Why do people act like scoring isn't the most important part of basketball?

[Norcaliblunt]

The only team to consistently stop the Nash led Suns were the Spurs and they have stopped everybody in this era.

[DatAsh]

Great offense beats great defense 9 times out of 10

Any stats to back that up?

[Hoopz2332]

HOLY ****

dubeta just destroyed the OP

[DatAsh]

Quite a few teams have won it all with bad offense, but very rarely do you see a team win it all with bad defense.

Defense is clearly more important when you look at the actual numbers. As to why, I'm not sure, though defense tends to be more consistent and easy to execute; maybe that has something to do with it.

[atljonesbro]

Scoring is the most important part of basketball, I agree. You need a little of both to win but you need scoring much more. Especially down the stretch.

[atljonesbro]

Any stats to back that up?

On average offense does beat defense when you look at TS%.

[DatAsh]

On average offense does beat defense when you look at TS%.

Can you show the averages? I'm just curious.

[knicksman]

the best is scorer then (2)pure pg then (3) the combination of both aka score first pgs. Thats why its jordan>magic>bird or shaq(3)>isiah(2)>bran(2*).

[knicksman]

Quite a few teams have won it all with bad offense, but very rarely do you see a team win it all with bad defense.

Defense is clearly more important when you look at the actual numbers. As to why, I'm not sure, though defense tends to be more consistent and easy to execute; maybe that has something to do with it.

Pop couldnt win with role players if he didnt improve his offense. And triangle is known for offense. IMO offense is more important. "Defense wins championships" is just really to motivate players coz nobody wants to play it. Its a dirty work. Sacrificing your body just to earn money playing this game.

[CavaliersFTW]

OP will respond he's overrated because nobody here (outside of half a dozen people) watched him live.

I get that, though I don't think it's fair to call a guy overrated for that reason. Rather, don't rank him at all, and instead of calling it a GOAT list, call it a best players you've seen list.

[knicksman]

if offense and defense are equal why do coaches spend 2 hours
in practice on offense and maybe 15-30 minutes on defense

short answer

they're not

teaching 5 guys to run the triangle is a lot harder than
getting guys to stay with their man or cover an area

there's offense

and everything else

you're in man to man . . . I have a shitload of sets to attack you
you're in a 1-3-1 zone . . . . thousand ways to get an open shot
you're in fullcourt press . . . . got press breaks for you all day
you're in halfcourt trap . . . . . . please

flipside
how are you going to stop princeton or the triangle
how many concepts are there for defending motion

great defense/tenacity + good offense . . . . shot to win
great offense/machine + good defense . . . . good luck

offense requires more skill and IQ while defense just requires body. Thats why you need motivation for players to play defense coz theyll be sacrificing their bodies. Thats how "defense wins championships" became a quote. To motivate players.

[Asukal]

offense requires more skill and IQ while defense just requires body. Thats why you need motivation for players to play defense coz theyll be sacrificing their bodies. Thats how "defense wins championships" became a quote. To motivate players.

Spoken like a true ignoramus.

[DatAsh]

Posted this before

Since 57,

The best defensive team in the league has won the championship 21 times.
The best offensive team in the league has won the championship 9 times.

Of the teams that have won,
29 have been in the 90th percentile defensively.
17 have been in the 90th percentile offensively.

39 have been in the 80th percentile defensively.
20 have been in the 80th percentile offensively.

1 has been in the bottom 50% defensively.
14 have been in the bottom 50% offensively.

The worst defense in the league has never won a championship.
The worst offense in the league has won a championship 3 times.

Overall, I still think good defense trumps good offense most of the time, but on an individual basis I think it's a bit more dependent on position. Point guards for instance I think offense is far more valuable than defense. I'd take an A+ offense/D defense PG over a B offense/B defense PG.

[jlip]

People seem not to realize how related defense and offense are to each other. If your team plays great defense and secures the rebound off a missed shot, it can open your team up for easy transition buckets. If your team scores that allows your team more time to get back and set up its defense.

[jlip]

Posted this before

Since 57,

The best defensive team in the league has won the championship 21 times.
The best offensive team in the league has won the championship 9 times.

Of the teams that have won,
29 have been in the 90th percentile defensively.
17 have been in the 90th percentile offensively.

39 have been in the 80th percentile defensively.
20 have been in the 80th percentile offensively.

1 has been in the bottom 50% defensively.
14 have been in the bottom 50% offensively.

The worst defense in the league has never won a championship.
The worst offense in the league has won a championship 3 times.

Overall, I still think good defense trumps good offense most of the time, but on an individual basis I think it's a bit more dependent on position. Point guards for instance I think offense is far more valuable than defense. I'd take an A+ offense/D defense PG over a B offense/B defense PG.