SWC75
Bored Historian
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- Aug 26, 2011
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For the last several years I’ve been making monthly posts for baseball keeping track of who is leading each league in base production, (total batting bases +walks + steals) and run production, (runs scored + runs batted in minus home runs so they don’t get counted twice). I’ve also used those stats for my series on the history of the sport to identify the most historically productive players. I’m going to be starting a similar series for basketball soon and I thought I’d start doing monthly NBA posts using my “net points” formula: points + rebounds +assists + steals + blocks – missed field goals –missed free throws – turnovers – fouls. Since we don’t have two leagues, I’ll keep track of the top 25 players. I’ve also decided to break out the players averages per 48 minutes of play, (the length of an NBA game).
Players don’t actually average 48 minutes per game, (BasketballReference.com keeps track of averages per 36 minutes as that’s closer to what a star player will average). But they could play that much in a tight game. These numbers represent what they are capable of doing when their team really needs them to produce. The players are ranked based on total net points. The averages are just a breakdown of their individual skills. I do show the NP per 40 minutes at the end of each line but I’ll ranked them based on the total NP because that’s not a projection based on a rate of production..
Here is a breakdown of what I’ve typed in each case with LeBron James in October as an example: LeBron played 7 games and 259 minutes in those games, an average of 37.0 minutes per game (m). He scored 172 points (p), grabbed 52 rebounds (r ), passed for 60 assists (a), stole 7 balls (s) and blocked 8 shots (b). He attempted 116 field goals and made 68, so he missed 48 (mfg). He attempted 32 free throws and made 25, missing 7 (mft). He had 28 turnovers (to) and 11 personal fouls (pf). I add the positives and subtract the negatives to get 397 net points. I divide 48 by the 539 minutes and multiply each stat by the result. I come up with this:
LeBron James CLE 37.0m 31.9p 9.6r 11.1a 1.3s 1.5b 8.9mfg 1.3mft 5.2to 2.0pf 205NP (38.0)
AFTER FEBRUARY
LeBron James CLE………….37.1m 34.5p 10.8r 11.6a 2.0s 1.2b 11.1mfg 2.0mft 5.6to 2.1pf 1824NP (39.3)
Anthony Davis NO…………36.7m 36.7p 14.5r 3.1a 1.9s 2.9b 11.6mfg 1.9mft 2.8to 2.7pf 1668NP (39.7)
G. Antetokounmopo MIL.37.1m 35.2p 13.2r 6.3a 1.9s 1.8b 11.4mfg 2.8mft 3.7to 3.9pf 1611NP (36.5)
Russell Westbrook OKC….36.2m 33.0p 12.7r 13.7a 2.6s 0.3b 15.7mfg 2.3mft 6.3to 3.1pf 1597NP (34.7)
Karl-Anthony Towns MIN 35.2m 26.8p 16.7r 3.3a 1.1s 2.0b 8.5mfg 0.9mft 2.7to 4.6pf 1559NP (33.2)
James Harden HOU……….35.7m 42.0p 6.9r 11.9a 1.1s 0.9b 15.2mfg 1.8mft 5.8to 3.3pf 1531NP (38.1)
Andre Drummond DET….33.3m 21.8p 22.8r 5.0a 2.3s 2.3b 7.6mfg 2.6mft 3.8to 4.6pf 1452NP (35.5)
Kevin Durant GS….…………34.4m 36.3p 9.4r 7.6a 1.1s 2.6b 11.6mfg 0.9mft 4.2to 2.8pf 1445NP (37.3)
