Plus/Minus Game 7: Spurs 99, Knicks 81

[FromWayDowntown]

Here are the plus/minus numbers from last night -- some proof for the Brent Barry gang about his importance to this team:

+19 - Barry
+16 - Duncan
+11 - Ginobili
+11 - Parker
+10 - Nesterovic
+9 - Bowen
+9 - Rose
+7 - Udrih
+1 - Horry
-1 - Brown
-2 - Wilks

And the ulative season totals -- the MVP has surged ahead:

+81 - Duncan
+80 - Ginobili
+58 - Nesterovic
+53 - Bowen
+44 - Parker
+20 - Horry
+16 - Barry
+15 - Udrih
+2 - Wilks
+1 - Rose
-6 - Brown
-24 - Massenburg

TEAM OVERALL: +68

[gophergeorge]

Nice... a hockey type stat for us hockey fans!

If this was the NHL... Massenburg would be sent down to the minors!

[SLOVENIAN 8]

Tnx!!

[ducks]

rasho wow

[T Park]

+58 - Nesterovic

But Radosoft sucks. Worst center in the NBA (marcus cryant)

[FromWayDowntown]

Again, you have to take these numbers with a grain of salt. Rasho's plus/minus is good, and he's played well enough at times to say that he's earned some part of that number, but he also happens to spend a lot of time on the floor with Duncan and Ginobili, who are among the most productive players in the league. It probably means something that Pop keeps Rasho in there, but I don't really know how much that means. After all, he had 2 more rebounds than a dead man last night.

[Marcus Bryant]

Exactly.

[T Park]

FWD, of course anything good that is said about Rasho should be immediately debunked.

I mean we are so cursed with such a horrible team.

[Slo spurs fan]

You should count Rashos tips for rebs and his numbers could improve a lot!

[FromWayDowntown]

FWD, of course anything good that is said about Rasho should be immediately debunked.

That's not what I'm saying, TPark. All I'm saying is that plus/minus is an interesting number, but standing alone, it's probably not a great measure of any individual player's worth. If you look at plus/minus in light of other numbers (or in light of known things) you can probably draw some conclusions about player value. For example, I thought Rasho was tremendous last night at contesting shots at the rim, and that did make a difference in the game. He also shot the ball well. So, for last night, those facts probably justify his participation in the team's overall gains while he was on the floor. That said, there are other nights when Rasho DOES NOT play well, yet still has good plus/minus numbers because his teammates cover his deficiencies.

From my observations, that's been true of every Spur, save Duncan and Manu, really.

To an extent, guys like Bowen and Rasho are going to have inflated value from a plus/minus perspective because they are asked to do limited numbers of things, since their teammates can overcome their limitations. That's the great thing about being on a winning team -- role players are made to look better.

Ultimately, to look at any measure and say that it's conclusive proof that a guy is good or great is a risky strategy. I don't offer this number to prove what a guy is worth or whether x is better than y, I just do it because I find it interesting and think that others will. I just caution you about using this number too broadly. It's just more information for people to consider.