I love basketball for the poetry of the game, the narratives of the players, and the advanced stats. I'm very guilty of using advanced stats to contest other people's eye tests. Russell Westbrook is easily the worst great player in NBA history. And LeBron James is easily the most clutch playoff performer in NBA history. But I also believe that the analytics stats have seriously harmed the game by making the three-point shot more valuable than any other. So, yeah, I'll take the mid-range two over the corner three.
Really excellent defense of the "eye test" and the "casual." I really do think that some of this whole stats obsession comes from two things that are making sports fandom worse (or at least more annoying): 1) hyper identification with executives over players. Young men watched Moneyball and played so much 2k that they have fetishized the idea of being one of the suits because imagining yourself as being athletic enough to be a professional athlete is "childish" (it is, but so is pretending to be the "boss") 2) sports gambling going nuclear and being a central part of everything in sports. Now these same guys that think they are smarter than everyone around them need to find some statistical justification for their daily bets. These bets are constantly blasted even on the broadcasts themselves as if they are an interesting narrative. But take a step back, sure lots of narratives within the sport are contrived or forced, but celebrity gossip and teams being symbols (like how the Celtics as an institution are a crime against humanity as a whole) give the sport meaning that boring recitations on if Anfernee Simons hit the over on Steals could never bring. These guys are supposed to be big figures we attach meaning too outside of how they can literally bring us/lose us money. I'll never forget crying as I watched Corey Brewer, Al Horford, and Joakim Noah beat my favorite Bruins team (Aaron Afflalo, Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, and Jordan Farmar <3) in the national championship, I guess formative memories now can be that time 5 players you don't care about all coincidently had the same stats you predicted.
I guess the thing about the not-quite-real battle between data and the eye test is that the eye test, particularly the version that you beautifully lay out, has won. All of the talking heads on ESPN and the rest of the highest paid, most conventionally successful sports mouths are people who claim some insight based on their own, uniquely experienced eyes
This is beautiful and I loved it!! This will sound weird but my three somehow-braided-together obsessions of last six or so months are seals, islands, and basketball..! I'm Irish and went home for the first time in a long time in August and had an encounter not unlike yours with a seal when staying on Corca Dhuibhne so the seal thing kind of makes sense and the island thing does too as anyone who grew up on a island knows but the basketball thing has come out of left field. I'm renowned in my (sporty) family for my dislike of anything sports-related. But now I'm obsessed and honestly it's such a gift to come across your work 😊 Thank you so much for sharing. P.S. Saw the Raps v Celtics on Wednesday here in Toronto, was obv cheering for the Raps but seeing Tatum playing in the flesh was something to behold (corny but true, like "poetry in motion"). Okay, sorry for the rambling!
“I don’t know who coined the concept of the “eye test” in basketball, but I have not known peace since it happened.” made me do an involuntary spit take 👏👏👏
I think the slur of 'casual' is so funny because my retort would be, "um, yes, I watch sports entertainment casually. That's literally what I'm doing. I don't get money for it, do you?"
The joy vs stats for me was this season, watching Karl-Anthony Towns make a no-look, over the back shoulder pass to Josh Hart for a layup---and then reading comments online about how KAT is a terrible passer.
I love basketball for the poetry of the game, the narratives of the players, and the advanced stats. I'm very guilty of using advanced stats to contest other people's eye tests. Russell Westbrook is easily the worst great player in NBA history. And LeBron James is easily the most clutch playoff performer in NBA history. But I also believe that the analytics stats have seriously harmed the game by making the three-point shot more valuable than any other. So, yeah, I'll take the mid-range two over the corner three.
Really excellent defense of the "eye test" and the "casual." I really do think that some of this whole stats obsession comes from two things that are making sports fandom worse (or at least more annoying): 1) hyper identification with executives over players. Young men watched Moneyball and played so much 2k that they have fetishized the idea of being one of the suits because imagining yourself as being athletic enough to be a professional athlete is "childish" (it is, but so is pretending to be the "boss") 2) sports gambling going nuclear and being a central part of everything in sports. Now these same guys that think they are smarter than everyone around them need to find some statistical justification for their daily bets. These bets are constantly blasted even on the broadcasts themselves as if they are an interesting narrative. But take a step back, sure lots of narratives within the sport are contrived or forced, but celebrity gossip and teams being symbols (like how the Celtics as an institution are a crime against humanity as a whole) give the sport meaning that boring recitations on if Anfernee Simons hit the over on Steals could never bring. These guys are supposed to be big figures we attach meaning too outside of how they can literally bring us/lose us money. I'll never forget crying as I watched Corey Brewer, Al Horford, and Joakim Noah beat my favorite Bruins team (Aaron Afflalo, Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, and Jordan Farmar <3) in the national championship, I guess formative memories now can be that time 5 players you don't care about all coincidently had the same stats you predicted.
I guess the thing about the not-quite-real battle between data and the eye test is that the eye test, particularly the version that you beautifully lay out, has won. All of the talking heads on ESPN and the rest of the highest paid, most conventionally successful sports mouths are people who claim some insight based on their own, uniquely experienced eyes
Beautifully written!
This is beautiful and I loved it!! This will sound weird but my three somehow-braided-together obsessions of last six or so months are seals, islands, and basketball..! I'm Irish and went home for the first time in a long time in August and had an encounter not unlike yours with a seal when staying on Corca Dhuibhne so the seal thing kind of makes sense and the island thing does too as anyone who grew up on a island knows but the basketball thing has come out of left field. I'm renowned in my (sporty) family for my dislike of anything sports-related. But now I'm obsessed and honestly it's such a gift to come across your work 😊 Thank you so much for sharing. P.S. Saw the Raps v Celtics on Wednesday here in Toronto, was obv cheering for the Raps but seeing Tatum playing in the flesh was something to behold (corny but true, like "poetry in motion"). Okay, sorry for the rambling!
Loved the rambling, and everything you took from this! Thanks so much for reading, Bronwen.
😊😊
“I don’t know who coined the concept of the “eye test” in basketball, but I have not known peace since it happened.” made me do an involuntary spit take 👏👏👏
I think the slur of 'casual' is so funny because my retort would be, "um, yes, I watch sports entertainment casually. That's literally what I'm doing. I don't get money for it, do you?"
The joy vs stats for me was this season, watching Karl-Anthony Towns make a no-look, over the back shoulder pass to Josh Hart for a layup---and then reading comments online about how KAT is a terrible passer.