Defenses, Fouling Rates, and Winning Championships, and Don't be Snookered About the Nuggets' 2008-09 Defense

TOP NBA POINT GUARDS OF 2011-2012 (complete regular season)
Each year QFTR publishes Real Player Ratings for every player in the NBA who has played at least 300 minutes. Real Player Ratings are comprehensive player ratings that are very carefully designed and quality controlled. Starting in 2012, the Ratings are supplemented by seven per 36 minutes charts which show player performance in seven of the very most important performance measures, all of which are components of Real Player Ratings (but there are other components that go into Real Player Ratings). These charts are stationed on the home page at all times. This is most likely the only place on the Internet where this key player information is shown in this optimal way.

Here we have the leading point guards of the NBA in 2011-2012 ranked according to number of plays made per 36 minutes playing time. This is "AST" in the chart. The assists and all other items shown in the chart other than the percentages and the minutes played are per 36 minutes, which is much smarter to use than per game numbers.

For this and all the other charts, a minimum of 300 minutes of playing time is required. A player must have made at least 6 assists per 36 minutes (or at least 1 assist every 6 minutes) to be shown here.

This is one of the seven "7/36 Charts". A short user guide for these is found in this Report.

Here now are how the best point guards in the NBA in 2011-2012 rated and ranked:

Player               Tm   MP   FG  FGA  3P 3PA  FT FTA ORB DRB  AST STL BLK TOV  PF  PTS  FG%  3P%  FT%
Steve Nash          PHO 1961  5.4 10.2 1.0 2.6 2.3 2.6 0.5 2.9 12.2 0.7 0.1 4.2 1.0 14.2 .532 .390 .894
Rajon Rondo         BOS 1957  4.7 10.5 0.2 0.8 2.0 3.3 1.1 3.6 11.4 1.7 0.1 3.6 1.8 11.6 .448 .238 .597
Jose Calderon       TOR 1799  4.4  9.5 1.2 3.2 1.2 1.4 0.4 2.8  9.4 0.9 0.1 2.1 1.9 11.1 .457 .371 .882
Chris Paul          LAC 2181  7.0 14.7 1.3 3.5 4.3 5.0 0.7 2.8  9.0 2.5 0.1 2.0 2.3 19.6 .478 .371 .861
Andre Miller        DEN 1809  4.8 11.0 0.4 1.7 2.7 3.4 1.1 3.3  8.8 1.3 0.2 3.5 2.6 12.7 .438 .217 .811
Tony Parker         SAS 1923  8.0 16.7 0.3 1.1 4.2 5.3 0.4 2.8  8.7 1.1 0.1 2.9 1.4 20.5 .480 .230 .799
Jamaal Tinsley      UTA  507  4.0 10.0 0.7 2.6 0.9 1.2 0.4 2.8  8.7 1.2 0.6 3.7 3.3  9.7 .404 .270 .765
Deron Williams      NJN 1999  7.0 17.3 2.1 6.2 4.6 5.5 0.4 2.9  8.7 1.2 0.4 3.9 2.2 20.8 .407 .336 .843
Ricky Rubio         MIN 1404  3.6 10.0 0.8 2.4 3.2 4.0 0.5 3.8  8.6 2.3 0.2 3.4 2.5 11.2 .357 .340 .803
Jonny Flynn         TOT  416  4.0 11.3 0.9 2.9 2.5 3.4 0.7 2.7  8.3 0.5 0.2 3.1 2.0 11.3 .351 .294 .744
Jeremy Lin          NYK  940  6.5 14.7 0.9 2.9 5.6 7.0 0.7 3.4  8.3 2.1 0.3 4.8 3.0 19.6 .446 .320 .798
Baron Davis         NYK  595  4.1 11.1 1.6 5.1 1.0 1.5 0.8 2.6  8.2 2.1 0.2 4.6 3.7 10.8 .370 .306 .667
Jose Barea          MIN 1032  5.8 14.6 1.8 5.0 2.7 3.4 0.5 3.5  8.1 0.7 0.0 3.6 2.1 16.2 .400 .371 .776
Derrick Rose        CHI 1375  7.9 18.2 1.4 4.5 5.1 6.3 0.7 2.7  8.0 0.9 0.7 3.1 1.4 22.3 .435 .312 .812
John Wall           WAS 2386  5.7 13.5 0.0 0.6 4.8 6.1 0.7 3.8  8.0 1.4 0.9 3.8 2.1 16.2 .423 .071 .789
D.J. Augustin       CHA 1408  4.7 12.5 1.6 4.6 2.7 3.1 0.6 2.2  7.8 0.9 0.0 2.8 1.7 13.6 .376 .341 .875
Beno Udrih          MIL 1080  4.9 11.1 0.6 2.0 1.3 1.8 0.9 2.5  7.6 1.2 0.0 2.6 2.3 11.6 .440 .288 .709
Greivis Vasquez     NOH 1706  4.7 11.0 0.9 2.8 2.0 2.5 0.5 3.2  7.6 1.3 0.2 3.1 2.7 12.4 .430 .319 .821
Earl Watson         UTA 1033  1.9  5.6 0.3 1.8 1.1 1.6 1.0 3.2  7.6 1.9 0.8 3.0 3.7  5.2 .338 .192 .674
Ramon Sessions      TOT 1707  5.1 11.9 0.9 2.0 4.1 5.2 0.7 3.8  7.5 0.9 0.1 3.0 2.1 15.2 .428 .443 .782
Player               Tm   MP   FG  FGA  3P 3PA  FT FTA ORB DRB  AST STL BLK TOV  PF  PTS  FG%  3P%  FT%
Raymond Felton      POR 1906  4.9 12.1 1.2 3.8 1.9 2.3 0.5 2.3  7.4 1.5 0.2 3.2 2.3 12.9 .407 .305 .806
Kyle Lowry          HOU 1510  5.0 12.2 1.9 5.0 4.1 4.7 0.9 4.2  7.4 1.7 0.3 3.1 3.2 16.0 .409 .374 .864
Goran Dragic        HOU 1752  5.7 12.3 1.4 4.2 3.1 3.9 1.1 2.4  7.2 1.7 0.2 3.2 3.4 15.9 .462 .337 .805
Nate Robinson       GSW 1192  6.2 14.6 2.0 5.5 2.8 3.4 0.5 2.6  7.0 1.8 0.1 2.3 3.6 17.2 .424 .365 .832
Manu Ginobili       SAS  792  6.8 13.0 2.4 5.7 4.0 4.6 0.8 4.5  6.9 1.1 0.5 2.9 2.5 20.0 .526 .413 .871
Charles Jenkins     GSW  893  5.2 11.7 0.1 0.8 1.4 1.6 0.3 2.4  6.9 1.3 0.2 2.4 3.4 12.0 .447 .150 .872
Jason Kidd          DAL 1379  2.6  7.1 2.1 5.8 0.6 0.7 0.4 4.8  6.9 2.1 0.3 2.4 2.2  7.8 .363 .354 .786
Jameer Nelson       ORL 1706  5.5 12.8 1.8 4.9 1.5 1.9 0.6 3.2  6.9 0.8 0.1 2.8 2.7 14.3 .427 .377 .807
Stephen Curry       GSW  732  7.1 14.6 2.7 6.0 1.9 2.3 0.7 3.6  6.8 1.9 0.4 3.2 3.0 18.8 .490 .455 .809
Ty Lawson           DEN 2124  6.3 13.0 1.2 3.4 3.0 3.7 0.9 2.9  6.8 1.4 0.1 2.5 1.6 16.9 .488 .365 .824
Mike Conley         MEM 2174  4.9 11.3 1.0 2.6 2.3 2.6 0.4 2.2  6.7 2.3 0.2 2.1 2.2 13.0 .433 .377 .861
Jarrett Jack        NOH 1530  6.3 13.7 0.9 2.6 3.0 3.5 0.5 3.6  6.7 0.7 0.2 2.5 2.2 16.5 .456 .348 .872
Devin Harris        UTA 1741  5.0 11.2 1.6 4.4 3.2 4.3 0.2 2.1  6.5 1.3 0.3 2.5 2.8 14.8 .445 .362 .746
Kyrie Irving        CLE 1558  8.1 17.3 1.7 4.2 4.0 4.5 1.0 3.4  6.4 1.2 0.5 3.7 2.5 21.8 .469 .399 .872
C.J. Watson         CHI 1159  5.0 13.6 2.1 5.4 2.6 3.2 0.7 2.6  6.2 1.4 0.2 3.0 3.2 14.7 .368 .393 .808
Shelvin Mack        WAS  779  4.1 10.2 0.6 1.9 1.9 2.7 0.6 3.7  6.1 1.3 0.1 2.2 2.3 10.6 .400 .286 .712
Jerryd Bayless      TOR  705  6.0 14.1 2.2 5.3 3.8 4.5 0.4 3.0  6.0 1.2 0.2 2.7 3.6 18.0 .424 .423 .852
LeBron James        MIA 2326  9.6 18.1 0.8 2.3 6.0 7.8 1.5 6.2  6.0 1.8 0.8 3.3 1.5 26.0 .531 .362 .771

