NBA Statistics and Information Technology

By: Greg Stitt

• In 2013, NBA and STATS LLC announced expanded partnership to install SportVU in every NBA arena

• Created by Miky Tamir in 2005

• Miky Tamir has a background in missile tracking and advanced optical recognition

• 6 cameras in each arena

• Tracks movements of every player and the basketball

• Captures 25 pictures/second

• Placed high up on catwalks

• 3 cameras on each half

• Delivers report within 90 seconds of a play

• Speed, distance, player separation, ball possession

• This new technology changes the way the game is analyzed

• Numbers/Statistics that don’t show up in traditional box scores

• ex.) • Touches in the paint• Passes per possession• 3 pointers off of kick out passes• Secondary assists

Categories

• Drives• Speed/Distance• Rebounding Opportunities• Touches/Possession• Catch and Shoot• Pull-up• Passing• Defensive Impact• Shooting Efficiency

Drives

• “Any touch that starts at least 20 feet from the hoop and is dribbled within 10 feet of the hoop.”

• Total # of drives, points, assists, and shooting % are calculated

• Excludes fast breaks

Speed/Distance

Rebounding Opportunities

• # of times a player was within the vicinity of a rebound (3.5 feet)

• Total # of rebounds recovered is compared to the amount of chances the player had

• Whether the rebound was contested by an opponent or not

Touches/Possession

• # of times a player touches and possesses the ball

• Where the touch occurred• How long the ball was possessed for• Total # of points, assists, turnovers

Catch and Shoot

• “Any jump shot outside of 10 feet where a player possessed the ball for less than 2 seconds without taking a dribble.”

Pull-Up

• “Any jump shot outside of 10 feet where a player took one or more dribbles prior to shooting.”

Passing

• Total # of passes a player makes and the scoring opportunities from those passes

• Whether pass led to a scoring opportunity or free throws

• If the pass set up an assist for another teammate

Defensive Impact

• Blocks• Steals• Protecting the rim

• Protecting the rim is based on FG% of an opponent when the defender is within 5 feet of the basket

Shooting Efficiency

• Measure shooting % for drives, close shots, catch and shoots, pull-ups, and 3 pointers

• Accounts for amount of time remaining on shot clock

• Calculates how far away the defender was on the shot

• Detailed Statistics very beneficial to managers, coaches, players

• Data can be collected to study and analyze specific plays involving more than one player

• Pick and Roll

Helps Players• SportVU tracks arc on every type of shot,

regardless of whether it’s made or missed

• Avg. speed along with the point in time of the game can help players determine when they start to fatigue and their fitness levels

Beneficial to Consumers

• “Who’s better?”

• “Should Jeremy Lin should play more?”

• “Is John Wall faster than LeBron James?”

“Should Russell Westbrook Shoot Less?”

• Kevin Durant just named MVP of 2013-2014 season

• I believe he should be getting the ball more and take more shots than he has been

• In-Depth Playoff statistics will help me prove my point

Playoffs 2014 Westbrook vs Durant

Westbrook

• 90.3 touches per game

• 0.29 points per touch

• 18.8% off Catch and Shoot

Durant

• 71.3 touches per game

• 0.41 points per touch

• 45.5% off Catch and Shoot

Steve Hellmuth Quote

• NBA Executive Vice President of Operations and Technology

• “We are a league driven by data, and our expanded partnership with STATS provides our teams and fans with access to uncover groundbreaking statistics. In this new era of statistical information, SportVU will be an invaluable resource for basketball executives and our passionate fans.”