points allowed on the season.
DeMar DeRozan has continued to score but has also developed as a passer. Kyle Lowry has increased his scoring from 13.5 ppg to 18 ppg and 8 assist in January. Terrence Ross has seen his production raise as well, going from 6 ppg to 13 ppg in January.
It is also worth noting that Rudy Gay has also been playing well for the Kings mainly because he couldn't get much worse than taking 18 shots a game and only shooting 38%.
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| Kings Center Demarcus Cousins. |
A lot of people were very high on Demarcus Cousins when he came out in the 2010 draft. Through his first 3 years he was seen as everything from a detriment to his team, a coach killer, and a goofball. Most teams and scouts saw how talented he could be in the NBA but he had not really showed that potential. Instead he opted to shot a bunch of mid range jumpers for no reason and play no defense at all.
In the 2013-14 season Cousins has started to put it together and move on from being a headache for his team and has become a headache for the competition.
Now although he isn't the greatest defender, he has had more of a concerted effort on that side of the ball. He is averaging 1.1 blocks a game and 2.8 steals a game but still giving up 54% shooting to his opponents at the rim.
His impact has come mostly on the offensive end. He is posting a career high of 23.2 points along with 11.8 rebounds a game. His PER is an outstanding 26.31, for reference Kevin Durant's PER is 30.53 and LeBron's PER is 28.97. He is playing in that kind of stratosphere of basketball greatness. Now I'm not saying he is as good as those two guys but he has taken his game to another level.
The only thing that hasn't changed for Cousins is his team's winning ways. The Sacramento Kings are a lousy 14-25 on the season but not at the fault of Cousins who is posting a PIE of 17.5%. This basically means that he has great impact on the games that the Kings do win seeing how winning teams usually have a combined PIE of over 50%. The Kings could have a bright future with Cousins.
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| New Orleans forward Anthony "The Brow" Davis |
Anthony Davis has been suffering from the same affliction that Demarcus Cousins has been dealing with this year. His team has not been good so it has overshadowed how great he has been playing. He is absolutely the best player on offense and defense for his team and they are only losing because they'r best offensive lineup is also the Pelican's worst defensive lineup.
But the Brow, (which he patented) is averaging 20.3 points, 10.4 rebounds and 3 blocks a game. He is also posting a PER of 26.88. His defensive numbers are also off the charts with a great defensive rating, which basically means that his team is only good on defense when he is on the floor.
A lot of people expected this when Davis was selected as the number 1 pick in the 2012 draft. But not many people expected him to be this good this fast. The Pelicans are 16-24 but should be alot better than they have been playing and may need to trade Eric Gordon for a better defender. Maybe a trade for a guy like Aaron Afflalo might help them out.
4. Teams don't know how to tank! Oh wait maybe they do.
In the beginning of the season there where a lot of teams that were supposed to "Tank" the season or be lousy in order to get a draft pick in what was hyped up as maybe the best draft since 2003. Teams like the Philadelphia 76ers, Phoenix Suns, Boston Celtics, and Orlando Magic were expected to lose on purpose in order to get a guy like Andrew Wiggins from Kansas.
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| Sixers' guard Michael Carter Williams |
Since December though those 4 teams have posted a combined record of 33-62 which shows just how bad they have been over the last month and a half. This comes with the exception of the Suns who have continued to play well although they lost a leading scorer in Eric Bledsoe (18 points a game) this past month. The Suns are 23-17 and are in the 8th spot in the west. But without the Suns record the remaining 3 teams are still 19-53.
So although they didn't start the season as bad as teams like the Utah Jazz and the Milwaukee Bucks, they have begun to catch up. With the NBA having a lottery system it is still possible for those teams, besides the Suns, to get a great pick. It also helps that the top 6-8 picks in this years draft could be impact players.
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| Damian Lillard (left) and LeMarcus Aldridge (right) |
The Blazers have been great this season and have beat a lot of great teams so it's safe to say that they aren't a fluke. They have started the season 31-10 but they may be relying too much on their offensive prowess to win games now.
Right now the Blazers are 1st in scoring at 109.6 points a game but also 27th in the league in points allowed giving up 103.5 points a game. That is pretty bad for a team with a record as good as the Blazers.
Don't get me wrong they have the offensive firepower with Damian Lillard, LeMarcus Aldridge, Wesley Mathews and Nicholas Batum to outscore most opponents. But they have been lackluster on the defensive side and that could spell future trouble. They could suffer from the same fate that became of the Phoenix Suns during their run of being playoff contenders.
Although the Suns were great on offense and in the regular season, their defense was a problem in the postseason because they played teams that could slow them down enough defensively and still score against their poor defense.
The Blazers could suffer the same fate because teams like the Thunder, the Spurs, the Clippers, and sometimes the Warriors are capable of playing enough defense in the playoffs to beat the Blazers.