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Defenses, Fouling Rates, and Winning Championships, and Don't be Snookered About the Nuggets' 2008-09 Defense

Let's get things straight regarding the 2008-09 Nuggets defense. There are several myths about it, two of them huge:

MYTH: The Nuggets are one of the very best defensive teams in the NBA this year.
REALITY: This is false, unless you consider 8th best to be one of the very best. Seven teams all had better defenses this year. Here is the defensive efficiency for the top 15 teams (points allowed per 100 possessions, with the sample being more than 6,000 possessions) so even tiny differences mean a significant, real world difference:

DEFENSIVE EFFICIENCY AND FOULS PER GAME
NBA BEST 15 DEFENSES
2008-09 SEASON

1 Orlando Magic 101.9//20.3 fouls per game
2 Boston Celtics 102.3//23.1 fouls per game
3 Cleveland Cavaliers 102.4//20.3 fouls per game
4 Houston Rockets 104.0//18.9 fouls per game
5 San Antonio Spurs 104.3//18.9 fouls per game
6 Los Angeles Lakers 104.7//20.7 fouls per game
7 Charlotte Bobcats 106.1//21.4 fouls per game
8 Denver Nuggets 106.8//22.9 fouls per game
9 New Orleans Hornets 107.0//20.3 fouls per game
10 Utah Jazz 107.2/22.3 fouls per game
11 Atlanta Hawks 107.6//19.6 fouls per game
12 Miami Heat 107.6//20.7 fouls per game
13 Portland Trail Blazers 107.8//20.4 fouls per game
14 Philadelphia 76ers 107.8//20.1 fouls per game
15 Milwaukee Bucks 107.9//24.2 fouls per game

As you can see, the Nuggets don't really have a top rated defense. Houston, the Lakers, the Magic, the Cavaliers, the Celtics, the Spurs, even the Bobcats have a more efficient defense this year. The Nuggets are fronting that they have the best defense; they are as much out to intimidate offensive players as they are to defeat them within the rules.