Jimmy Butler MIN………….37.1m 28.7p 7.0r 6.4a 2.5s 0.5b 10.7mfg 1.2mft 2.4to 1.7pf 1263NP (29.2)
DeMarcus Cousins NO…. 36.2m 33.4p 17.1r 7.1a 2.2s 2.1b 12.7mfg 2.8mft 6.7to 5.1pf 1256NP (34.7)
Damian Lillard POR…………36.5m 34.6p 6.0r 8.6a 1.4s 0.5b 13.8mfg 0.7mft 4.1to 2.2pf 1243NP (30.3)
LeMarcus Aldridge SA…….33.6m 32.1p 11.7r 2.9a 0.8s 1.7b 12.6mfg 1.2mft 2.1to 3.2pf 1202NP (30.1)
Kyrie Irving BOS……………..32.5m 36.8p 5.5r 7.5a 1.6s 0.4b 13.8mfg 0.7mft 3.4to 3.0pf 1192NP (30.9)
Steph Curry GS……………….32.9m 38.9p 7.6r 9.4a 2.3s 0.2b 12.8mfg 0.7mft 4.6to 3.4pf 1188NP (36.9)
DeMar DeRozan TOR……..34.0m 27.9p 5.6r 7.3a 1.7s 0.4b 13.7mfg 1.7mft 3.2to 2.5pf 1164NP (27.4)
Ben Simmons PHI…………..34.8m 22.9p 10.6r 10.2a 2.5s 1.2b 8.5mfg 2.7mft 5.0to 3.7pf 1154NP (27.4)
Bradley Beal WAS…………..36.4m 30.9p 5.9r 5.9a 1.6s 0.6b 13.2mfg 1.3mft 3.4to 2.5pf 1153NP (24.5)
DeAndre Jordan LAC ………31.9m 17.5p 22.4r 2.1a 0.9s 1.5b 3.8mfg 2.1mft 2.7to 4.2pf 1152NP (31.5)
Victor Oladipo IND………….34.3m 33.7p 7.5r 5.9a 3.1s 1.1b 13.4mfg 1.4mft 4.0to 3.3pf 1150NP (29.3)
Kemba Walker CHA…………34.7m 31.9p 4.5r 8.0a 1.7s 0.5b 13.9mfg 1.1mft 3.1to 1.9pf 1148NP (26.5)
Clint Capella HOU……………27.4m 25.6p 19.4r 1.7a 1.3s 3.2b 5.7mfg 2.6mft 2.6to 4.6pf 1120NP (35.6)
Dwight Howard CHAR……..30.6m 24.9p 19.4r 2.1a 1.0s 2.6b 7.7mfg 4.9mft 4.3to 5.0pf 1118NP (28.3)
Joel Embid PHI…………………31.3m 36.6p 17.0r 4.9a 1.1s 2.7b 13.3mfg 2.6mft 5.9to 5.2pf 1108NP (35.4)
Jrue HolidayNO………………..36.8m 25.1p 5.8r 7.2a 1.9s 0.9b 10.1mfg 0.9mft 3.3to 3.1pf 1095NP (23.4)
Enes Kantor NYK………………25.8m 26.3p 19.8r 2.8a 0.9s 1.0b 7.4mfg 0.6mft 3.3to 4.7pf 1080NP (34.6)
Comments: LeBron James is having one of his best personal seasons at age 33. But you wonder who will take his place as the best player in the game in the next few years. A lot of people like Antetokounmopo but my money is on Davis. I still remember when we thought we had the inside track on recruiting him. If we’d had Anthony on the 2012 team, we’d have run the table, wire to wire. Westbrook puts up some amazing numbers for a player of his size but he turns the ball over a bit too much. I guess he has to try to do too much on his also-ran team to try to keep up with the Rockets and the Warriors. Harden is a truly prolific scorer but like Westbrook, he misses an awful lot of shots.
Ex-SU Players
Carmelo Anthony OKC…….32.4m 25.1p 8.8r 2.0a 0.9s 0.9b 13.7mfg 0.9mft 1.9to 3.9pf 700NP (17.3)
Jerami Grant OKC……………20.6m 18.3p 9.4r 1.7a 0.9s 2.0b 6.4mfg 2.2mft 1.7to 4.5pf 466NP (17.5)
Wes Johnson LAC…………….22.3m 13.1p 7.2r 1.9a 2.6s 2.1b 7.2mfg 0.5mmft 1.9to 4.8pf 320NP (12.5)
Dion Waiters MIA……………30.6m 22.4p 4.0r 5.9a 1.2s 0.5b 12.9mfg 0.9mft 3.7to 3.2pf 255NP (13.3)
M Carter-Williams CHA….. 15.9m 14.0p 7.9r 6.9a 2.5s 1.4b 8.6mfg 0.8mft 3.1to 5.9pf 237NP (14.3)
Tyler Ennis LAL…………………10.6m 14.0p 6.4r 7.4a 1.8s 0.6b 10.0mfg 0.6mft 2.1to 6.2pf 90NP (11.3)
Malachi Richardson SAC…. 12.5m 13.2p 5.0r 1.9a 1.5s 0.1b 8.9mfg 0.7mft 1.5to 4.0pf 45NP (6.7)
Tyler Lydon DEN……………….Played 2 minutes in one game and had no other statistics.
