Just for Fun

01/09/05 Now that I'm in the Show
Things I am learning to help me survive a full NBA season as a statistical consultant.
12/09/04 Gone to the Show
After 17 years of research, 6 years of scouting and coaching, and 8 years on this site, I landed myself a job in the NBA. I've been working with the Seattle Supersonics since before 2004 Training Camp. The science has been incorporated and, along with numerous other factors, it has helped us win this year.
03/09/99 Review of Playing in a New League
With the demise of the ABL, there should be a time capsule containing items to remember it by. One item that can go into that time capsule is this book by Sara Gogol.
01/13/98 Guide to '98 All-Star Voting
The ballots, the players, the pros, the cons, the lizards and the frogs.
12/21/97 Yes, Virginia, There is a Hot Hand
A thousand years from now, nay, ten times ten thousand years from now, the Hot Hand will continue to make glad the heart of basketball fans... Evidence that a hot hand can exist even if past tests haven't found it. .
09/03/97 Hero Worship: I Am Not Paparazzi
I never thought it would happen, but Princess Diana made it into my column. Her recent death actually makes a point about the way I think about basketball.
08/06/97 The Net Hall of Fame Poll
This is an opportunity for you to vote for the NBA Hall of Fame members. Vote early, vote often, but Nate Smith, the person who runs the poll, will only count your vote once.
07/05/97 The First Diaper Rash
The WNBA has been publicizing everything from its first dive into the crowd to the first player ever introduced. They went a bit too far with this... Also includes a look at the best teams and players so far.
06/22/97 Is it About Basketball or About Women?
My policy on dealing with the WNBA. Includes a look at the surprises and disappointments of the very first WNBA regular season game.
06/08/97 Every Shot to Win
Relive every play the Jazz and the Bulls ran in the fourth quarter of the classic Game 4 of the Finals.
06/04/97 MVP ... Other Than Jordan
Michael Jordan has been the best player in the league for a long time and 1997 was no different. Karl Malone had a pretty good year himself. These are the individual win-loss records for all the candidates.
06/01/97 Simulating the Finals
I asked Bob Chaikin, consultant to the Miami Heat, to run a simulation of the 1997 NBA Finals. A simulation is just one possible way it could come out, so I also had him do a best estimate. Also includes my numbers on the most likely Finals outcome.
05/11/97 The Heat is on Miami and Mashburn
Miami supposedly acquired Jamal Mashburn to make its title shot better. But Mashburn's shot isn't all that great. That is one reason why Miami struggled against New York in their 1997 playoff matchup.
04/24/97 Mission Impossibull: Beating the Bulls
An animated preview of what it takes to beat the Bulls this year (if you do not have a javascript-capable browser, you are out of luck). Also includes a playoff preview.
04/10/97 The Raw Rookie Class
The promise of youth sparks our interest in the rookies and inspires us to choose our Rookie of the Year. Unfortunately, so many of the rookies are not improving and some of these guys will grow up to be just like Harold Miner.
03/28/97 Calculating Tournament Odds
This article is primarily by Gil Graybill, who used a statistical method to estimate the chances that a #16 seed would win the NCAA Tournament.
03/27/97 Allen Iverson: Special and Soon-To-Be Super
This Philadelphia rookie is not Michael Jordan, as we like to label every new hotshot guard, but he has talents that will make this most exciting of NBA players one of the league's best.
03/20/97 Hoop Shorts 3/20/97
The secret of Minnesota's success and what the Sacramento Kings owner is doing to his fans.
03/12/97 Life Is Unfair...Then It Changes
Try as we might to make sports more fair than the world that we live in, they are still inherently unfair. The best team doesn't always win and the bad teams often just get worse. But that is what makes it all so much fun.
03/05/97 How Slow Can You Go?
The Cleveland Cavaliers recently beat the Chicago Bulls by getting an early lead and keeping the game slow. Playoff teams should take note -- the strategy helps. This is an interactive article with a technical component, but it should be "fun".
02/27/97 Tyra Banks! Tyra Banks!
The Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition is out. Somehow I have to compete with that. Here is my best attempt.... A look at the best point guards in the league, the New Jersey-Dallas trade.
01/22/97 Basketball's Glass Ceiling
I've watched women's basketball for six years. Now I'm watching it go pro. It's a great opportunity for women to succeed and an even better opportunity for me to stick my foot in my mouth.
12/25/96 Christmas Morning at 5 am
As someone who always wakes up early on Christmas, I had to find something to do until the rest of my family decided to get up and open presents. So I found some of my notes on Dennis Rodman, Kerry Kittles, Rasheed Wallace, Charles Barkley, basketball advertising, and biased referees.
12/18/96 The Death of the Hot Hand
There was a famous study of whether basketball players really get "hot" and "cold". This article looks at that study and lets you try to pick out streaks.
12/11/96 You Don't Know Shaq!
Shaquille O'Neal takes heat for being just a dunker, for not hitting his free throws, and for not being focused. But he still has the richest long term contract in basketball. Take this little test to find out why.
12/04/96 The JordanNet
Some of the best or most unique sites relating to the world's most famous athlete.
11/16/96 Can the Chicago Bulls Be Perfect?
Michael Jordan stated that he wanted to have "the perfect season". These were there odds... This has been updated to include their odds of winning 75 along with looks at Houston and Seattle, two teams with good records... Includes result showing that blowing a team out can actually make the Bulls look worse.
11/02/96 The Effect of Bad Referees
Finally I've figured out how to do it. Now I know how to strike back at the refs, to let them know how they can change the odds of winning or losing if they are doing a bad job. I finally figured out what it means for a ref to do a bad job.
07/17/96 Dreamin' of the Dream Team
What happens when you get chosen to play with the Dream Team?
06/17/96 Strike Up the Accordion! It's Party Time in Chicago!
The Bulls were the oldest team in the league, the biggest, the most experienced, the second tallest, and easily the best.
03/04/96 I modified an article from the Basketball Hoopla about whether centers are really necessary for winning.
02/05/96 Jordan vs Olajuwon: Who's Better? Using a Scientific Method
The beginning is fun and one of the most popular readings at this site. The rest is an explanation of the methods.
01/08/96 Basketball Rah-Rah
Scientific reasons why the game is exciting, as though we needed them.
01/08/96 How Often Do Teams Get Lucky?
Some of those quality wins may be luck, probably more than you think.
--/--/90 Individual Floor Percentage
An elementary introduction to the concept of efficient offensive players, not just those that score a lot. Uses numerous players to illustrate its value. Shows Karl Malone's breakthrough year numbers.
--/--/90 Analyzing Players and Offenses With Floor Percentage
A second column illustrating how floor percentage can be used to evaluate players and design offenses.