You know, you likely can not possibly have one of the very best defenses in the League if you insist on being one of the very fastest paced teams. You tell me how you are going to be one of the top 3-4 teams in the NBA defensively while also being a very fast paced team. I honestly have no idea how you would do that. It seems to me that the Nuggets' strategies are not fitting together all that well here.

Notice too that the Nuggets have used a very large number of fouls this year, 22.9 fouls per game, or 1,875 fouls. This is much more than last year, when it was 21.1 fouls per game, or 1,730 fouls. Notice that seemingly small differences in the per game rate translate into a large number.

Remember always that an unknown number of fouls are not called. Quest is on a long term quest to come up with at least a very rough estimate of how many fouls are not called. Don't expect the results of that complicated investigation for awhile.

In fact, why don't we look at the complete list of fouls per game. You will notice that high rates of fouling are generally associated with losing teams, not winning teams.

But for the losing teams, the high rate of fouling is due mostly to lack of defensive skill, whereas the Nuggets, a way above average but not an extremely high defensive skills team as the Jazz are, have clearly adopted a high fouling rate intentionally.

The Nuggets are using what defensive skills they have in overdrive. They are fouling more than they should be based on their skill level. In order to win the Quest for the Ring, you have to correctly calibrate your fouling rate to your defensive skill level. The more highly skilled you are, the more fouls you are "entitled" to. And vice versa.

If you foul more times than you are entitled to, you will eventually run up against a brick wall formed by the League, the referees, and by the high quality offense you are playing in the playoffs. You will not win a Championship doing that.

A team in defensive overdrive leads to flagrant fouls, technical fouls, injuries, and pregame meetings between League officials and referees, so that marching orders can be given regarding how to keep the game under control. And probably other bad things, like loss of morale and enthusiasm.

FOULS PER GAME
2008-09 NBA Regular Season
Even tiny differences are significant

1 SanAntonioSpurs 18.85
2 HoustonRockets 18.94
3 TorontoRaptors 19.43
4 DallasMavericks 19.51
5 AtlantaHawks 19.65
6 LAClippers 20.12
7 Philadelphia76ers 20.12
8 OklahomaCityThunder 20.18
9 ClevelandCavaliers 20.28
10 OrlandoMagic 20.29
11 NOrleansHornets 20.30
12 PortlandTrailBlazers 20.38
13 NYKnicks 20.39
14 WashingtonWizards 20.48
15 PhoenixSuns 20.62
16 MiamiHeat 20.68
17 LALakers 20.71
18 ChicagoBulls 20.84
19 DetroitPistons 20.88
20 CharlotteBobcats 21.39
21 MemphisGrizzlies 21.67
22 MinnesotaT-wolves 21.77
23 UtahJazz 22.32
24 NJNets 22.41
25 GSWarriors 22.46
26 DenverNuggets 22.87
27 IndianaPacers 23.11
28 BostonCeltics 23.13
29 SacramentoKings 23.29
30 MilwaukeeBucks 24.22

A difference of .10 is 8 fouls, a difference of 1.00 is 82 fouls. Check this out for example. The Houston Rockets committed 1,553 fouls this season, whereas the Nuggets committed 1,875 fouls this season! And the Rockets finished as the 4th best defense (104.0 points allowed per 100 possessions) whereas the Nuggets finished as the 8th best defense (106.8 points allowed per 100 possessions).

So obviously you do not have to be a high fouling team to have a really good defense. Defenses can win Championships, but it is much easier for them to win them if they are medium or low fouling defenses than if they are high fouling defenses. Never forget that.

Very, very few Championships have been won by great defenses that are also high fouling defenses. The Celtics' 2008 Championship was one of only a tiny number of Championships won by a high fouling rate team.

And remember, not all fouls are even detected, so the differences between the fouling rates are understated. And also remember, there is an unwritten rule that officials can not call more than a grand total of between 50 and 70 fouls in a game, due to how extremely ugly the game gets (all free throws) if it goes beyond that. There has to be a limit.

DO YOU NEED TO BE A HIGH FOULING TEAM TO CONTEND FOR A CHAMPIONSHIP?
Definitely not. You are most definitely NOT supposed to have to be a high fouling team in order to contend for a Championship. You should generally not do what George Karl has done this year. You should not intentionally run up the foul counts, in an attempt to intimidate and "beat down" the other team, even if you know that by doing that you can get cheap, easy scores off of uncalled fouls.

Why not? Simply because sooner or later you will run into a brick wall. A team with a full scale offense and a quality defense will not be very much intimidated or disrupted by all the fouling, especially when they get very ticked off about it.

They will adapt by, for example, passing more and by driving into the lane in such a way that the referees are more likely to call a foul than not. There are different ways to drive, and some ways are better than others when it comes to getting the foul call. The best offensive teams know what to do to get those foul calls, even if it's like pulling teeth with a given crew of referees.

Also, sooner or later, the referrees will throw the book at you, although it may not be as soon as I thought, laugh out loud. How many games can you afford to just about forfeit when the referees do throw the book at you? You may not be able to afford any such games.

WHAT ABOUT THE CELTICS AND THE JAZZ?
The Celtics and the Jazz have high fouling rates also, so what's up with that?

