The NBA’s All-Points Per Total Shots Team
When looking at overall shooting, I like to use Points Per Total Shots (PPTS) which is simply:
PPTS = Points / (FGA + FTA)
I prefer this stat to Effective FG% (eFG%) because it accounts for free throw accuracy and eFG% does not. I also like it better than True Shooting % (TS%) because it doesn’t have any arbitrary constants. TS% does. Points Per Shot (PPS = PTS/FGA) is more popular, but PPTS takes into account free throw accuracy, which is important. PPS does not.
Here is a look at the top PPTS players at each position. To qualify, the player had to attempt at least 1000 total shots (FGA + FTA) over the course of the season.
PG: Stephen Curry (1.073)
Curry proved that his fine rookie season was no fluke, increasing his scoring average, FG%, 3P% and FT%. For a point guard, his FG% (.480) is outstanding and he hit an eye-popping 44.2% of his three-point attempts (#3 in the league). He also led the league in free throw accuracy. (Runner-up: Steve Nash)
SG: Ray Allen (1.104)
At 35-years-old, Allen was #2 in 3P% (.444) and #9 in FT% (.881), and thanks to this terrific shooting, he registered the highest PPTS in the league. (Runner-up: Jason Richardson)
SF: Paul Pierce (1.028)
Pierce was #20 in FT% (.860), and since 30.5% of his total shot attempts came from the free throw line (#17 out of the 92 players that qualify), he was able to cash in and register the highest PPTS of any small forward. He also hit 49.7% from the field, which is terrific considering he takes a lot of shots from 17-23 feet. (Runner up: Thaddeus Young)
PF: Dirk Nowitzki (1.036)
No surprise that Dirk made the All-PPTS team since he has been the best big man shooter in the league for some time. He was #40 in 3P% (.397), #7 in FT% (.892) and had a career year from the field (.517). That adds up to the #5 PPTS in the league. (Runner-up: Lamar Odom)
C: Al Horford (1.062)
Horford was #5 in FG% (.557) and was #2 from the free throw line amongst centers (.798). That’s going to add up to some very efficient scoring. In this case, Horford was #3 in the league in PPTS. (Runner-up: Nene Hilario)
PPTS is also useful when looking at overall team shooting. Here’s a look at all 30 teams, sorted by PPTSd (the difference between PPTS and PPTS-allowed):
# | Team | PPTS | PPTSa | PPTSd |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Boston | 0.976 | 0.895 | 0.081 |
2 | Miami | 0.975 | 0.903 | 0.072 |
3 | Dallas | 0.988 | 0.928 | 0.061 |
4 | Orlando | 0.956 | 0.903 | 0.053 |
5 | Chicago | 0.941 | 0.890 | 0.051 |
6 | San Antonio | 0.988 | 0.939 | 0.049 |
7 | LA Lakers | 0.953 | 0.918 | 0.035 |
8 | Denver | 0.975 | 0.945 | 0.031 |
9 | Oklahoma City | 0.954 | 0.929 | 0.024 |
10 | New York | 0.975 | 0.959 | 0.016 |
11 | Philadelphia | 0.941 | 0.927 | 0.014 |
12 | Phoenix | 0.980 | 0.966 | 0.014 |
13 | Golden State | 0.970 | 0.957 | 0.013 |
14 | Atlanta | 0.955 | 0.945 | 0.010 |
15 | Indiana | 0.928 | 0.920 | 0.008 |
16 | Houston | 0.958 | 0.952 | 0.006 |
17 | Utah | 0.942 | 0.949 | -0.007 |
18 | New Orleans | 0.937 | 0.950 | -0.014 |
19 | Memphis | 0.933 | 0.948 | -0.016 |
20 | LA Clippers | 0.921 | 0.943 | -0.022 |
21 | Milwaukee | 0.895 | 0.918 | -0.023 |
22 | Portland | 0.936 | 0.961 | -0.026 |
23 | Charlotte | 0.915 | 0.949 | -0.035 |
24 | New Jersey | 0.907 | 0.944 | -0.038 |
25 | Minnesota | 0.922 | 0.967 | -0.044 |
26 | Toronto | 0.931 | 0.978 | -0.047 |
27 | Detroit | 0.935 | 0.986 | -0.051 |
28 | Sacramento | 0.909 | 0.964 | -0.055 |
29 | Washington | 0.898 | 0.960 | -0.062 |
30 | Cleveland | 0.898 | 0.985 | -0.087 |
Notice that the top four seeds in each conference all finished in the Top 9 in PPTSd.
Here’s a look at the top PPTS players in the playoffs (minimum 40 total shots):
# | Player | G | FGA+FTA | PPTS |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Jason Kidd | 4 | 41 | 1.439 |
2 | Ray Allen | 4 | 63 | 1.397 |
3 | Wesley Matthews | 4 | 44 | 1.159 |
4 | Ron Artest | 4 | 50 | 1.120 |
5 | Kirk Hinrich | 4 | 40 | 1.100 |
6 | Chris Paul | 4 | 96 | 1.063 |
7 | Paul Pierce | 4 | 85 | 1.047 |
8 | Jrue Holiday | 4 | 59 | 1.034 |
9 | Jason Terry | 4 | 61 | 1.016 |
10 | Andre Miller | 4 | 65 | 1.015 |
Follow the Scores Report editors on Twitter @clevelandteams and @bullzeyedotcom.
Comments Off on The NBA’s All-Points Per Total Shots Team
Posted in: NBA