Whose Defense Creates the Most Offense
by Scott Sereday
48 Minutes of

There’s a common saying in football that the best defense is a good offense. In basketball, it might be more appropriate to say that a good defense can create good offense. Great ball pressure or playing the passing lanes can often lead to turnovers that can, in turn, lead to fast breaks and easy buckets.

The Spurs have long been known as one of the best defensive teams (of all time), but their style of physical defensive play doesn’t necessarily lend itself to steals and easy offensive possessions. In recent years, the trend has gotten worse. The following is a list of the NBA teams in 2009/10 sorted by the number of steals “converted.” (I defined converted as scoring a close basket or free throw within 6 or fewer seconds of the steal.)

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