The Utah Jazz have, according to the Defensive Subrating of the Real Player Ratings, five players with defensive skill levels higher than anyone on the Nuggets:

UTAH JAZZ DEFENDERS
DEFENDING SUBRATING
2008-09 SEASON
As of Feb. 25, 2009

Andrei Kirilenko 0.611
Matt Harpring 0.563
Brevin Knight 0.550
Kosta Koufos 0.547
Paul Millsap 0.529
Kyle Korver 0.461
Carlos Boozer 0.356
Mehmet Okur 0.291
Ronnie Price 0.271
Ronnie Brewer 0.225
Deron Williams 0.147
C.J. Miles 0.070

BOSTON CELTICS DEFENDERS
DEFENDING SUBRATING
2008-09 SEASON
As of Feb. 25, 2009
Kevin Garnett 0.539
Leon Powe 0.429
Gabe Pruitt 0.382
Kendrick Perkins 0.355
Rajon Rondo 0.328
Paul Pierce 0.322
Ray Allen 0.322
Tony Allen 0.290
Eddie House 0.277
Glen Davis 0.230
Brian Scalabrine 0.052

DENVER NUGGETS DEFENDERS
DEFENDING SUBRATING
2008-09 SEASON
As of Feb. 25, 2009
Nene Hilario 0.493
Chris Andersen 0.431
Kenyon Martin 0.415
J.R. Smith 0.409
Renaldo Balkman 0.379
Carmelo Anthony 0.362
Anthony Carter 0.329
Chauncey Billups† 0.293
Linas Kleiza 0.201
Dahntay Jones 0.195

THE UTAH JAZZ VERSUS THE DENVER NUGGETS DEFENSIVELY AND OVERALL
Notice that the Jazz are more loaded with very highly skilled defenders than are the Nuggets. This gives them a "license" to foul a lot and not be considered to be in the wrong.

You have the option to have a high fouling rate if you load up on defensively skilled players and expect to get wins with them. If you know for a fact you are one of the most defensively skilled teams in your League, in the top 15% or so, and your players prefer to play rough, than go ahead and have a high foul rate, if you have some luck and understanding from the refs then it might work out for you.

But you had better be sure you know how to keep on the good side of the refs.

But wait a minute, you say, the Nuggets loaded up on defensively skilled players and expected to get wins from them, so they should have a high fouling rate too, right?

Wrong, for several reasons. First, the Jazz have been loading their team like this for years and years, whereas the Nuggets are a Johnny come lately. The Nuggets have not learned how to run a heavy fouling defense without having the referees throw the book at them. Second, the Jazz' highly skilled defenders are very highly paid, established veterans who are well known by the referees. The Nuggets are not. Third, the Jazz' defenders are more skilled than are the Nuggets defenders; they have more skill to back up their fouling. Fourth, the Jazz run a traditional, conventional, high quality offense, whereas the Nuggets are trying to live off the fouls (the uncalled fouls to be exact) themselves on offense.

THE BOSTON CELTICS: THE 2007-08 CHAMPIONSHIP TEAM, IN 2008-09, AND VERSUS THE NUGGETS
As for the Celtics, even with Garnett they are this year not so much skilled defenders as they are rough and tough defenders in the Nuggets mode.

The Celtics were a high fouling team last year too, when they won the Quest. But they were a much more highly skilled team last year defensively than this year. Last year the Celtics allowed only 98.9 points per 100 possessions, while this year it is 102.3. Last year the Celtics were by a country mile the best defense in the NBA, so the risk they were running that the referees would throw the book at them for fouling a lot was low or very low.

But overall, the Nuggets are on the right track, because they are just doing what the Celtics have been doing? Right?

Wrong. Boston used the heavy fouling aspect of it's League leading defense more as an insurance policy to win the Championship than as the primary weapon to win it. The primary weapon was the extremely high quality defense itself.

Also, and just as importantly, the Celtics last year had a well run and powerful offense, spearheaded by Garnett down low, Ray Allen up high, Paul Pierce all over the place, and Rajon Rondo being a truly outstanding point guard. They had a relatively slow pace, and did not heavily rely on easy scores off of missed foul calls and long rebounds.

Although the Nuggets' offense this year is about as good as the Celtics' Quest winning offense was last year, the way they were run was completely different. The Celtics, unlike the Nuggets, did not heavily piggyback their offense on their defense.

During last years' Celtics' Quest, the Hawks took the Celtics to seven games in round one, the Cavaliers took the Celtics to seven games in round two, and the Pistons took the Celtics to six games in round three, before the Celtics won the Quest for the Ring by defeating the Lakers 4-2 in the 2008 Championsip. So obviously, even for the Celtics, with their much more traditional and conventional offense than the Nuggets have this year, and their far higher defensive quality, winning the Championship with a high fouling rate was a risky strategy.

It's substantially easier, and less risky along the way, to win a Championship with a medium or low fouling rate than it is to win one with a high fouling rate.

If you bring a quality offense to the court and you have a very high quality, intimidating defense that you know for sure can benefit from a high fouling rate, then go for it. If the refs don't like you for some reason you will not win a Championship that way. If you lose a game or two in a key series due to flagrant fouls, technical fouls, or a fight, you can be bounced out right there.

But if you know how to stay on the good side of the referees, and so they keep liking you, the Celtics and a tiny number of other Championship teams have demonstrated that you can win a ring even if you foul early and often.

How exactly you stay on the good side of the referees has been discussed from time to time at Quest, and will be again in the future.

But if your offense is based more on smoke and mirrors, if it's dependent almost completely on that high fouling defense and on fast breaking, then you really have no business running a high fouling rate defense, unless you have a Utah Jazz level of defender quality, unless in other words you have one of the very most highly skilled defensive teams.

