there's a lot in the basketball quant movement that's pretty dissatisfying, but near the top of the list is a fundamental misunderstanding of context. there are simply too many variables to model. that doesn't mean you can't try, but it does mean that you shouldn't think you end all arguments with your fancy numbers. of course dunks and layups are shots you want. of course the math says shooting threes is better than shooting twos. but that's because people tend to get those shots when the defense has broken down (i.e., open threes are great). contested threes are not better than open 16 footers...at least not as a recipe for long term success (especially playoff success). insisting upon bad shooters taking threes (a dantoni staple) instead of simply working to get the best shot given a) your personnel and b) the opposition's defensive strategy is lunacy. it can look great (see game 1), but again, the san antonios of the world will beat you. and there's always at least one, and you're going to find them as the playoffs wear on. always. i'm as shocked as anyone at how exactly houston failed this year, but i'm not at all shocked that they did. and just adding more talent isn't going to solve it. it's a flawed philosophy.
Stephen A says there should be an investigation into Harden. Also said 5 Hall of Famers told him Harden quit.
Impressed lol I don't know anything about the guy, and think he's probably a monumental idiot, but when I saw the tweet I remembered it because it got press.
1. Manu is like "How did I not think about that?" 2. That's second time this happened... LOL @ whoever thinks Harden doesn't get preferential treatment. I dare you to find 2 clips of such a foul. Hell, find 1.
What the hell is Stephen A on saying Haren is the heir apparent to Kobe Bryant. I about spit out my drink. I think I just realized/finally felt in one singular moment how all hardcore Bulls/MJ fans feel when people start calling someone the next MJ. Laughable.
Here and there using tricks to get a cheap foul is "veteran savvy" Do it all the time and it's intentional cheating Hard to root for that And why the hell isnt the league fining him for flopping?
this was my point a few pages ago: what harden's doing isn't sporting. i can't fathom how anyone can root for it, and i have no explanation for why the league continues to let themselves get clowned by his antics. they have the power to shut that down and don't. do you really want post players starting to simply jump on a guy's back when they're being fronted, just to force a whistle? that's how you want your game to go? edit: oh, and i'm not complaining at all about the most recent blowout...
D'Antoni is such an overrated coach. We all know he doesn't coach defense, I think the Rockets have an assistant who is a defensive coordinator of sorts. However the fact that he makes no adjustments in a playoff series is inexcusable. He treats a playoffs series the way I treat a boring night at the bar - "it just didn't work out tonight". The amount of times Harden got switched on Aldridge to result in a one on one basket is mind-boggling. Harden quit, but I think it has to be mentioned that his coach pretty much left him out to dry during this series. And that is why I hate D'Antoni. Brilliant on offensive schemes (and only with a very specifically constructed roster), but when considering the game as a whole, he's a hack. Nash broke down on him, Kobe broke down on him, and Harden gave up on him. MDA sucks.
I liked your quote and then recalled that Trev put out an article in Player's Tribune, lobbying for Soften to get MVP. What a cognitive dissonance it must have been for him, and what it is now, having seen a real MVP up close, studying under him... "That's not how Kobe used to do it..."
