duncan228
12-03-2010, 12:56 PM
Keeping Score: Who Is the N.B.A.’s Best Point Guard? (http://offthedribble.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/12/02/keeping-score-who-is-the-n-b-a-s-best-point-guard/?ref=sports)
By Justin Kubatko
Off The Dribble
The New York Times
Justin Kubatko is the creator of Basketball-Reference.com (http://www.basketball-reference.com/), an online basketball encyclopedia. He is also a statistical consultant for the Trail Blazers.
One of the highlights of the first full month of the N.B.A. season was the outstanding play of the league’s top point guards. This seems to be a golden age for the position, with young stars like Tony Parker, Chris Paul, Rajon Rondo, Derrick Rose, Russell Westbrook and Deron Williams mixed in with savvy veterans like Jason Kidd and Steve Nash. This has sparked an age-old debate: Who is the best point guard in the N.B.A.?
Derrick Rose and Russell Westbrook are both in their third year in the N.B.A., and their production this season represents a major improvement over their first two seasons. Three years from now I would not be surprised if this debate comes down to Rose versus Westbrook, but for now neither player has the track record to be considered the best point guard in the league.
The veterans Jason Kidd, a 10-time All Star, and Steve Nash, a two-time Most Valuable Player, have lengthy records of success, but neither is competing at the level of players like Chris Paul and Deron Williams. Plus, Kidd and Nash are 37 and 36 years old, respectively, and it is unlikely that they will be able to maintain this level of play much longer.
Eliminating Rose, Westbrook, Kidd and Nash leaves us with four candidates: Tony Parker, Chris Paul, Rajon Rondo and Deron Williams.
To help compare the performances of these players I am going to introduce two new statistics. The first, steal percentage, is an estimate of the number of steals the player records per 100 opponent possessions. The second, win shares per 48 minutes, is an estimate of the number of wins the player generates per 48 minutes played (the league average for this statistic is 0.100).
Keep Reading... (http://offthedribble.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/12/02/keeping-score-who-is-the-n-b-a-s-best-point-guard/?ref=sports)
By Justin Kubatko
Off The Dribble
The New York Times
Justin Kubatko is the creator of Basketball-Reference.com (http://www.basketball-reference.com/), an online basketball encyclopedia. He is also a statistical consultant for the Trail Blazers.
One of the highlights of the first full month of the N.B.A. season was the outstanding play of the league’s top point guards. This seems to be a golden age for the position, with young stars like Tony Parker, Chris Paul, Rajon Rondo, Derrick Rose, Russell Westbrook and Deron Williams mixed in with savvy veterans like Jason Kidd and Steve Nash. This has sparked an age-old debate: Who is the best point guard in the N.B.A.?
Derrick Rose and Russell Westbrook are both in their third year in the N.B.A., and their production this season represents a major improvement over their first two seasons. Three years from now I would not be surprised if this debate comes down to Rose versus Westbrook, but for now neither player has the track record to be considered the best point guard in the league.
The veterans Jason Kidd, a 10-time All Star, and Steve Nash, a two-time Most Valuable Player, have lengthy records of success, but neither is competing at the level of players like Chris Paul and Deron Williams. Plus, Kidd and Nash are 37 and 36 years old, respectively, and it is unlikely that they will be able to maintain this level of play much longer.
Eliminating Rose, Westbrook, Kidd and Nash leaves us with four candidates: Tony Parker, Chris Paul, Rajon Rondo and Deron Williams.
To help compare the performances of these players I am going to introduce two new statistics. The first, steal percentage, is an estimate of the number of steals the player records per 100 opponent possessions. The second, win shares per 48 minutes, is an estimate of the number of wins the player generates per 48 minutes played (the league average for this statistic is 0.100).
Keep Reading... (http://offthedribble.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/12/02/keeping-score-who-is-the-n-b-a-s-best-point-guard/?ref=sports)