If you do that, as the Nuggets are doing this year, whether or not the refs throw the book at you, and if they don't you might get a few playoff wins, you will not be winning a Championship with inadequate playmaking and no offensive identity in the traditional sense.

It is far, far easier to win a Chanmpionship with a quality offense that is not too far off the beaten track in terms of pace and playmaking, and with a medium or low fouling rate, than it is to win one with a high fouling rate and an offense fueled off of that.

Moreover, you can much more easily win a Championship with a great defense that has a low fouling rate than one that has a high fouling rate. Do not make the stupid mistake to think that you have to have a high fouling rate in order to have a high quality defense. Do not try to mock San Antonio for example, the joke will only be on you.

THE FOUR CHAMPIONSHIPS OF THE SPURS
San Antonio won four Championships, in 1999, 2003, 2005, and 2007, more so with defense than with offense. But they in every case committed a lot fewer fouls than their opponents did. And they did have a traditional, conventional, high quality offense, and one not highly dependent on their defense.

In summary, a high fouling rate is often a cheap shortcut that fails in the playoffs, with some exceptions as discussed in this report.

SUMMARY: PREREQUISITES FOR BEING A HIGH FOULING TEAM
1. You are one of the very best defensive teams in the NBA, one of top five at a rock bottom minimum, preferably one of the top three.

2. Your players prefer or are better at a rougher, higher fouling type of defending than a more skill oriented fouling.

3. The majority of your defensive players who you are going to allow to foul a lot are veterans who are well known by most of the referees to be skilled defensive players. And your veteran defensive players know how to remain on the good side of the referees. It's easy to tell how good any defensive player who has been given the green light to foul a lot is at staying on the good side of the referees: how often does he get into foul trouble? Foul trouble and especially fouling out has to be pretty rare, or you can not successfully use a high fouling strategy.

4. Though it does not have to be necessarily one of the best offenses in the League, you need to have a good quality offense that is not too far off the beaten track in terms of pace and the way it is run. It should have playmaking and offensive identity.

5. Your offense should not be excessively, extremely dependent on your defense.

If and only if you meet EVERY ONE of the above, as the Boston Celtics did last year, but as the Nuggets do not meet this year, go for it. Run the rough, heavy fouling type of defense. But don't get carried away now and end up thrown out of games!

SUMMARY OF THE NUGGETS 2008-09
George Karl's scheme this year, to put it simply, is to say to hell with offense, I don't even want to hear the word offense. I have never won a title, and I have decided to conduct this experiment where I see how far I can get with heavy duty fouling, and scoring as many easy points as possible off my defense.

When all is said and done, it's nothing more than a relatively cheap, short-cut way to run a team. On the other hand, it was enough for Denver to finally win a few playoff games, the first four of them though thanks also to New Orleans being the walking wounded, and one more of them due to the referees botching the intentional foul call at the end of game 3.

MYTH: The Denver Nuggets have a better defense this year than last year.
REALITY: The Nuggets had a better defense last year. That's right, you the fooled public. I repeat, the Nuggets had a better defense last year. Not a whole lot better, but better:

Nuggets 2008-09: 106.8 points allowed per 100 possessions, 8th ranked in NBA
Nuggets 2007-08: 106.3 points allowed per 100 possessions, 10th ranked in NBA

But you see, to put it simply, last year the Nuggets did defense the right way. And this year they are doing it the wrong way.

The Nuggets started the 2009 playoffs by beating up on the walking wounded Hornets. But anyone can beat up on a heavily banged up team. So what?

THE CURRENT SITUATION
Last night, the Mavericks tied the series 2-2 with the Thuggets with a masterful 119-117 win over the supposedly top rated Denver defense. 119 points. And now it's 2-2 in this series.

Oh wait, the referees really, really have a lot of disturbing affection for the Thuggets, so it's not 2-2. My bad.

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QFTR NEEDS LINKS OTHER THAN GOOGLE SEARCH LINKS
Fortunately, QFTR is indexed by Google Search to a good extent and obviously, Google Search is who you most want to be producing links for you. So we are way ahead of the near zero traffic that most newer, independent, non-celebrity sites that started with zero traffic get. But the law of unintended consequences has struck and much of the traffic we are getting from Google Search is not exactly the traffic we are most looking for. But to be clear, a small percentage of the traffic we are getting from Google Search is exactly what we are looking for and maybe it's just a rule that you have to get a lot of unimportant traffic in order to get the important traffic.

We are getting a lot of traffic to Reports that are older and/or or not the very most important ones on the Site. And we are getting a lot of "hit and run" traffic. Many of the Site visitors QFTR is getting from Google Search are the hit and run type. But like any other site producer, QFTR values returning visitors much more than "hit and run and never come back" visitors.

Most hit and run visitors are not really looking for much to begin with, and then many of them run away so quickly that they don't even get what little they came for even though it was there in front of them. So it would appear that most hit and run visitors are wasting their time. What happens is Google Search leads them to QFTR but not exactly to the page they want. But then the hit and run losers run so fast that they don't put in the 1-5 minutes needed to locate exactly what they want at QFTR. So they leave empty handed. So again, this is the kind of traffic that is better than nothing, and we do count all traffic as traffic, but it is not exactly what we are looking for.

Given the high level and unique nature of QFTR, it is possible that the traffic we are looking for doesn't exist to any significant extent, but we can't know that for sure unless and until more links to QFTR appear in places other than at Google Search. Specifically, right now only a very small number of basketball and sports sites link to QFTR, and we are looking for more of those. Since QFTR is literally a one of a kind site, bridging various content gaps that exist, it is no surprise that we have very few other sites linking to QFTR. We want to do everything possible to change that, and this message is partly what allows us to rest easy from knowing that everything possible was done.

