Pro Basketball Prospectus: 2003 EDITION (Paperback)

by John Hollinger (Author) "Last year's book introduced several methods that I use to evaluate player performance..." (more)
Key Phrases: playoff minutes, guards last season, midlevel exception, Usage Rate, Score Year Player Team, Pace Factor (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"Combines analysis with commentary on each player and biting humor."

Product Description
Hoops fans want to know more than just who won the game. They want to know the hows and whys, and the reasons and statistics to back up their knowledge. Sure, like all fans they’re opinionated—but they want to have reasoned opinions and engaging insights. Thanks to Pro Basketball Prospectus, they can have all that and more.

Where other basketball annuals simply reflect statistics back to the reader like a mirror, John Hollinger in Pro Basketball Prospectus instead treats statistics with an x-ray machine. He shows how you can break down statistics to try to determine the root cause of a problem as well as how you can combine certain statistics for an overall view of a player or team. He doesn’t just tell you who is good or bad; he gives you a new way to appreciate every player’s skills and weaknesses.

In last year’s edition, Hollinger discussed the many facets of quality defense and examined who was the best rebounder of all time. This year, Hollinger gives you an in-depth look at rookies and how they develop—or sometimes don’t. Every basketball fan will gain incredible new insights into the game with Pro Basketball Prospectus.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Potomac Books (October 21, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 157488655X
• ISBN-13: 978-1574886559
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.9 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,364,217 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars At Last..., October 14, 2002

By	Adam Strasberg (Washington, DC United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Pro Basketball Prospectus: 2002 Edition (Pro Basketball Forecast) (Paperback)

At last, here's a book that brings the kind of in depth statistical analysis to Basketball that Bill James brought to baseball (and is now carried on by the Baseball Prospectus) so many years ago.

Hollinger has written a great book, there is an introduction explaining his methods at the top, then a couple of general essays about the game (On Defense, and the greatest rebounder ever...who you ask? Read the book <g>). Then there are the team essays. Each essay begins with a general overview of the team's season and future prospects, which leads into a statistical discussion about the game or the team ("Are mid-career perforance jumps a fluke?" or "Does Defense win Championships?").

Then there are player comments for current players and rookies. The convential wisdom is always questioned, and the book offers tons of insights (Tracy McGrady better than Kobie, read the book if you don't believe it).

I'm not really a big basketball fan anymore, but I have to say I loved this book. It offers cutting edge research into the game. While some of the studies are rough, they are a great begining for a sport where the statistical analysis has been lacking (much like baseball before James came along).

If you're a basketball fan or just a sports statistics fan (I fall into that category) buy this book, its really top notch work.

8 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fan-tastic, November 9, 2003

By	John Budd (Dallas,TX USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is an amazing work. As a long-time reader of Bill James and the "Baseball Prospectus" staff, I had my doubts as to whether a similar statistical approach would work when applied to basketball. John Hollinger, though, allays those fears.

Hollinger has developed several statistics that illuminate the game, including Player Efficiency Rating (PER), which is a stat taking into account most of the ways a player can influence the game. PER seems to me to be on par with OPS or TPR (similar baseball stats) in assessing player performance. This is truly groundbreaking work.

Moreover, Hollinger shares with Bill James an ability to write. His essays on each team are informative, entertaining, and on-the-money, as are his player comments. I would recommend this book equally to an NBA fan and to the "Baseball Abstract"/"Baseball Prospectus" fan willing to cross over (dribble) to the NBA.

5 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Basketball for the Thinking Fan, October 22, 2002

By	Gregory H. Thomas (Garden City, Kansas United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Pro Basketball Prospectus: 2002 Edition (Pro Basketball Forecast) (Paperback)

As a reader of both "Baseball Prospectus" and "Football Prospectus", I was both surprised and pleased to find that both the content and writing style of "Basketball Prospectus" exceeded either of the other two publications. It is rare, in a Bill James sense, to find a writer who can both dazzle with words and with numbers, but John Hollinger is such a gem.
His insight into today's pro game is unique. The chaper on "Rebounding" in which the numbers of Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell are compared with the players who followed them, should be required reading for any sports fan or any undergraduate taking statistics. If you are a free-thinker who doesn't merely accept the opinion of the crowd or your local columnist, this is the basketball book for you. Prepare to be intrigued and to look at the pro game with a new appreciation.

Greg Thomas, Ph.D.