What is the best single stat ?

[BigTicket]

Something I have been wonder, with all the stats going around, which one is actually the most reliable. In other words, if you had to use only one single stat to rank players, which one would come closest to an accurate ranking ?

So I pose this as a challenge to everyone, go to which ever stat site you like, and post a link to the stat that you think creates the most accurate ranking.

For alltime rankings, I'll go with the MVP award shares stat they have on basketball-reference.com

http://www.basketball-reference.com/...vp_shares.html

The top 10 is almost correct, with 9 out of 10 players usually making top 10 lists, and Jordan on top. The only outlier is Karl Malone who made the top 10, but that's not too bad, considering that most people would probably have him in the top 20.

For current season rankings, I haven't found any stat that works as well, the best is probably ESPN's value added stat:

http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/holli...cs/_/sort/VORP

The only problem with this stat, is that it requires you to actually play, so players who get injured will be left out, even if they are among the best.

[TommyGriffin]

Well coming from a huge New Orleans fan but also a lifelong Cavaliers fan as well I would have to say winning a championship for your home team. You can have the most points, rebounds, assists, blocks, steals, PER, ORTG, DRTG every RTG there is but as long as Cleveland doesn't have a championship we are shit out of luck.

[BigTicket]

Well coming from a huge New Orleans fan but also a lifelong Cavaliers fan as well I would have to say winning a championship for your home team. You can have the most points, rebounds, assists, blocks, steals, PER, ORTG, DRTG every RTG there is but as long as Cleveland doesn't have a championship we are shit out of luck.

Championships won is a good way to rank franchises, but it doesn't work as a stat for ranking players.

Here is the top 10 all-time in championships won:

#1 - Bill Russell - 11
#2 - Sam Jones - 10
#3 - John Havlicek - 8
Tom Heinsohn - 8
K.C. Jones - 8
Tom Sanders - 8
#7 - Robert Horry - 7
Frank Ramsey - 7
#9 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar - 6
Bob Cousy - 6
Michael Jordan - 6
Jim Loscutoff - 6
Scottie Pippen - 6

Half the people on that list are roleplayers that most people have never even heard off.

[Odinn]

MVP award shares not the best number out there to pick. The voting system changed sooo many times. For instance, in Kareem's day, people voted for 1 name only. You were the MVP or not. There were no points for 2nd and 3rd places, because they were non-existent.

If you want to use MVP votings in a healthy context, you need to rely on 1st place votes. There's no other way for it.

[dunksby]

MVP award shares best number out there to pick. The voting system changed sooo many times. For instance, in Kareem's day, people voted for 1 name only. You were the MVP or not. There were no points for 2nd and 3rd places, because they were non-existent.

If you want to use MVP votings in a healthy context, you need to rely on 1st place votes. There's no other way for it.

Also Kareem got all of them when the award was voted by the players.

[dhsilv]

Something I have been wonder, with all the stats going around, which one is actually the most reliable. In other words, if you had to use only one single stat to rank players, which one would come closest to an accurate ranking ?

So I pose this as a challenge to everyone, go to which ever stat site you like, and post a link to the stat that you think creates the most accurate ranking.

For alltime rankings, I'll go with the MVP award shares stat they have on basketball-reference.com

http://www.basketball-reference.com/...vp_shares.html

The top 10 is almost correct, with 9 out of 10 players usually making top 10 lists, and Jordan on top. The only outlier is Karl Malone who made the top 10, but that's not too bad, considering that most people would probably have him in the top 20.

For current season rankings, I haven't found any stat that works as well, the best is probably ESPN's value added stat:

http://insider.espn.go.com/nba/holli...cs/_/sort/VORP

The only problem with this stat, is that it requires you to actually play, so players who get injured will be left out, even if they are among the best.

MVP voting might work for a top 10, but it's crap beyond that. Are you going to use it to compare Glenn Rice and Mitch Richmond?

VA is just total crap imo. It is imo one of the worst all in one stats we have. For starters it adjusts for possition which we all know is a meaningless thing in the nba. I'm nearly possitive if john were still at espn he'd have changed that one, hell if you look back into the past the stat isn't even calculated teh same way all years on espn.

WS is better. VORP is better (all be it we only have it going back to 74). PIE from nba.com is better.

If you don't need historical context, ESPN's WIN or WINS or whatever they're calling it from the real plus data is better.

All that said the 1 stat movement is pretty much done. Sports Vue data is creating stats and tool to judge role impact and valuing players at their roles is where real value and predictive power (the reason for the stats in the first place) comes from. From there we need to start thinking about how a team is constructed in terms of play roles.

[kennethgriffin]

The best single stat is # of rings by mvp winners

(Pre merger rings counting as half )

[K Xerxes]

List of fmvp winners?

Russell (estimated >6)
Jordan (6)
Magic/Duncan/Shaq (3)
Kareem/Bird/Hakeem/Kobe/LeBron/Reed (2)
+Wilt (estimated 2)

Aside from Reed, thats the consensus top 11.

[dhsilv]

List of fmvp winners?

Russell (estimated >6)
Jordan (6)
Magic/Duncan/Shaq (3)
Kareem/Bird/Hakeem/Kobe/LeBron/Reed (2)
+Wilt (estimated 2)

Aside from Reed, thats the consensus top 11.

No west, no moses, no Oscar...hardly consensus top 11. And how you round out the top 100?

[TaLvsCuaL]

a single stat means nothing, even MVP or FMVP

[pauk]

Mvp win shares and per.

[Stout]

Win shares?

[Jasper]

Championships won is a good way to rank franchises, but it doesn't work as a stat for ranking players.

Here is the top 10 all-time in championships won:

#1 - Bill Russell - 11
#2 - Sam Jones - 10
#3 - John Havlicek - 8
Tom Heinsohn - 8
K.C. Jones - 8
Tom Sanders - 8
#7 - Robert Horry - 7
Frank Ramsey - 7
#9 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar - 6
Bob Cousy - 6
Michael Jordan - 6
Jim Loscutoff - 6
Scottie Pippen - 6

Half the people on that list are roleplayers that most people have never even heard off.

Very good point.

As for a player , I always look at FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE , because this is an offensive game.
THEN I look at free throw percentage , because if he hits the line alot , it tells us how he plays !!

[Nash]

Accolades:

1.FMVP - Basically you're doing it against the best at the most important stage.
2.MVP - Greatness over a full year

Stats:
1. FG% - How easy does the game come to you?
2. PER - For obvious reasons
3 +/- - Not something people value that much, especially in single games. But over a full season? It gives you a great look into how well you're doing.

[Lakers Fan]

Half the people on that list are roleplayers that most people have never even heard off.

Most people wouldn't recognize the name of anyone not named Jordan, Kobe, Shaq and LeBron. But anyone who knows anything about basketball should instantly recognize all but maybe 3 names