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Name: Amazon.com: The Wages of Wins: Taking Measure of the Many Myths in Modern Sport: 9780804752879: David J. Berri, Martin B. Schmidt, Stacey L. Brook: Books
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Rating: 4.4 (24 reviews)

David J. Berri

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The Wages of Wins: Taking Measure of the Many Myths in Modern Sport 1st Edition

by David J. Berri (Author), Martin B. Schmidt (Author), Stacey L. Brook (Author)

4.4 24 ratings

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**Named of one of Princeton University's Noteworthy Books in Industrial Relations for 2006**

Arguing about sports is as old as the games people play. Over the years sports debates have become muddled by many myths that do not match the numbers generated by those playing the games. In The Wages of Wins, the authors use layman's language and easy to follow examples based on their own academic research to debunk many of the most commonly held beliefs about sports.

In this updated version of their book, these authors explain why Allen Iverson leaving Philadelphia made the 76ers a better team, why the Yankees find it so hard to repeat their success from the late 1990s, and why even great quarterbacks like Brett Favre are consistently inconsistent. The book names names, and makes it abundantly clear that much of the decision making of coaches and general managers does not hold up to an analysis of the numbers. Whether you are a fantasy league fanatic or a casual weekend fan, much of what you believe about sports will change after reading this book.

Review

"When I read the book, I was impressed by the amount of effort that went into compiling the reams of data that underlie the work . . . The fundamental case the authors make is that the statistical analysis shows that the conventional wisdom about sports is dead wrong—that the data as the put it, "offers many surprises."—Joe Nocera, The New York Times
"In The Wages of Wins, the authors attempt to puncture some popular myths—saying that payroll and wins are not highly correlated, and that in baseball, football.attendance hasn't been significantly affected by players strikes or owner lockouts."—Sue Kirchhoff, USA Today

"In The Wages of Wins, the economists David J. Berri, Martin B. Schmidt, and Stacey L. Brook set out to solve the Iverson problem. Weighing the relative value of fouls, rebounds, shots taken, turnovers, and the like, they've created an algorithm that, they argue, comes closer than any previous statistical measure to capturing the true value of a basketball player . . . Looking at the findings that Berri, Schmidt, and Brook present is enough to make one wonder what exactly basketball experts—coaches, managers, sportswriters—know about basketball."—Malcolm Gladwell, The New Yorker

"Wages is provocative, stimulating and challenging."—Dick Friedman, Sports Illustrated
"It is one thing when an obnoxious fan or sports talk show blowhard spouts off about who is the best player or why a certain team doesn't win games. It is quite another thing when three economics professors, which the authors of this book are, who love sports give you proof to back up their arguments. Not many casual basketball fans would agree that Allen Iverson isn't a very productive player, but the authors have the data to show otherwise. It is hard to argue when the cold hard facts are in front of your face... The Wages of Wins is a very important book in the field of sports economics and a very enjoyable and thought provoking read. It leaves you wanting a sequel to it (which, luckily, the writers hint at)."—CollegeHoops.net

"Sports fans with an analytical bent shouldn't skip this book. And come to think of it, perhaps sports executives should be reading it as well."—The Free Lance-Star

"This book presents complex economic analysis in a breezy manner that the casual sports fan and econophobe will appreciate and enjoy. I plan to assign it to students and recommend it to friends."—Michael Leeds, Temple University, and author of The Economics of Sports

From the Inside Flap

Arguing about sports is as old as the games people play. Over the years sports debates have become muddled by many myths that do not match the numbers generated by those playing the games. In The Wages of Wins, the authors use layman's language and easy to follow examples based on their own academic research to debunk many of the most commonly held beliefs about sports.
In this updated version of their book, these authors explain why Allen Iverson leaving Philadelphia made the 76ers a better team, why the Yankees find it so hard to repeat their success from the late 1990s, and why even great quarterbacks like Brett Favre are consistently inconsistent. The book names names, and makes it abundantly clear that much of the decision making of coaches and general managers does not hold up to an analysis of the numbers. Whether you are a fantasy league fanatic or a casual weekend fan, much of what you believe about sports will change after reading this book.

From the Back Cover

Arguing about sports is as old as the games people play. Over the years sports debates have become muddled by many myths that do not match the numbers generated by those playing the games. In The Wages of Wins, the authors use layman's language and easy to follow examples based on their own academic research to debunk many of the most commonly held beliefs about sports.
In this updated version of their book, these authors explain why Allen Iverson leaving Philadelphia made the 76ers a better team, why the Yankees find it so hard to repeat their success from the late 1990s, and why even great quarterbacks like Brett Favre are consistently inconsistent. The book names names, and makes it abundantly clear that much of the decision making of coaches and general managers does not hold up to an analysis of the numbers. Whether you are a fantasy league fanatic or a casual weekend fan, much of what you believe about sports will change after reading this book.

