USA: TOO MUCH LOVE FOR NUMBERS?
Charley Rosen, an author and long-time friend of Lakers coach Phil Jackson, just posted his thoughts on why USA Basketball has failed to meet expectations in recent years. One of the main reasons? Our apparent infatuation with statistics and the ball-centric nature of the NBA game.
“The trouble is that all of the basketball numbers (except for games and minutes played, and sometimes personal fouls) are only concerned with what happens when a player is in the immediate proximity of the basketball. No wonder that so many NBAers and NBA-watchers are totally mesmerized by the ball. That’s precisely why American hoopers have such brilliant ball-skills and excel in one-on-one and two-on-two situations.
Too bad, though, because basketball is a team game and there are 10 players on the court and only one basketball. The upshot is that too many American players do not know how (and don’t care) to play without the ball. Defense is too often defined in terms of blocked shots (which often means being a sucker for head fakes) and steals (which often means taking reckless gambles). And this inability and/or unwillingness to play outside of the spotlight is the most significant difference between the various incarnations of Team USA and their world-wide opponents.”
His thoughts aren’t just limited to Team USA, but NBA and NCAA basketball. Though he doesn’t mention it, you could make the argument (if you agree with the argument) that the culture he describes spreads all the way down to the elementary school level.
What do you think? Is he on the ball with this one? Or is Rosen (who in the past hasn’t been exactly been a fan of the Wizards) completely off his rocker? Are you happy with the state of basketball, NBA or otherwise, in this country?
Posted: August 13th, 2007 under USA Basketball.
Comments
Comment from neal
Time August 13, 2007 at 1:49 PM
I think he’s right on. In general. There are some exceptions, but only one or two play for the Wiz.
Comment from Tom Mandel
Time August 13, 2007 at 5:46 PM
Once again the blog munched my comment — happens mostly if I put in a link in href form. Annoying, as I said something pretty right on 
Comment from WizardsDotCom
Time August 13, 2007 at 10:23 PM
TM - I don’t even see anything in moderation from you. You and the blog must be in some sort of tabloid-esque feud…. 
Comment from Tom Mandel
Time August 14, 2007 at 12:42 PM
1) shooting efficiency (not number of points, but shooting %), 2) rebounding, 3) steals, and 4) lack of turnovers are what makes a player valuable in the league.
Comment from Tom Mandel
Time August 14, 2007 at 12:47 PM
It’s the blog, not me — I’ve just tried to break up my analysis; it took the first part then didn’t take the rest. Now, it’ll take this.
Comment from Tom Mandel
Time August 14, 2007 at 12:50 PM
Note that it’s not high *scoring* but *efficiency* that makes you a valuable player. Gilbert is good, but like AI he is *not* a superstar; he can’t take you to a title. Why? Because he is not an efficient shooter, and he doesn’t add much from his other numbers.
I love Gilbert — these are just facts about how you win titles. You win them w/ superstars.
Comment from Tom Mandel
Time August 14, 2007 at 12:52 PM
Dave Berri’s blog (just google to find it) gets far into this kind of analysis, and he is the co-author of “The Wages of Wins” a book about the economic analysis of sports performance that explains the whole thing.
Comment from Tom Mandel
Time August 14, 2007 at 12:53 PM
So, why doesn’t bball usa do well? Because the team is full of scorers — not efficient shooters but scorers. There is only one basketball, so that doesn’t work.
Comment from Tom Mandel
Time August 14, 2007 at 12:57 PM
Here is where you can read about their models for player performance:
http://dberri.wordpress.com/2006/05/21/simple-models-of-player-performance/
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Comment from Nara
Time August 13, 2007 at 11:49 AM
I think there’s legitimacy in his words. Even as a kid playing ball, I always played better in 1v1 2v2 and 3v3. I was much better one on one player than a overall basketball player. It wasn’t until I got to GaTech that I learned to play defense without trying to knock the ball loose or to move without the ball and that was fairly out of chance that I started balling with people who played a certain way.