| 26 October 2009
Rifling through stats from the NBA pre-season is a bit like being an archivist in a dusty basement - just keep turning pages until you find something useful. And - yes siree - we have found another nugget.
We're not talking Denver and Chauncey Billups - we're talking hardcore proof that rebounds aren't the center of the universe when it comes to predicting NBA outcomes. Yes - that's right - we have evidence that backs up our Boards Aren't All theme. And we're going to make it available in a nice neat package - just like that chicken in a KFC bucket.
So all you cranky folks in Suns fandom who are troubled by the our team's lack of rebounding prowess so far need to take a breath. Yes, just exhale and read on.
Please click "Read More" to continue reading--
To go even further with food analogies - the proof is in the pudding. And our look at the numbers starts in LA.No, not the dreaded LA Lakers - but their lesser brothers - the Clippers. A team with a reputation for wreckage on the court, the Clippers caught everyone by surprise this pre-season by going 6 - 2, one of the top records in the Western Conference. And they did it by hitting a brilliant 50.2% from the field - a stunning number that left them at the top of the Pacific Division.
Another high flyer during the 8-game pre-season was Utah and they led the Northwest Division by also going 6 - 2. Just like the Clippers - they led their division in field goal percentage - and in Utah's case that meant nailing 48.7% of all their attempts. And the Orlando Magic - the only NBA crew with a perfect pre-season record - were shining on the court by nailing 49.3% of everything they threw at the rim.
So what's it all mean dear readers?
Well looking at our last post, we see that rebounding numbers - simply said - don't correspond neatly with pre-season wins. Instead, that old RPG was a fairly lame misleading indicator. Just look at the Clippers being 23rd in rebounding and the Utah Jazz being only 27th while they both had impressive 6 - 2 records.
Instead - a team's shooting percentage is much more revealing. So, while we shouldn't turn our backs on easy boards, loyal Suns fans shouldn't be melting down over the dearth of 'bounds.
Get with the program fella's - the boards aren't all!!!
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