NBA 2014-15 21-week Power Ratings

As April Fool’s Day approaches, those rambunctious Denver Nuggets are now eligible to break huddles with a “One, Two, Three, THREE WEEKS” chant. As of last Thursday, exactly 21 days remained on the NBA schedule – 1,071 of the league’s 1,230 regular-season games (87.1%) were in the books, an average of 71.14 per team. Teams have played roughly 7,000 possessions, Utah’s 6,623 (93.3 per game) the low, Phoenix’s 7256 (100.8 per game) at the top. About a third of the teams convert half or more of their possessions, led by the Clippers’ .522. No team makes half its field goal attempts.

That per-game discrepancy in possessions between the fast-paced Suns and plodding Jazz is about the same when it comes to free-throw attempts. The atrocious Knicks, amongst their other faults, have attempted the fewest free throws (1,369 – 19.0 per game) in 21 weeks of NBA action. Sacramento (2,088 – 29.4 per game) has shot the most.

Here’s a little numerical oddity about the Kings and Jazz. It could be argued that these are this season’s two best rebounding squads. Each ranks in the top ten in both their own Offensive Rebounding Percentage and that of their opponents, the lone members of that particular club. Alas, each also ranks in the bottom ten in both their own Turnover Percentage and the rate of the other guys, the lone members of that club as well.

Ratings reflect play through Wednesday March 25. (The Criteria is explained below.)

No. 1 Golden State Warriors (4)

[21-week ESPN rating: 1

18-week Abacus rating: 1

15-week Abacus rating: 1

12-week Abacus rating: 1

9-week Abacus rating: 1

6-week Abacus rating: 1

3-week Abacus rating: 5]

58-13, .817; 1^st in Pacific Division / 1^st seed / 1^st overall

KK:  +22; (24 Road Wins – 2 Home Losses) / No. 1 overall

CQ:  +40; (.510 [3^rd] - .470 [1^st]) / No. 1 overall

SPOR-t:  +51; (573 [6^th] – 522 [3^rd]) / No. 1 overall

Abacus Revelation: The Warriors rank No. 1 in both FG offense (.479) and FG defense (.424).

No. 2 Memphis Grizzlies (12)

[21-week ESPN rating: 3

18-week Abacus rating: 2

15-week Abacus rating: 2

12-week Abacus rating: 2

9-week Abacus rating: 3

6-week Abacus rating: 2

3-week Abacus rating: 1]

50-22, .694; 1^st in Southwest Division / 2^nd seed / 3^rd overall

KK:  +15; (23 Road Wins – 8 Home Losses) / No. 3 overall

CQ:  +30; (.506 [6^th] - .476 [3^rd]) / No. 2 overall

SPOR-t:  +36; (565 [11^th] – 529 [6^th]) / No. 4 overall

Abacus Revelation: The possession-conscious Grizzlies rank sixth in both taking care of the ball (.138) and forcing turnovers (.161) defense – also in rate of conversion (.506).

No. 3 Los Angeles Clippers (20)

[21-week ESPN rating: 7

18-week Abacus rating: 3

15-week Abacus rating: 5

12-week Abacus rating: 8

9-week Abacus rating: 9

6-week Abacus rating: 8

3-week Abacus rating: 19]

47-25, .653; 2^nd in Pacific Division / 5^th seed / 5^th overall

KK:  +10; (20 Road Wins – 10 Home Losses) / No. 6 overall (tied)*

CQ:  +25; (.522 [1^st] - .497 [20^th]) / No. 3 overall

SPOR-t:  +33; (574 [5^th] – 541 [8^th]) / No.  5 overall 

Abacus Revelation: Clipper opponents have attempted the second-most free throws (1850) in the league.

No. 4 Cleveland Cavaliers (27.5)

[21-week ESPN rating: 2

18-week Abacus rating: 9

15-week Abacus rating: 13

12-week Abacus rating: 17

9-week Abacus rating: 12

6-week Abacus rating: 10

3-week Abacus rating: 12]

47-26, .644; 1^st in Central Division / 2^nd seed / 6^th overall

KK:  +12; (21 Road Wins – 9 Home Losses) / No. 4 overall (tied)

CQ:  +12; (.510 [4^th] - .498 [21^st]) / No. 8 overall

SPOR-t:  +12; (583 [3^rd] – 571 [24^th]) / No. 8 overall (tied)*

Abacus Revelation: Over the past three weeks, Cleveland more than doubled its opposition output in three-point FG’s, 130 – 61.

