Reading for the Stats Nerds: Mathletics

[GKC]

So I just finished reading the basketball section of "Mathletics" by Wayne Winston.

Small intro about Wayne L. Winston. He's the head of the Dallas Mavericks analytic team, and recently was one of the main reasons for the bid debate on whether or not Durant was good (he says Durant's defense is terrible, but doesn't outrule that it could become better).

I'm a big stats junkie, especially judging from most of my posts. For any stats junkie's like me, this book is a must read. There are a lot of personal rating systems, debunking other rating systems, as well as team lineup analysis.

Small topics for people who want to read it;
- Why Kevin Garnett was the greatest defender of the decade (and on average the greatest player of the decade)
- Why John Hollinger's PER is very flawed (one of my personal favourites. Turns out bad volume shooters such as Jamaal Crawford will increase their PER just by shooting MORE).
- How to prove players like Bowen, Battier and KC Jones (!) are great despite not having box score stats.
- Did Tony Parker deserve a finals MVP? (hint: the answer is no)
- Did Tim Donaghy actually fix box scores?
- Down 2 with the clock winding down, do you shoot a 2 or a 3?(the answer is almost always a 3)
- Does a draft and a salary cap actually create parity for the NFL and the NBA?

Now granted, I actually find some of the Baseball and Football sections a lot more interesting, as they deal a lot more with strategy (ie is it better to Run or Throw on a first down), than simply player and lineup ratings, though it is a great read, and I suggest stat heads to pick it up.