About the Author

David J. Berri is Associate Professor of Economics at California State University, Bakersfield. Martin B. Schmidt is Associate Professor of Economics at the College of William and Mary. Stacey L. Brook is Associate Professor of Economics at the University of Sioux Falls.

ISBN-10

9780804752879
ISBN-13

978-0804752879
Edition

1st
Publisher

Stanford Business Books
Publication date

May 22, 2006
Language

English
Dimensions

6 x 1.4 x 9 inches
Print length

304 pages
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Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ 0804752877
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Stanford Business Books; 1st edition (May 22, 2006)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 304 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9780804752879
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0804752879
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.19 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 1.4 x 9 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #2,769,271 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1,055 in Sociology of Sports (Books)
- #1,285 in Business Finance
- #5,162 in Economics (Books)

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4.4 24 ratings

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King Yao

Economists look at sports Freakonomics-style

Reviewed in the United States on June 28, 2006

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Review: The Wages of Wins by David Berri, Martin Schmidt and Stacey Brook

This book is written by economists on their analysis in the world of sports. They tried to approach their work similar to the approach that fellow economist Steven Levitt did in his book Freakonomics (co-written with Stephen Dubner). The book is written for the non-economist so there is little math and economic mumbo-jumbo in the text. When the authors cannot get by without mentioning regression analysis or correlation, it does seem they try to explain it clearly with words and not just numbers. Still, this book will be enjoyed more by those that have at least a tiny grasp of these concepts.

The topics that are covered in this book include: the impact of strikes/lockouts in professional sports on fan attendance, competitive balance in major sports leagues, who is better: Shaq or Kobe (the designing of a model to value a NBA players contribution to team wins), and the inconsistency of NFL quarterbacks. A general theme throughout the book is to step away from the long-held beliefs of sports fans and GMs, but to look at issues and problems from an analytical perspective. The results they get from the data are often interesting and different than one would expect.

The topics are thought-provoking (although not always 100% convincing, it does make you think deeply about many issues) and the book is easy to read. The authors' goal of transforming their articles in economics journals into a book for everyone is a success. These economists even inject some humor throughout the book! Overall, I recommend this book to all sports fans, particularly NBA fans.

6 people found this helpful

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Adam R

The Wages of Wins

Reviewed in the United States on November 22, 2009

Verified Purchase

Fantastic read. Not something that one can read quickly or just skim if one hopes to get the most out of the book. There is a lot of analysis that takes time to comprehend in order to most appreciate the messages of the various chapters/topics. This book is best to read when one has a lot of quiet time as opposed to reading bits and pieces riding on the bus or waiting in the doctors waiting room. I certainly have enjoyed reading it even though one reads at a slower pace compared to reading some fiction novel. Great book !!!!

Helpful

Bret Dougherty

Great Topics, Good Value

Reviewed in the United States on March 18, 2007

Verified Purchase

"Who's the best of all-time?" "Who's better than Tom Brady?!" "Kobe is MVP!" When the conversations turn to sports, those types of questions always linger and don't leave my head for a while after a intense discussion...Then again, maybe, my ears are just ringing too hard.

Yet, these authors take a start at answering the myths and bombastic statements that surround sports and people's love and affinities for teams and athletes.

Like "Moneyball" proved, people tend to form their opinions from their own experiences in life, and they refuse to look at statistical evidence to support their theories. Yet, these authors utilize stats to show the holes in the myths such as why payroll and wins are highly coorelated, why quarterbacks should be judged by their Super Bowl rings, or why you can't give a true statistical value to basketball players and teams. The authors give solid evidence to support theories such as when the law of diminishing returns really does enter the picture in terms of productivity, why points are overvalued and why Kevin Garnett is the best player in the NBA, and just how valuable a NFL QB really is.

I still believe in the heart of an athlete and the role that a person has within a team. And, I found that the book doesn't give full due to the values of team chemistry, the effects of injuries, or how much value a role player like Manu Ginobili or Ron Harper can derive from other players on their team. However, the book not only makes a solid effort at answering the myths of sport, but I also realized how bizarre the statements and hype delivered by sports blowhards on TV and Talk Radio really are. That's why I give a thumbs-up to this read. The authors put substance behind the bizarre statements made by blow-hards and so-called experts.

Pick this up, and you'll be surprised at how far you'll be in front of the pack. That's a strong value.

3 people found this helpful

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KA

A Must for any Sports Fan!

Reviewed in the United States on October 13, 2014

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The reality is this belongs on the book of every sports fan. All of us have believed so many things about sports for years. We've believed work stoppages drive fans away, or that Michael Jordan was the reason the Bulls were the greatest team ever. Lost in these narratives are the nitty gritty science and economics that show how sports really tick. Dave, Martin, and Stacey delve deep into sports' underbelly to reveal what you've been missing.

One person found this helpful

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Mark S

This book is the difference between TV's 'experts', and actual experts who study sports

Reviewed in the United States on June 2, 2015

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One of my favourite books about sports - for the thinking fan only! Do not buy if you're more interested in NFL players getting arrested than the optimal distribution economic assets!

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