Comment: The days when Carmelo Anthony was the best former SU player in the league may be winding down. Who is his heir apparent? It might be grant or it might be Waiters, who has missed much the season with an injury. Neither is likely to have the career Carmelo has had. The next SU player to reach that level hasn’t arrived here yet.
Players don’t actually average 48 minutes per game, (BasketballReference.com keeps track of averages per 36 minutes as that’s closer to what a star player will average). But they could play that much in a tight game. These numbers represent what they are capable of doing when their team really needs them to produce. The players are ranked based on total net points. The averages are just a breakdown of their individual skills. I do show the NP per 40 minutes at the end of each line but I’ll ranked them based on the total NP because that’s not a projection based on a rate of production..
Here is a breakdown of what I’ve typed in each case with LeBron James in October as an example: LeBron played 7 games and 259 minutes in those games, an average of 37.0 minutes per game (m). He scored 172 points (p), grabbed 52 rebounds (r ), passed for 60 assists (a), stole 7 balls (s) and blocked 8 shots (b). He attempted 116 field goals and made 68, so he missed 48 (mfg). He attempted 32 free throws and made 25, missing 7 (mft). He had 28 turnovers (to) and 11 personal fouls (pf). I add the positives and subtract the negatives to get 397 net points. I divide 48 by the 539 minutes and multiply each stat by the result. I come up with this:
LeBron James CLE 37.0m 31.9p 9.6r 11.1a 1.3s 1.5b 8.9mfg 1.3mft 5.2to 2.0pf 205NP (38.0)
AFTER FEBRUARY
LeBron James CLE………….37.1m 34.5p 10.8r 11.6a 2.0s 1.2b 11.1mfg 2.0mft 5.6to 2.1pf 1824NP (39.3)
Anthony Davis NO…………36.7m 36.7p 14.5r 3.1a 1.9s 2.9b 11.6mfg 1.9mft 2.8to 2.7pf 1668NP (39.7)
G. Antetokounmopo MIL.37.1m 35.2p 13.2r 6.3a 1.9s 1.8b 11.4mfg 2.8mft 3.7to 3.9pf 1611NP (36.5)
Russell Westbrook OKC….36.2m 33.0p 12.7r 13.7a 2.6s 0.3b 15.7mfg 2.3mft 6.3to 3.1pf 1597NP (34.7)
Karl-Anthony Towns MIN 35.2m 26.8p 16.7r 3.3a 1.1s 2.0b 8.5mfg 0.9mft 2.7to 4.6pf 1559NP (33.2)
James Harden HOU……….35.7m 42.0p 6.9r 11.9a 1.1s 0.9b 15.2mfg 1.8mft 5.8to 3.3pf 1531NP (38.1)
Andre Drummond DET….33.3m 21.8p 22.8r 5.0a 2.3s 2.3b 7.6mfg 2.6mft 3.8to 4.6pf 1452NP (35.5)
Kevin Durant GS….…………34.4m 36.3p 9.4r 7.6a 1.1s 2.6b 11.6mfg 0.9mft 4.2to 2.8pf 1445NP (37.3)
Jimmy Butler MIN………….37.1m 28.7p 7.0r 6.4a 2.5s 0.5b 10.7mfg 1.2mft 2.4to 1.7pf 1263NP (29.2)
DeMarcus Cousins NO…. 36.2m 33.4p 17.1r 7.1a 2.2s 2.1b 12.7mfg 2.8mft 6.7to 5.1pf 1256NP (34.7)
Damian Lillard POR…………36.5m 34.6p 6.0r 8.6a 1.4s 0.5b 13.8mfg 0.7mft 4.1to 2.2pf 1243NP (30.3)
LeMarcus Aldridge SA…….33.6m 32.1p 11.7r 2.9a 0.8s 1.7b 12.6mfg 1.2mft 2.1to 3.2pf 1202NP (30.1)
Kyrie Irving BOS……………..32.5m 36.8p 5.5r 7.5a 1.6s 0.4b 13.8mfg 0.7mft 3.4to 3.0pf 1192NP (30.9)
