Without placing some sort of snarky value judgement on the concept of analytics versus the "eye test" debate, I believe we on Denver Stiffs (particularly in the comment section) have stumbled on to what I consider the crux of the issue. Mid-range two point shots. The most derided/defended shot I have seen in recent years.
I'd like this debate to continue in the comment section below, primarily because the debate has been an actual debate without descending into some bitchy slap fight between analytics people and people who aren't stats inclined. This can help further the development of stats that can better quantify the shot in itself without the broad "this is bad/inefficient" bromide. Please, continue the debate.
I’ll throw in my two cents. I’ve always felt that if you are good at something you should keep doing it. The context I’ve used this with (in four seasons of writing for Denver Stiffs) is Carmelo Anthony and whether or not he needs to pass the ball more. I’ve always argued that you want an engaged Melo, who is good at one thing, rather than forcing him to change his mentality and suddenly become LeBron James. In that sense, we come to Darrell Arthur, who seems to be a master at hitting the long mid-range two point shot. He’s good at it. Analytics define that shot as inefficient, so would it be better to have him step back a couple feet? The value of a three-point is greater than a long two. Seems to make sense.
I'd say that, even that slight bit of change can mess with a guy's mental focus. If the guy is good at making that one shot, shouldn't we just continue to let him make said shot? Two points is two points right? The 80's high scoring Nuggets teams lived on mid-rage shots. It involved ball movement to get the open shot. Obviously things have changed dramatically since then, but that is just one example.
That seems to be the disparate angles of this debate. I found reading the comments to be highly informative. I want us to move beyond "mid-range bad/three-point good" and help refine the stats to better reflect situational shot making and how, if employed well, the mid-range two point shot can benefit your team and its offense.