No. 4 San Antonio Spurs (27.5)

[21-week ESPN rating: 5

18-week Abacus rating: 6

15-week Abacus rating: 7

12-week Abacus rating: 7

9-week Abacus rating: 11

6-week Abacus rating: 4

3-week Abacus rating: 10]

45-26, .634; 3^rd in Southwest Division / 6^th seed / 8^th overall

KK:  +10; (18 Road Wins – 8 Home Losses) / No. 6 overall (tied)*

CQ:  +16; (.500 [10^th] - .484 [8^th]) / No. 6 overall (tied)

SPOR-t:  +29; (551 [17^th] – 522 [3^rd]) / No. 6 overall

Abacus Revelation: The Spurs have eased their way into the top ten in both offensive and defensive rates of conversion.

No. 6 Atlanta Hawks (31)

[21-week ESPN rating: 4

18-week Abacus rating: 4

15-week Abacus rating: 4

12-week Abacus rating: 5

9-week Abacus rating: 8

6-week Abacus rating: 13

3-week Abacus rating: 15]

54-17, .761; 1^st in Southeast Division / 1^st seed / 2^nd overall

KK:  +19; (24 Road Wins – 5 Home Losses) / No. 2 overall

CQ:  +21; (.494 [14^th] - .473 [2^nd]) / No. 4 overall

SPOR-t:  -12; (530 [25^th] – 542 [11^th]) / No. 23 overall

Abacus Revelation: Atlanta’s Achilles’ heel remains rebounding – they rank in the bottom ten in both Offensive Rebounding Percentage (.213) and that of their opposition (.269).

No. 7 Oklahoma City Thunder (34.5)

[21-week ESPN rating: 8

18-week Abacus rating: 7

15-week Abacus rating: 10

12-week Abacus rating: 11

9-week Abacus rating: 14

6-week Abacus rating: 22

3-week Abacus rating: 28]

41-31, .569; 2^nd in Northwest Division / 8^th seed / 12^th overall

KK:  +5; (14 Road Wins – 9 Home Losses) / No. 11 overall (tied)

CQ:  +11; (.500 [11^th] - .489 [12^th]) / No. 9 overall

SPOR-t:  +44; (585 [2^nd] – 541 [8^th]) / No. 2 overall

Abacus Revelation: The Thunder averaged 14 offensive rebounds a game over the past three weeks – they rank second (.287) currently.

No. 8 Washington Wizards (35.5)

[21-week ESPN rating: 14

18-week Abacus rating: 8

15-week Abacus rating: 6

12-week Abacus rating: 4

9-week Abacus rating: 4

6-week Abacus rating: 5

3-week Abacus rating: 4]

40-32, .556; 2^nd in Southeast Division / 5^th seed / 13^th overall

KK:  +4; (15 Road Wins – 11 Home Losses) / No. 13 overall

CQ:  +16; (.499 [12^th] - .483 [7^th]) / No. 6 overall (tied)

SPOR-t:  +39; (558 [12^th] – 519 [2^nd]) / No. 3 overall

Abacus Revelation: The streaky Wizards still rank in the top five in both FG offense (.464) and FG defense (.437).

No. 9 Dallas Mavericks (36.5)

[21-week ESPN rating: 11

18-week Abacus rating: 5

15-week Abacus rating: 3

12-week Abacus rating: 2

9-week Abacus rating: 4

6-week Abacus rating: 3

3-week Abacus rating: 2]

45-27, .625; 4^th in Southwest Division / 7^th seed / 9^th overall

KK:  +8; (20 Road Wins – 12 Home Losses) / No. 9 overall

CQ:  +19; (.507 [3^rd] - .488 [12^th]) / No. 5 overall

SPOR-t:  +7; (567 [8^th] – 560 [20^th]) / No. 13 overall (tied)

Abacus Revelation: The Mavs struggle to defend the 3-point shot, ranking No. 25 (.362).

No. 10 Houston Rockets (43.5)

[21-week ESPN rating: 6

18-week Abacus rating: 10

15-week Abacus rating: 9

12-week Abacus rating: 8

9-week Abacus rating: 10

6-week Abacus rating: 9

3-week Abacus rating: 3]

48-23, .676; 2^nd in Southwest Division / 3^rd seed / 4^th overall

KK:  +12; (22 Road Wins – 10 Home Losses) / No. 4 overall (tied)

CQ:  +1; (.484 [23^rd] - .483 [6^th]) / No. 15 overall

SPOR-t:  -7; (542 [21^st] – 549 [12^th]) / No. 20 overall

Abacus Revelation: The Rockets have launched over 350 more treys than any other team.