Steph Curry GS……………….32.9m 38.9p 7.6r 9.4a 2.3s 0.2b 12.8mfg 0.7mft 4.6to 3.4pf 1188NP (36.9)
DeMar DeRozan TOR……..34.0m 27.9p 5.6r 7.3a 1.7s 0.4b 13.7mfg 1.7mft 3.2to 2.5pf 1164NP (27.4)
Ben Simmons PHI…………..34.8m 22.9p 10.6r 10.2a 2.5s 1.2b 8.5mfg 2.7mft 5.0to 3.7pf 1154NP (27.4)
Bradley Beal WAS…………..36.4m 30.9p 5.9r 5.9a 1.6s 0.6b 13.2mfg 1.3mft 3.4to 2.5pf 1153NP (24.5)
DeAndre Jordan LAC ………31.9m 17.5p 22.4r 2.1a 0.9s 1.5b 3.8mfg 2.1mft 2.7to 4.2pf 1152NP (31.5)
Victor Oladipo IND………….34.3m 33.7p 7.5r 5.9a 3.1s 1.1b 13.4mfg 1.4mft 4.0to 3.3pf 1150NP (29.3)
Kemba Walker CHA…………34.7m 31.9p 4.5r 8.0a 1.7s 0.5b 13.9mfg 1.1mft 3.1to 1.9pf 1148NP (26.5)
Clint Capella HOU……………27.4m 25.6p 19.4r 1.7a 1.3s 3.2b 5.7mfg 2.6mft 2.6to 4.6pf 1120NP (35.6)
Dwight Howard CHAR……..30.6m 24.9p 19.4r 2.1a 1.0s 2.6b 7.7mfg 4.9mft 4.3to 5.0pf 1118NP (28.3)
Joel Embid PHI…………………31.3m 36.6p 17.0r 4.9a 1.1s 2.7b 13.3mfg 2.6mft 5.9to 5.2pf 1108NP (35.4)
Jrue HolidayNO………………..36.8m 25.1p 5.8r 7.2a 1.9s 0.9b 10.1mfg 0.9mft 3.3to 3.1pf 1095NP (23.4)
Enes Kantor NYK………………25.8m 26.3p 19.8r 2.8a 0.9s 1.0b 7.4mfg 0.6mft 3.3to 4.7pf 1080NP (34.6)
Comments: LeBron James is having one of his best personal seasons at age 33. But you wonder who will take his place as the best player in the game in the next few years. A lot of people like Antetokounmopo but my money is on Davis. I still remember when we thought we had the inside track on recruiting him. If we’d had Anthony on the 2012 team, we’d have run the table, wire to wire. Westbrook puts up some amazing numbers for a player of his size but he turns the ball over a bit too much. I guess he has to try to do too much on his also-ran team to try to keep up with the Rockets and the Warriors. Harden is a truly prolific scorer but like Westbrook, he misses an awful lot of shots.
Ex-SU Players
Carmelo Anthony OKC…….32.4m 25.1p 8.8r 2.0a 0.9s 0.9b 13.7mfg 0.9mft 1.9to 3.9pf 700NP (17.3)
Jerami Grant OKC……………20.6m 18.3p 9.4r 1.7a 0.9s 2.0b 6.4mfg 2.2mft 1.7to 4.5pf 466NP (17.5)
Wes Johnson LAC…………….22.3m 13.1p 7.2r 1.9a 2.6s 2.1b 7.2mfg 0.5mmft 1.9to 4.8pf 320NP (12.5)
Dion Waiters MIA……………30.6m 22.4p 4.0r 5.9a 1.2s 0.5b 12.9mfg 0.9mft 3.7to 3.2pf 255NP (13.3)
M Carter-Williams CHA….. 15.9m 14.0p 7.9r 6.9a 2.5s 1.4b 8.6mfg 0.8mft 3.1to 5.9pf 237NP (14.3)
Tyler Ennis LAL…………………10.6m 14.0p 6.4r 7.4a 1.8s 0.6b 10.0mfg 0.6mft 2.1to 6.2pf 90NP (11.3)
Malachi Richardson SAC…. 12.5m 13.2p 5.0r 1.9a 1.5s 0.1b 8.9mfg 0.7mft 1.5to 4.0pf 45NP (6.7)
Tyler Lydon DEN……………….Played 2 minutes in one game and had no other statistics.
Comment: The days when Carmelo Anthony was the best former SU player in the league may be winding down. Who is his heir apparent? It might be grant or it might be Waiters, who has missed much the season with an injury. Neither is likely to have the career Carmelo has had. The next SU player to reach that level hasn’t arrived here yet.