Two teams don't belong

[ElNono]

http://espn.go.com/nba/hollinger/teamstats/_/sort/defensiveEff/order/false

RK TEAM DEF EFF
1 Indiana 96.6
2 Memphis 97.4
3 San Antonio 99.2
Oklahoma City 99.2
5 Chicago 100.3
6 Boston 100.4
7 Miami 100.5

All those teams except for Boston made it to the conference semis... Knicks (Rank 16) and Golden State (Rank 13) are the odd ones out.

The Knicks did have a top 3 offense though, while Boston ranked #20 on that end.

Surprisingly enough, Golden State offense is Ranked #10. Outpaced by the likes of Brooklyn and Lakers. Fluke series against Denver?

All in all, just wanted to highlight defense is what gets you far in the playoffs.

[exstatic]

Old stats. ppg doesn't adjust for pace, either on offense or defense. It's all about the possession stats.

[ElNono]

Old stats. ppg doesn't adjust for pace, either on offense or defense. It's all about the possession stats.

Per the link:

DEF EFF: Defensive Efficiency - the number of points a team allows per 100 possessions.

[exstatic]

Per the link:

DEF EFF: Defensive Efficiency - the number of points a team allows per 100 possessions.

Ah. Got it. It just looked strange. Stat heads usually express it on a per possession basis.

[ElNono]

Ah. Got it. It just looked strange. Stat heads usually express it on a per possession basis.

Everybody love their own stats, and that's fine by me. But I always thought that more or less that Defensive Efficiency ranking passes the eyeball test. Obviously, there's other factors like offense and general matchups.

[mudyez]

btw.: the team I played had the best offense and best defense this season and we finished 5th in the standings (no playoffs)...the second best team had the worst defense and the 3th best offense :)

no lie!

but what I want to say: While I like our chances, there can happen a lot in one playoff series!

[milkyway21]

Old stats. ppg doesn't adjust for pace, either on offense or defense. It's all about the possession stats.

agree.

Between Denver and GSW: ex. there's Curry whose postseason stat is ranked #5 in scoring and #1 in assist.

[Grit and Grind]

LOL their defense was bad because of David Lee and now Lee is out ( or at least not getting a ton of minutes ) . Guys like Bogut , Barnes and Green are awesome defenders

[elemento]

I think SA will destroy GS. I respect them and I like their fans but They get 1 win at most.

[RuffnReadyOzStyle]

GSW win by hitting a lot of jumpers, and guys like Curry, Jack, Landry and Thompson can stroke the long 2. Our system gives up a lot of 15-20ft jumpers. Hmmmm...

Better hope Pop has some major adjustments ready.

[John B]

Kawhi/Green/Manu/Cojo will have a great series guarding their perimeters. Bonner/Neal will have a lot of open looks, to punish their double team. I hope Bonner continues his excellent post-season game especially with a limited DLee. I don't buy in on Pop's they're not a dangerous team, they're a very good team. I think that's just CIA Pops. But if Spurs overlook them and get their crowd going, we could see game 5.

[Kidd K]

I think it's a fluke that the top defensive teams are all who advanced this time. That just happened to be who were the top teams this year. There really weren't any fluke series. The Nets just weren't as good as they should have been (all year). The Nuggets were injured so it's no surprise they lost to a Warriors team who was getting better as the year went along. Clippers/Grizzlies was a 4/5 matchup, and that's basically it as far as lower seeds winning. The Thunder nearly blew the first round too. They squeaked out at least 2 of their wins if not 3 depending on your definition. They could've easily lost that series.

This year there just weren't any super high powered offensive teams who played shit defense like those old Suns, Nuggets, and Mavs teams were for years. Mavs sucked and didn't make the playoffs, Suns finished last (both as I predicted before the season started), and the Nuggets turned into more of a defensive team. Now all you're left with are defensive juggernauts and a couple of mid-seed standouts like Clippers and Warriors. The offense-only guys either all live in the east or barely got into the playoffs out west.

Interesting stat though I guess. Defense tends to be more important since you can consistently make an effort there to stay in games more often, whereas big scorers aren't always going to be hitting. Less reliable. Possibly another defensive shift in the league soon?

[boutons_deux]

"Fluke series against Denver?"

no fluke, Nuggs were weak on the road all season, 19-22.

Nuggs didn't win a single game @GSW, true to season form.

Both clips and memphis seeded below DEN had winning road records.