No. 11 Chicago Bulls (50.5)

[21-week ESPN rating: 10

18-week Abacus rating: 13

15-week Abacus rating: 11

12-week Abacus rating: 12

9-week Abacus rating: 7

6-week Abacus rating: 11

3-week Abacus rating: 8]

44-29, .603; 2^nd in Central Division / 3^rd seed / 10^th overall

KK:  +7; (21 Road Wins – 14 Home Losses) / No. 10 overall

CQ:  +5; (.501 [9^th] - .496 [18^th]) / No. 11 overall (tied)

SPOR-t:  -5; (567 [8^th] – 572 [25^th]) / No. 19 overall

Abacus Revelation: The Bulls are worst in the league at forcing turnovers (.122).

No. 11 Toronto Raptors (50.5)

[21-week ESPN rating: 12

18-week Abacus rating: 12

15-week Abacus rating: 8

12-week Abacus rating: 6

9-week Abacus rating: 2

6-week Abacus rating: 7

3-week Abacus rating: 7]

42-30, .583; 1^st in Atlantic Division / 4^th seed / 11^th overall

KK:  +5; (18 Road Wins – 13 Home Losses) / No. 11 overall (tied)

CQ:  +4; (.511 [2^nd] - .507 [27^th]) / No. 13 overall

SPOR-t:  +3; (579 [4^th] – 576 [27^th]) / No. 15 overall

Abacus Revelation: The Raptors rank in the bottom four in FG defense (.462) and opponent rate of conversion (.507).

No. 13 Portland Trail Blazers (51)

[21-week ESPN rating: 9

18-week Abacus rating: 11

15-week Abacus rating: 12

12-week Abacus rating: 10

9-week Abacus rating: 6

6-week Abacus rating: 5

3-week Abacus rating: 9]

45-25, .643; 1^st in Northwest Division / 4^th seed / 7^th overall

KK:  +10; (17 Road Wins – 7 Home Losses) / No. 6 overall (tied)*

CQ:  -4; (.486 [22^nd] - .490 [13^th]) / No. 18 overall (tied)*

SPOR-t:  -4; (549 [20^th] – 553 [15^th]) / No. 18 overall

Abacus Revelation: The Blazers are third-best in the league at defending the trey (.333).

No. 14 Milwaukee Bucks (54.5)

[21-week ESPN rating: 22

18-week Abacus rating: 16

15-week Abacus rating: 14

12-week Abacus rating: 15

9-week Abacus rating: 16

6-week Abacus rating: 16

3-week Abacus rating: 13]

35-36, .493; 3^rd in Central Division / 6^th seed / 16^th overall

KK:  +1; (15 Road Wins – 14 Home Losses) / No. 14 overall (tied)*

CQ:  +6; (.483 [24^th] - .477 [4^th]) / No. 10 overall

SPOR-t:  +7; (537 [23^rd] – 530 [7^th]) / No. 13 overall (tied)

Abacus Revelation: Taking care of the ball (No. 29, .172) should be high on Coach Kidd’s fix-it list moving forward..

No. 15 New Orleans Pelicans (55)

[21-week ESPN rating: 15

18-week Abacus rating: 14

15-week Abacus rating: 14

12-week Abacus rating: 13

9-week Abacus rating: 13

6-week Abacus rating: 14

3-week Abacus rating: 11]

37-34, .521; 5^th in Southwest Division / 10^th seed / 15^th overall

KK:  +1; (14 Road Wins – 13 Home Losses) / No. 14 overall (tied)*

CQ:  -1; (.505 [7^th] - .506 [24^th]) / No. 16 overall

SPOR-t:  +12; (587 [1^st] – 575 [26^th]) / No. 8 overall (tied)*

Abacus Revelation: The Pelicans need to rise from the bottom quartile in FG defense (.456).

ABACUS INFOMERCIAL:

Fans and pundits alike are singing the praises of rookie Golden State coach Steve Kerr. His high-scoring Warriors lead the Association in overall field goal shooting as well as 3-point shooting. Defensively, they also rank first and fifth respectively in those categories. (Only the Hawks and Bucks have matched this achievement.) Perhaps we should, though, detain Kerr in the Mt. Rushmore Green Room a bit longer. The bastions of the Bay Area, under the helm of the deposed Mark Jackson, turned that very trick last season as well. The only other coach who can make that claim goes by “Pop” – and he still has a job.

