Statistics can tell us a lot about a game: who played well, who played poorly, and which team won. But they can't tell us how these numbers came about. That's why we're going inside the box score and finding out the story behind the stats.

Today's subject: Brandon Jennings and his 4/11 night from deep against Chicago

We all know that Jennings' value on offense will live or die by the three-point shot. He's quick enough to get to the basket, but hasn't proven able to get quality looks and/or draw fouls consistently. He's smart enough to use screens and space alike, but his frame is so slight that contact sends him off-course. Thankfully, the most valuable shot in basketball is one that has been good to him so far, but is it good for the Bucks?

He's an able scorer, clocking in at 20.4 points per game, good for 11th in the NBA. His percentages are up from last year, too, leading us all to believe (hope?) that he's making that third-year jump that we've seen other young guards make. But his long-range shooting against Chicago was, according to the normal box score, less than thrilling. Despite a hot start that saw him score 16 in the opening quarter, Jennings' 4/11 showing against the Bulls turns out to be 36.3%, or just 0.9% above his career average.

We will now dissect each of Jennings' three-point attempts to see exactly what kind of shots they were.

Continue reading this post »

Statistics can tell us a lot about a game: who played well, who played poorly, and which team won. But they can't tell us how these numbers came about. That's why we're going inside the box score and finding out the story behind the stats.

Today's subject: Andrew Bogut and his amazing disappearing hook shot

Our favorite #1 overall draft pick is having a somewhat puzzling start to the season. While he has (allegedly) regained mobility in his right arm, it hasn't proven to be helpful on offense. Through four games, Bogut is averaging 14.3 points/game, which is above his career averages and the lower end of the range we want him to be at. But his shooting percentages are woeful: 43.1% on field goals and 58.3% from the free throw line.

The free throw numbers are unsurprising, but the field goal rate is troubling. Bogut's offense is built around his ability to finish high-percentage opportunities near the rim. We don't need him shooting from beyond 9 feet out (no matter what Frank says!) very often. We need him to be able to use his once-effective hook shot to the fullest.

We're going to go to the tape from the first four games of 2011-12 and see what we can see with Bogut's hook.

Continue reading this post »