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Saturday, October 1, 2022

Basketball: Dr. Fergus Connolly's Correct Diagnosis

Generate winning concepts from a tweet. Dig deeper into an issue and craft answers. 

Fergus Connolly isn't saying he's smarter than everyone else. He asks us to relate results to what actually happens. Work back to Michael Lewis's Moneyball. "If he's such a good hitter, why doesn't he hit better?"

Shooting. If we're not scoring and winning, why not? 

  • Shot selection 
  • Poor distribution of shots (not enough by best players)
  • Too many bail out possessions (shot clock)
  • Low quality passing "quality of shot relates to quality of passing"
  • Allowing too many 'easy' shots - transition, layups, open threes, free throws
Rebounding (possessions).
  • Allowing too many second shots (higher points/possession on second and third shots)
  • Failure to get second shots
  • Secondary rebounding effects on offensive and defensive transition

Turnovers.

  • Number of turnovers
  • Types - execution or decision-making 
  • Failure to generate turnovers
  • Live ball turnovers leading to high opponents points/possession
Free throws
  • Allowing too many (why?)
  • Not drawing fouls 
  • Poor free throw shooting 

Break down possessions and performance by individual players. Much of this can't be derived off the 'simple' box score. Assess the total contribution of a player with positive, neutral, and negative possessions. 

Lagniappe. Add defense and competition. 

Lagniappe 2. Don't feel creative? Copy. Borrow. Steal. 

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