Our traffic wishes are ridiculously modest. The number of and the frequency of Quest Reports would be up to double what they are if traffic was higher. More specifically, if QFTR obtained the traffic we know it deserves, and given the production math discussed above, production would go from the equivalent of roughly four books about basketball a year to five, six or seven books a year. We will increase production within that range in a linear, pro rata way. So for example, if traffic were just a little bit higher than the threshold, we would produce a little more than four books a year.

WE NEED A GRAND TOTAL OF ABOUT 3 MINUTES OF YOUR TIME
So please take three or four minutes every now and then to recommend QFTR and post links to QFTR on your favorite sports and other sites. There are many contexts in which you can do this. For example, you can wherever possible link to a QFTR Report to back up what you are posting and writing. Or if you have a Site you can link to QFTR in the sidebar (or wherever you link to other Sites).

Here are some quick links that you can use to find a place where you might post a link to any QFTR Report or to QFTR in general....

AND HERE ARE MORE; HOVER YOUR MOUSE HERE TO EXPAND THIS MENU:

AFTER YOU LINK TO QFTR YOU CAN REQUEST ANOTHER REWARD
You can request a link at QFTR to your site. QFTR will on request strongly consider linking to your Site if you link to QFTR. If and when we get links to QFTR and people want QFTR to link back, we will do so in a new sidebar section. We can link to a home page or we can produce links to your latest content.

You may have something else in mind for a reward for linking to QFTR. If so, after linking to QFTR, feel free to e-mail QFTR at thequestforthering1. This is a gmail address, so you use @gmail.com after that address.

BASKETBALL FORUMS THAT ARE OPEN FOR CONTENT FROM ANYONE
Another place you can post links to QFTR Reports is at basketball forums. QFTR started out as a forum poster (and we wish we had the time to post at forums even now.)

As with everything else traffic varies widely from one forum to another. But basketball forums seem to have more staying power than basketball sites in general do.

Beware of "layered" sites. As far as we know, none of the following are layered sites, which are sites that allow contributions from the general public only in hard to find, low traffic areas, while the main areas are off limits for public input and are only for a chosen few. All of the following have at least some notable traffic, and all of them allow relatively equal and open participation. The order is from most recommended to least recommended, based on about half a dozen factors.

FORUMS THAT DO NOT USE TRADITIONAL FORUM TEMPLATES AKA OPEN POSTING SITES
Bleacher Report Open Posting Site
Armchair GM Open Posting Site

FORUMS THAT DO USE TRADITIONAL FORUM TEMPLATES
Inside Hoops NBA Forum
Real GM NBA and Team Forums
Pro Sports Daily NBA Forum
Hoops Hype NBA Forum
Sports Two NBA Forum
NBA Dimensions NBA Forum
NBA Boards NBA Forum
OTR Basketball Forums NBA Forum
Sporting News NBA Forum
KFFL NBA Forum

Notes: There may be a small number of newer forums not on this list (QFTR does not have the time for a full investigation here in 2012). Also, there were other forums when this list was first composed, but they were all very low traffic and low activity ones compared to the ones above. They may have much higher traffic now.

MESSAGE BOARDS AT HUGE COROPORATIONS
In general these are very high traffic but are largely worthless for getting getting quality traffic to sites like QFTR. The Fox NBA board is very low traffic, and the MSNBC NBA board doesn't exist anymore. The CBS Sports NBA Message Board is a layered site; you can NOT post topics nor expect to be considered seriously there until you have spent a few years posting there. We do not recommend CBS Sports. So the only real, fully open NBA forum hosted by a big corporation is the ESPN message board. Be forewarned though that the ESPN board is dominated by very young fans who make very short comments. On the other hand, it is a high traffic site, so we won't stop you from posting a Quest link at ESPN if you want to. (Welcome to the Internet, where the higher the traffic the more shallow the Site, and vice versa).

ESPN NBA Message Board

TOP NBA SCORERS CHART 1 OF 3 >>> TOP VOLUME SCORERS in 2011-2012 (complete regular season)
Each year QFTR publishes Real Player Ratings for every player in the NBA who has played at least 300 minutes. Real Player Ratings are comprehensive player ratings that are very carefully designed and quality controlled. Starting in 2012, the Ratings are supplemented by seven per 36 minutes charts which show player performance in seven of the very most important performance measures, all of which are components of Real Player Ratings (but there are other components that go into Real Player Ratings). These charts are stationed on the home page at all times. This is most likely the only place on the Internet where this key player information is shown in this optimal way.

Here we have the top scorers of the NBA in 2011-2012 as indicated by points per 36 minutes playing time. This is "PTS" in the chart. The points and all other items shown in the chart other than the percentages and the minutes played are per 36 minutes, which is much smarter to use than per game numbers.

For this and all the other charts, a minimum of 300 minutes of playing time is required. A player must have scored at least 18 points per 36 minutes (which is 1 point every 2 minutes) to be shown here. Also, a minimum shooting percentage (field goal percentage) of .400 is required. Players with field goal (shooting) percentages of .399 or less are disqualified from being on this list of top scorers.

This is one of the seven "7/36 Charts". A short user guide for these is found in this Report.