They have become very fun to watch although they don't get many national games, but they need to improve their defense if they want to really be a threat in the post season.
6. The Thunder did well in the Harden Trade actually.
Last year when Harden was traded to the Rockets for Jeremy Lamb, Kevin Martin, and a 1st round draft pick, many said that the Thunder had made one of the worst trades in NBA history. Last season Harden did go on to surprisingly lead the Rockets to the playoffs and the Thunder suffered in the playoffs with Russell Westbrook hurt.
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| Stevan Adams (left) and Jeremy Lamb (right) |
This wasn't the case. The Thunder got the 12th pick in the 2013 draft and took the 7 foot New Zealand center from the university of Pittsburgh. Many thought that he was a project and would play much this season. But he has actually averaged 15 minutes a game and is basically splitting time with Kendrick Perkins. Although he is only posting 4 points and 4.4 rebounds a game his numbers are great per 40 minutes a game. He is post 10 points and 12 rebounds per 40 minutes a game. He is looking like the future starter for the Thunder.
Also Jeremy Lamb and Reggie Jackson have solidified the OKC bench. Even though now that Westbrook is out with an injury and Jackson is now in the starting lineup the Thunder is playing well. Lamb is averaging 10 points a game and 18 ppg, 5 rebs and 2 assist per 40 minutes. They two guys from the Harden trade aren't exactly playing on the level of Harden but they have contributed well and could have bright futures.
It also does help that Kevin Durant is in the middle of what could be an MVP year and Serge Ibaka is playing alot better this year as well. Durant leads the league in scoring and player efficiency rating. Serge Ibaka has come on the last 5 games averaging 18ppg and 11 rebounds. Ibaka has also scored 20+ points in the las 3 games for the longest streak in his career. The Thunder are making out alright after the trade.
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| Blake Griffin passing the ball. |
A lot of people in the past have had mixed feeling about Blake Griffin. Some people thought that he was soft. Some thought that all he could do was dunk and some thought that he was one of the NBA's most overrated players. Some of those statements may have been true to a certain extent but he has played a lot better this year.
Although his offensive numbers are pretty similar to how he has played the last year, he is scoring a career high of 22.5 points per game matching his rookie year. his greatest impact has come with how hard he has worked to become a better shooter. Take a look at Griffins Shooting chart last year and this year.
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| 2012-2013 season |
This picture was Griffins shooting chart last year. The Green spots indicate the spot on the floor where he shot above league average. The yellow spots mark where he shot close to league average and the red spots are below average.
As you can see Griffin had a hard time shooting anywhere on the floor besides the paint. This helped to feed the narrative that Griffin was only good for dunks. But the truth is that he was a very poor shooter last year.
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| 2013-2014 season |
Now this is Griffins Shooting chart for this season. Although Griffin still has struggles from some spaces on the floor he has developed greatly as a shooter.
Now there are multiple places outside the paint where people have to worry about Griffin. He might not be the shooter a Lamarcus Aldridge or a Kevin Love might be, he has become a threat in the midrange to an extent.
Griffin has also increased his passing ability, especially in the post. He has also increased his defense. He is now post a career high defensive rating under Doc Rivers.
Griffin has also increased his play since Chris Paul's absence. Increasing his points, assists, steals and field goal percentage. It's time to give Blake Griffin a little more respect as an NBA player.
8. Too many teams not reaching their potential!
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| Cleveland Cavs guard Kyrie Irving |
The have been other disappointing teams but these teams all made pushes in the offseason to make their teams better and have failed to do so.
The New Orleans Pelicans added Tyreke Evans and Jrue Holiday in the hopes of being really good on offense but now they are 9 games under .500 because they're dream lineup of Holiday, Eric Gordon, Evans, Anthony Davis, and Ryan Anderson is also just as terrible on defense as they are good on offense.
The Cleveland Cavaliers had the first pick in the draft and added Earl Clark, Jarrett Jack, Andrew Bynum. They thought that they had a team on the cusp of a playoff berth but instead the Cavs are 15-26. Their first pick Anthony Bennet is looking like the worst number 1 pick ever. Clark and Jack have been under-whelming and Andrew Bynum was traded for Luol Deng because of team issues. While it has become hard to see how Kyrie Irving makes his teammates better.
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| Ricky Rubio (left) and Kevin Love (Right) |
The Minnesota Timberwolves added more depth in their bench with the signing of Cory Brewer, and more scoring with the addition of Kevin Martin. Although they started the season off great and have played a tough schedule, it is still disappointing that the T-wolves are only 19-21. Kevin Love was in the MVP conversation but that has died down.
Although they can still make the playoffs if they turn it around in the second half of the season, they are still plagued by the fact that Rick Rubio cannot shoot the basketball. He isn't a threat to score from really anywhere on the court and it has effected the team. He has to increase his scoring ability for the Timberwolves to reach their potential.
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