Of Richard, Bryan, Malcolm, David and Kenny
Sunday, October 25th, 2009For the benefit of Raptors fans everywhere …
The Toronto Raptors and the Stats Revolution
“I remember once having a conversation with a top executive with the Toronto Raptors. I asked her about the stats revolution in basketball and she just kind of shrugged and said, ‘It’s interesting, and we look at those things, but you have to understand that for our purposes, it’s all [about] character.’ The thing that separates players is that some have a work ethic, some don’t; some are coachable, some aren’t; some party all night, some go to bed early. From her standpoint, it’s all those intangibles.”
- Malcolm Gladwell
In reading this quote we have to remember… the Raptors have never won more than 47 games in a season, and have only advanced past the first round of the playoffs once. Perhaps (just perhaps) there is more to player analysis than focusing on the ‘intangibles.’
One last observation… once upon a time I noted that the owner of the Raptors tried to get his general manager in basketball to read The Wages of Wins. Maybe he will have more luck assigning our second book (am I being too snarky? Sorry about that).
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as well as Misters Peddie, Colangelo, Gladwell and Berri …
The best in any field of activity “learn and know” how to use their own judgment when making decisions in specific situations and, if/when necessary, to combine THAT ability with the proper use of situational stats to confirm what their eyes and feel are already telling them is the right/best way to proceed.
It’s irrelevant whether this best person is Michael Jordan, Michaelangelo, Bill Gates, Bill Walsh, Warren Spahn or Warren Buffet [etc.].
The key difference between “the best” and “everybody else” is … exactly as Kenny Rogers/The Gambler once proclaimed … “knowing what to throw away and knowing what to keep, cause every hand’s a winner and every hand’s a loser, and the best that you can hope for is to die in your sleep.”
The fact is …
1. If all you know is, “How to make ‘the percentage play’, each and every time”, you will most assuredly finish empty-handed; while,
2. If all you know is, “How to ‘play by feel’, each and every time”, you will most assuredly finish empty-handed, as well.
It’s not one or the other but being able to pick your spots with accuracy.
Cheers 
Related:
NBA dives headlong into new era of statistical analysis
PS. Unfortunately, there are dire consequences associated with diving head first into a shallow pool.