Here now are how the top scorers in the NBA in 2011-2012 rated and ranked:

Player               Tm   MP   FG  FGA  3P 3PA  FT FTA ORB  DRB AST STL BLK TOV  PF  PTS  FG%  3P%  FT%
Kevin Durant        OKC 2546  9.1 18.3 1.9 4.9 6.1 7.1 0.6  6.9 3.3 1.2 1.1 3.5 1.9 26.2 .496 .387 .860
Kobe Bryant         LAL 2232  9.3 21.5 1.4 4.6 6.1 7.3 1.1  4.0 4.3 1.1 0.3 3.3 1.7 26.1 .430 .303 .845
LeBron James        MIA 2326  9.6 18.1 0.8 2.3 6.0 7.8 1.5  6.2 6.0 1.8 0.8 3.3 1.5 26.0 .531 .362 .771
Russell Westbrook   OKC 2331  8.9 19.6 1.0 3.0 5.3 6.4 1.5  3.2 5.6 1.7 0.3 3.7 2.3 24.1 .457 .316 .823
Kevin Love          MIN 2145  8.0 17.8 1.8 4.7 6.4 7.7 3.8  8.5 1.9 0.8 0.5 2.1 2.6 24.0 .448 .372 .824
Dwyane Wade         MIA 1625  9.2 18.5 0.3 1.2 5.2 6.6 1.6  3.6 5.0 1.8 1.4 2.9 2.4 24.0 .497 .268 .791
Carmelo Anthony     NYK 1876  8.5 19.7 1.3 3.9 5.7 7.0 1.7  4.9 3.8 1.2 0.5 2.8 3.0 23.9 .430 .335 .804
Dirk Nowitzki       DAL 2079  8.2 17.9 1.4 3.7 5.5 6.1 0.8  6.5 2.4 0.7 0.5 2.0 2.2 23.2 .457 .368 .896
Derrick Rose        CHI 1375  7.9 18.2 1.4 4.5 5.1 6.3 0.7  2.7 8.0 0.9 0.7 3.1 1.4 22.3 .435 .312 .812
Kyrie Irving        CLE 1558  8.1 17.3 1.7 4.2 4.0 4.5 1.0  3.4 6.4 1.2 0.5 3.7 2.5 21.8 .469 .399 .872
LaMarcus Aldridge   POR 1994  8.7 17.0 0.0 0.2 4.0 4.9 2.7  5.3 2.4 0.9 0.8 2.0 2.8 21.5 .512 .182 .814
Eric Gordon         NOH  310  7.3 16.3 1.2 4.6 5.7 7.5 0.2  2.7 3.6 1.5 0.5 2.8 2.3 21.5 .450 .250 .754
DeMarcus Cousins    SAC 1950  8.3 18.4 0.0 0.3 4.8 6.9 4.9  8.1 1.9 1.7 1.4 3.1 4.7 21.4 .448 .143 .702
Andrea Bargnani     TOR 1032  7.3 16.9 1.2 4.0 5.3 6.0 0.8  5.2 2.1 0.6 0.5 2.4 1.8 21.0 .432 .296 .873
Deron Williams      NJN 1999  7.0 17.3 2.1 6.2 4.6 5.5 0.4  2.9 8.7 1.2 0.4 3.9 2.2 20.8 .407 .336 .843
Blake Griffin       LAC 2392  8.4 15.4 0.0 0.2 3.7 7.0 3.3  7.5 3.2 0.8 0.7 2.3 3.3 20.6 .549 .125 .521
Tony Parker         SAS 1923  8.0 16.7 0.3 1.1 4.2 5.3 0.4  2.8 8.7 1.1 0.1 2.9 1.4 20.5 .480 .230 .799
Paul Pierce         BOS 2075  6.8 15.4 1.7 4.7 5.1 6.0 0.6  4.9 4.8 1.2 0.5 3.0 2.6 20.5 .443 .366 .852
Louis Williams      PHI 1682  6.8 16.7 1.8 4.9 5.1 6.2 0.6  2.7 4.7 1.1 0.4 1.5 1.9 20.5 .407 .362 .812
Al Jefferson        UTA 2075  9.0 18.2 0.0 0.1 2.4 3.1 2.3  7.8 2.3 0.8 1.8 1.1 2.7 20.3 .492 .250 .774
Player               Tm   MP   FG  FGA  3P 3PA  FT FTA ORB  DRB AST STL BLK TOV  PF  PTS  FG%  3P%  FT%
Danny Granger       IND 2062  6.8 16.4 2.1 5.6 4.4 5.1 1.4  4.0 1.9 1.1 0.7 1.9 2.5 20.2 .416 .381 .873
Monta Ellis         TOT 2120  7.6 17.7 1.1 3.4 3.7 4.7 0.3  3.1 5.9 1.4 0.3 3.0 2.3 20.1 .433 .308 .796
Manu Ginobili       SAS  792  6.8 13.0 2.4 5.7 4.0 4.6 0.8  4.5 6.9 1.1 0.5 2.9 2.5 20.0 .526 .413 .871
Tim Duncan          SAS 1634  8.0 16.1 0.0 0.1 3.8 5.5 2.4  9.0 2.9 0.8 1.9 2.1 2.2 19.7 .492 .000 .695
Jeremy Lin          NYK  940  6.5 14.7 0.9 2.9 5.6 7.0 0.7  3.4 8.3 2.1 0.3 4.8 3.0 19.6 .446 .320 .798
Chris Paul          LAC 2181  7.0 14.7 1.3 3.5 4.3 5.0 0.7  2.8 9.0 2.5 0.1 2.0 2.3 19.6 .478 .371 .861