No. 16 Utah Jazz (58)

[21-week ESPN rating: 13

18-week Abacus rating: 17

15-week Abacus rating: 20

12-week Abacus rating: 23

9-week Abacus rating: 22

6-week Abacus rating: 25

3-week Abacus rating: 22]

31-40, .437; 3^rd in Northwest Division / 11^th seed / 18^th overall (tied)*

KK:  -5; (14 Road Wins – 19 Home Losses) / No. 19 overall (tied)**

CQ:  +5; (.497 [13^th] - .492 [14^th]) / No. 11 overall (tied)

SPOR-t:  +24; (573 [6^th] – 549 [12^th]) / No. 7 overall

Abacus Revelation: The Jazz have become the league’s best offensive rebounding team (.289).

No. 17 Charlotte Hornets (65)

[21-week ESPN rating: 21

18-week Abacus rating: 15

15-week Abacus rating: 16

12-week Abacus rating: 16

9-week Abacus rating: 24

6-week Abacus rating: 24

3-week Abacus rating: 21]

30-40, .429; 4^th in Southeast Division / 10^th seed / 21^st overall (tied)

KK:  -5; (14 Road Wins – 19 Home Losses) / No. 19 overall (tied)**

CQ:  +2; (.480 [28^th] - .478 [5^th]) / No. 14 overall

SPOR-t:  +12; (523 [29^th] – 511 [1^st]) / No. 8 overall (tied)*

Abacus Revelation: The Hornets are best in the league at boxing-out (.200), worst at long-distance shooting (.315).

No. 17 Phoenix Suns (65)

[21-week ESPN rating: 17

18-week Abacus rating: 19

15-week Abacus rating: 17

12-week Abacus rating: 14

9-week Abacus rating: 15

6-week Abacus rating: 15

3-week Abacus rating: 18]

38-34, .528; 3^rd in Pacific Division / 9^th seed / 14^th overall

KK:  +1; (17 Road Wins – 16 Home Losses) / No. 14 overall (tied)*

CQ:  -4; (.493 [16^th] - .497 [19^th]) / No. 18 overall (tied)*

SPOR-t:  -2; (555 [16^th] – 557 [18^th]) / No. 17 overall

Abacus Revelation: After making over nine treys per game at the midpoint, the Suns were down to six over the last 10 games (Weeks 19-21).

No. 19 Indiana Pacers (72.5)

[21-week ESPN rating: 16

18-week Abacus rating: 18

15-week Abacus rating: 19

12-week Abacus rating: 22

9-week Abacus rating: 21

6-week Abacus rating: 23

3-week Abacus rating: 23]

31-40, .437; 4^th in Central Division / 8^th seed / 18^th overall (tied)*

KK:  -5 (13 Road Wins – 18 Home Loss) / No. 19 overall (tied)**

CQ:  -6; (.481 [27^th] - .487 [10^th]) / No. 21 overall (tied)

SPOR-t:  +11; (533 [24^th] – 522 [3^rd]) / No. 11 overall (tied)

Abacus Revelation: The Pacers’ FG defense (.435, No. 3) and protection of the defensive backboard (.220, No. 2) have been stout.

No. 20 Miami Heat (77)

[21-week ESPN rating: 18

18-week Abacus rating: 20

15-week Abacus rating: 21

12-week Abacus rating: 21

9-week Abacus rating: 23

6-week Abacus rating: 21

3-week Abacus rating: 14]

33-38, .465; 3^rd in Southeast Division / 7^th seed / 17^th overall

KK:  -2; (16 Road Wins – 18 Home Losses) / No. 17 overall (tied)

CQ:  -2; (.494 [16^th] - .496 [19^th]) / No. 17 overall

SPOR-t:  -31; (527 [26^th] – 558 [19^th]) / No. 25 overall (tied)

Abacus Revelation: All season, the Heat have wallowed in the bottom ten in both securing (.228) and preventing (.264) offensive rebounds.

