I reading the grant land article right now there's a lot of interesting information in it. I would love to hear from others about it.
Two things that stood out to me:
1. The data said even a team like the Rockets should take more 3s - which is interesting since it takes into account percentages of open versus contested 3s. This is probably one of the stats that I don't think would fly in real life. Open 3s are good since they go in at a pretty decent rate especially from the corner. They also are usually the result of ball movement and attacking the rim (which collapses the defense) which keeps everyone involved and can lead to shots at the rim. I don't see how encouraging below average shooters to shoot 3s can be a formula for winning. Wonder what the argument FOR that strategy could be.
2. I would love to see the Nets defense in comparison to what the computer thinks they should do on defense. The "ghosts" seem to be focused on shutting down layups/dunks, shutting down corner 3s and shutting down open 3s (in that order). Everything else doesn't really matter and the help defense is extremely aggressive in trying to stop these things from happening. Personnel is obviously very important and it's not surprising Miami is the best at it BUT I'd like to see how much better teams would be if they ramped up their aggression on defense. Sure, some teams'll light you up from mid-range or the occasional open 3 but for the most part - you can recover on weak-side non-corner 3s and you can recover on mid-range shots if you aggressively close out.
The problem is (I see it with the Nets all the time) that guys don't trust the help to come. Instead of helping off their man and closing out on a potential lay up or corner 3, players hesitate because they don't know if someone is going to rotate over and defend their guy. It's what really separates a team like Miami and Indy from a team like BKN or GS. I'm guessing this is why teams are more conservative with their philosophies, it's definitely something I'm gona try and pay attention to from now on.
I feel like I see Denver completely embrace these new stats on offense and defense.