New on Sports Illustrated: Michael Jordan Defied Gravity and Analytics: Unchecked

-

Air Jordan's acrobatics were awe inspiring but it was his mid-range game that truly separated him.

Michael Jordan defied gravity and analytics as Air Jordan could’ve easily been called Mid-Range Michael, though that sounds way less cool.

However, for all of his skills, perhaps MJ’s best trait was his ability to score from the toughest parts of the floor. In fact, during

"The Last Dance" era he shot nearly 50% from those spots on the court at a rate that hasn’t been equaled since. Which is probably why former mid-range maestro Richard Hamilton recently said MJ told him, “Add that to your game, that’s the hardest play in the game of basketball to guard.” Now, unlike say Jamal Crawford, I don’t mean this as a potshot at analytics. 

Even the Houston Rockets of all teams let Chris Paul shoot from there because he could hit them. But the general consensus is those are the shots defenses want to surrender. 

Which in Jordan’s day players knew intuitively as well. Keep the ball away from the rim and put a hand up. Kinda like Craig Ehlo did. Sorry Craig.

It’s just while Michael’s acrobatics were awe inspiring there are plenty of high fliers, what he was able to do otherwise was the true outlier. And it’s also a formula that has worked for the likes of Kobe Bryant and Kawhi Leonard en route to championships. While adding that kind of shot, along with a three, also took LeBron James’ game to another level and into a certain conversation.

So while it might not quite lead to "A spectacular move by Michael Jordan!", it was what MJ did by the numbers that truly separated him. Even if the numbers usually disagree.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

New on Sports Illustrated: NBA Draft Big Board 3.0: Top 80 Prospect Rankings

-
Image
Ranking the top 80 players in the 2021 NBA draft with the NCAA tournament in the rearview. View the original article to see embedded media. With three months until draft night and the NBA’s regular season winding down , the league at large has begun shifting full focus to the off-season. Players have until May 30 to declare as early entrants for the draft, after which point the predraft process will open up in full, leading up to the combine and lottery at the end of June . Our Big Board is long overdue for an update, and fully expanded out to 80 prospects as we all attempt to make sense of the big picture moving forward. As usual, the Big Board is primarily based on my personal evaluations from both live viewings and on film, in many cases dating back several years. The rankings also incorporate feedback and opinions I glean from NBA executives, scouts, and others around the industry. This is not a mock draft, and team fit is not considered, but it is also intended to be somewhat
Read more

New on Sports Illustrated: The Patriots’ Post-Brady Era Begins Now

-
Image
In Mac Jones, Bill Belichick drafted a Round 1 quarterback for the first time ever—and looks to usher in a return to dominance. Of course the first time Bill Belichick drafts a first-round quarterback, it’s one for whom he could get an unvarnished scouting report from good buddy Nick Saban —and without even having to do any draft-day maneuvering. Now, the post-Tom Brady era in New England really begins. The Patriots treated 2020 as something of a gap year, with a league-high eight opt-outs due to the COVID-19 pandemic and a starting quarterback, Cam Newton, who didn't sign with the team until June. They were, for the first time in two decades, mediocre, but that 7–9 record bought them the ticket to a fresh start: the No. 15 pick, which they used Thursday night on Alabama QB Mac Jones. The oft-cited statistic that Belichick had never drafted a QB higher than pick No. 62—used on Jimmy Garoppolo in 2014—was inherently flawed, given that Belichick had Brady as a starter for 19 of
Read more

New on Sports Illustrated: NCAA Board of Governors Unanimously Votes to Extend Mark Emmert’s Contract

-
Despite recent controversy, the NCAA Board of Governors voted unanimously to extend Mark Emmert's contract through 2025. The NCAA Board of Governors unanimously voted to extend president Mark Emmert's contract through Dec. 31, 2025. The news was announced Tuesday as a one-line news item buried within a larger update after the board's quarterly meeting. He's the fifth president in NCAA history and has been in the role since 2010. Emmert previously held high-ranking roles at Washington, LSU, Connecticut and Montana State. His base salary is reportedly $2.7 million.  Within the announcement, the Board reaffirmed its commitment to updating name, image and likeness rules. Dellenger: Inside the Hidden Industry of Name, Image and Likeness and the Changing World for College Athletes Emmert came under fire after disparities were shown between the men's and women's college basketball tournaments this year, specifically the weight room. Prior to the public backlash,
Read more