No. 21 Boston Celtics (79.5)

[21-week ESPN rating: 19

18-week Abacus rating: 23

15-week Abacus rating: 22

12-week Abacus rating: 25

9-week Abacus rating: 19

6-week Abacus rating: 18

3-week Abacus rating: 17]

31-40, .437; 2^nd in Atlantic Division / 8^th seed / 18^th overall (tied)*

KK:  -5; (13 Road Wins – 18 Home Losses) / No. 19 overall (tied)**

CQ:  -11; (.482 [26^th] - .493 [15^th]) / No. 24 overall

SPOR-t:  -0; (550 [18^th] – 550 [14^th]) / No. 16 overall

Abacus Revelation: At the 12-week mark, Boston ranked 26^th in 3FG defense (.368); nine weeks later the C’s are No. 8 (.340).

No. 21 Detroit Pistons (79.5)

[21-week ESPN rating: 23

18-week Abacus rating: 21

15-week Abacus rating: 18

12-week Abacus rating: 20

9-week Abacus rating: 26

6-week Abacus rating: 29

3-week Abacus rating: 27]

27-44, .380; 5^th in Central Division / 12^th seed / 23^rd overall

KK:  -9; (12 Road Wins – 21 Home Losses) / No. 23 overall (tied)

CQ:  -6; (.488 [20^th] - .494 [16^th]) / No. 21 overall (tied)

SPOR-t:  +11; (567 [8^th] – 556 [16^th]) / No. 11 overall (tied)

Abacus Revelation: The rugged Pistons rank third in the league in Offensive Rebounding Percentage (.278).

No. 23 Brooklyn Nets (89)

[21-week ESPN rating: 20

18-week Abacus rating: 22

15-week Abacus rating: 23

12-week Abacus rating: 24

9-week Abacus rating: 18

6-week Abacus rating: 19

3-week Abacus rating: 15]

30-40, .429; 3^rd in Atlantic Division / 10^th seed / 21^st overall (tied)

KK:  -2; (18 Road Wins – 20 Home Losses) / No. 17 overall (tied)

CQ:  -10; (.491 [19^th] - .501 [22^nd]) / No. 23 overall

SPOR-t:  -38; (540 [22^nd] – 578 [28^th]) / No. 27 overall

Abacus Revelation: The Nets rank in the bottom ten in both securing (.237) and preventing (.268) offensive rebounds.

No.24 Sacramento Kings (91)

[21-week ESPN rating: 24

18-week Abacus rating: 24

15-week Abacus rating: 25

12-week Abacus rating: 19

9-week Abacus rating: 17

6-week Abacus rating: 12

3-week Abacus rating: 6]

26-45, .366; 4^th in Pacific Division / 13^th seed / 25^th overall

KK:  -11; (10 Road Wins – 21 Home Losses) / No. 25 overall

CQ:  -4; (.503 [8^th] - .507 [25^th]) / No. 18 overall (tied)*

SPOR-t:  -11; (556 [15^th] – 567 [23^rd]) / No. 22 overall

Abacus Revelation: The strong-rebounding Kings stand No. 8 in Conversion rate (.503).

No. 25 Denver Nuggets (96.5)

[21-week ESPN rating: 25

18-week Abacus rating: 25

15-week Abacus rating: 24

12-week Abacus rating: 18

9-week Abacus rating: 19

6-week Abacus rating: 17

3-week Abacus rating: 24]

27-45, .375; 4^th in Northwest Division / 12^th seed / 24^th overall

KK:  -9; (11 Road Wins – 20 Home Losses) / No. 23 overall (tied)

CQ:  -19; (.488 [21^st] - .507 [26^th]) / No. 25 overall

SPOR-t:  -13; (550 [18^th] – 563 [21^th]) / No. 24 overall

Abacus Revelation: The Nuggets rank No. 10 in both Offensive Rebounding Percentage (.261) and turnover rate (.141).

No. 26 Los Angeles Lakers (101)

[21-week ESPN rating: 30

18-week Abacus rating: 26

15-week Abacus rating: 26

12-week Abacus rating: 27

9-week Abacus rating: 27

6-week Abacus rating: 26

3-week Abacus rating: 29]

19-51, .271; 5^th in Pacific Division / 14^th seed / 27^th overall

KK:  -16; (8 Road Wins – 24 Home Losses) / No. 27 overall

CQ:  -20; (.493 [17^th] - .513 [28^th]) / No. 26 overall

SPOR-t:  -9; (557 [13^th] – 566 [22^nd]) / No. 21 overall

Abacus Revelation: The Lakers have been one of the more sure-handed teams all season, currently No. 5 in turnover rate (.134).

