Title: New Coaches and Team Shot Selection Changes
Date: November 13, 2014
Original Source: Nylon Calculus
Synopsis: This article looked at early-season changes to team-level shot mix, specifically for teams who made coaching changes.
Things change quickly in the NBA, except for when they don’t. Rosters are more fluid than ever and coaches have been carouseled over the past few seasons, but each offseason the continuity drum is beaten.
While we’re not very far into the season – about 8.7 percent of the way through Tuesday’s games – it’s never too early to look for trends (otherwise Nylon Calculus would only exist after the vaunted 20-game mark). At the team level, there appear to be some fundamental changes in the shot selection for some teams. That is, teams are running their offense differently, or at least firing from different spots on the floor at different rates. That’s not necessarily surprising with nine teams employing a new head coach and 11 teams returning less than two-thirds of their minutes (based on John Schuhmann’s continuity rating).
At the league level, it’s little secret that the proportion of 3-point shots has been on the rise, significantly so over the last few seasons. That’s not the case in the early going, however, as the league-wide shot mix remains for the most part unchanged from a year ago.
Continue reading at Nylon Calculus.
Blake Murphy Sports Writing 