No. 27 Orlando Magic (104.5)

[21-week ESPN rating: 27

18-week Abacus rating: 27

15-week Abacus rating: 27

12-week Abacus rating: 26

9-week Abacus rating: 24

6-week Abacus rating: 20

3-week Abacus rating: 20]

22-51, .301; 5^th in Southeast Division / 13^th seed / 26^th overall

KK:  -14; (10 Road Wins – 24 Home Losses) / No. 26 overall

CQ:  -21; (.483 [25^th] - .504 [23^rd]) / No. 27 overall

SPOR-t:  -31; (525 [28^th] – 556 [16^th]) / No. 25 (tied)

Abacus Revelation: The Magic need to improve those bottom ten rankings in 3FG offense (.351) and 3FG defense (.370).

No. 28 Minnesota Timberwolves (114)

[21-week ESPN rating: 29

18-week Abacus rating: 28

15-week Abacus rating: 28

12-week Abacus rating: 28

9-week Abacus rating: 28

6-week Abacus rating: 27

3-week Abacus rating: 26]

16-55, .225; 5^th in Northwest Division / 15^th seed / 29^th overall

KK:  -20; (7 Road Wins – 27 Home Losses) / No. 29 overall

CQ:  -24; (.492 [18^th] - .516 [30^th]) / No. 28 overall

SPOR-t:  -49; (557 [13^th] – 606 [30^th]) / No. 28 overall

Abacus Revelation: Minnesota ranks fifth in creating second shots (.273) but dead last in preventing them (.278).

No. 29 Philadelphia 76ers (115)

[21-week ESPN rating: 26

18-week Abacus rating: 29

15-week Abacus rating: 29

12-week Abacus rating: 29

9-week Abacus rating: 20

6-week Abacus rating: 30

3-week Abacus rating: 30]

18-54, .250; 4^th in Atlantic Division / 14^th seed / 28^th overall

KK:  -18; (6 Road Wins – 24 Home Losses) / No. 28 overall

CQ:  -34; (.450 [30^th] - .484 [9^th]) / No. 29 overall

SPOR-t:  -62; (479 [30^th] – 541 [8^th]) / No. 30 overall

Abacus Revelation: Give the scrappy Sixers some credit – they’ve cracked the top ten in defensive efficiency (opponents’ rate of conversion).

No. 30 New York Knicks (119)

[21-week ESPN rating: 28

18-week Abacus rating: 30

15-week Abacus rating: 30

12-week Abacus rating: 30

9-week Abacus rating: 29

6-week Abacus rating: 28

3-week Abacus rating: 25]

14-58, .194; 5^th in Atlantic Division / 15^th seed / 30^th overall

KK:  -21; (5 Road Wins – 26 Home Losses) / No. 30 overall

CQ:  -62; (.452 [29^th] - .514 [29^th]) / No. 30 overall

SPOR-t:  -57; (526 [27^th] – 583 [29^th]) / No. 29 overall

Abacus Revelation: Among their many woes, the Knicks have attempted the fewest free throws (1369) while yielding the fourth most (1811).

Power Ratings --The Measurement Instrument

Our team-ranking tool utilizes four elements. Two scales are based solely on team wins and losses; the others are measures of the efficiency of team performance in comparison with the competition. 

First, we’ll simply use win-loss record irrespective of conference.

The second criterion will be the difference between a team’s road wins and its home losses. Since this cute little metric is said to be a personal favorite of veteran NBA coach George Karl, let’s call this the Karl Kount (KK).

Criterion No. 3, Conversion Quotient (CQ), involves the rate at which a team converts its possessions into a successful field goals or free throw attempts. Like the KK, the computation is simple subtraction—a team’s rate of offensive efficiency minus that of the opponent.

Lastly, please allow Abacus to introduce the “SPOR-t” score. SPOR-t stands for “Shooting Plus Offensive Rebounds minus turnovers.” Add a team’s FG percentage and its offensive rebounding percentage (o. boards divided by the sum of those o. boards and the opposition's d. boards). Then subtract the percentage of a team’s possessions lost to turnovers. For example, a team shoots field goals at a .488 clip, offensive rebounds at a rate of .199, and commits a turnover on .143 of its possessions. So its SPOR-t is (488+199-143) or 544. Once again, our measurement will be the difference between the SPOR-t scores of a team and its opposition.

We’ll rank the teams from 1 to 30 in all criteria and simply add up the rankings. Low score wins, naturally.