Brandon Jennings    MIL 2331  7.2 17.3 2.0 6.0 3.0 3.7 0.8  2.7 5.6 1.6 0.3 2.3 1.8 19.5 .418 .332 .808
David Lee           GSW 2121  7.9 15.6 0.0 0.1 3.7 4.8 2.9  6.3 2.7 0.9 0.4 2.5 3.0 19.5 .503 .000 .782
Michael Redd        PHO  770  6.7 16.8 2.0 6.2 4.1 5.2 0.7  2.9 1.5 0.6 0.0 1.7 1.4 19.5 .400 .318 .793
Dwight Howard       ORL 2070  7.2 12.6 0.0 0.1 4.9 9.9 3.5 10.2 1.8 1.4 2.0 3.0 2.8 19.4 .573 .000 .491
Kevin Martin        HOU 1264  6.3 15.3 2.2 6.4 4.6 5.1 0.4  2.6 3.1 0.8 0.1 2.0 2.0 19.4 .413 .347 .894
Jordan Crawford     WAS 1753  7.2 17.9 1.6 5.6 3.3 4.2 0.9  2.5 3.9 1.2 0.1 2.9 2.3 19.3 .400 .289 .793
James Harden        OKC 1946  5.7 11.6 2.1 5.4 5.8 6.8 0.6  4.1 4.2 1.1 0.3 2.5 2.8 19.3 .491 .390 .846
Marcus Thornton     SAC 1780  7.1 16.2 2.2 6.3 2.9 3.3 1.7  2.1 2.0 1.4 0.2 1.7 2.2 19.3 .438 .345 .865
Josh Smith          ATL 2329  7.8 17.0 0.4 1.7 3.1 5.0 2.1  7.7 4.0 1.4 1.8 2.5 2.7 19.2 .458 .257 .630
Amare Stoudemire    NYK 1543  7.4 15.3 0.1 0.5 4.3 5.7 2.5  6.1 1.2 0.9 1.0 2.6 3.2 19.2 .483 .238 .765
Andrew Bynum        LAL 2112  7.6 13.6 0.0 0.1 4.0 5.8 3.3  8.8 1.4 0.5 2.0 2.6 1.8 19.1 .558 .200 .692
Joe Johnson         ATL 2127  7.2 15.8 2.1 5.4 2.7 3.1 0.9  2.8 3.9 0.8 0.2 2.0 1.3 19.1 .454 .388 .849
Stephen Curry       GSW  732  7.1 14.6 2.7 6.0 1.9 2.3 0.7  3.6 6.8 1.9 0.4 3.2 3.0 18.8 .490 .455 .809
Drew Gooden         MIL 1469  7.0 16.1 0.4 1.3 4.3 5.1 3.2  5.7 3.5 1.1 0.8 2.7 2.7 18.8 .437 .291 .846
Player               Tm   MP   FG  FGA  3P 3PA  FT FTA ORB  DRB AST STL BLK TOV  PF  PTS  FG%  3P%  FT%
Antawn Jamison      CLE 2151  7.0 17.5 1.5 4.5 3.1 4.5 2.1  4.8 2.2 0.9 0.7 1.5 2.7 18.7 .403 .341 .683
Al Harrington       DEN 1761  7.1 15.8 2.1 6.2 2.4 3.6 1.5  6.5 1.8 1.2 0.2 2.3 3.7 18.6 .446 .333 .676
Nikola Pekovic      MIN 1264  7.3 12.9 0.0 0.0 4.0 5.3 5.2  4.7 0.9 0.8 0.9 2.5 2.8 18.5 .564      .743
Klay Thompson       GSW 1608  7.1 16.1 2.5 6.0 1.8 2.0 0.5  3.1 3.0 1.1 0.4 2.3 3.5 18.5 .443 .414 .868
Leandro Barbosa     TOT 1382  7.1 16.6 1.7 4.4 2.6 3.2 0.9  2.5 2.5 1.5 0.2 2.4 3.5 18.4 .425 .382 .815
Chris Bosh          MIA 2007  7.0 14.5 0.2 0.6 4.1 5.0 1.7  6.4 1.8 0.9 0.8 2.1 2.3 18.4 .487 .286 .821
Gerald Green        NJN  781  7.1 14.8 2.0 5.1 2.3 3.0 0.7  4.3 1.6 1.3 0.8 2.5 3.7 18.4 .481 .391 .754
Carl Landry         NOH  999  6.6 13.0 0.0 0.1 5.3 6.6 2.8  4.9 1.4 0.5 0.4 2.3 3.2 18.4 .503 .000 .799
Carlos Boozer       CHI 1948  8.3 15.6 0.0 0.0 1.8 2.5 2.1  8.3 2.3 1.2 0.4 2.1 3.1 18.3 .532 .000 .693
Kevin Garnett       BOS 1864  7.6 15.0 0.1 0.2 3.1 3.7 1.3  8.3 3.4 1.1 1.2 2.1 2.7 18.3 .503 .333 .857
Rudy Gay            MEM 2422  7.2 15.9 0.8 2.6 3.1 3.9 1.9  4.3 2.2 1.4 0.8 2.4 2.1 18.3 .455 .312 .791
Nick Young          TOT 1729  6.6 16.3 2.1 5.9 3.0 3.5 0.6  2.1 1.2 0.9 0.4 1.7 2.9 18.3 .403 .365 .852
Paul Millsap        UTA 2100  7.3 14.8 0.1 0.5 3.5 4.4 3.1  6.6 2.6 2.0 0.9 1.9 3.8 18.2 .495 .226 .792
Jerryd Bayless      TOR  705  6.0 14.1 2.2 5.3 3.8 4.5 0.4  3.0 6.0 1.2 0.2 2.7 3.6 18.0 .424 .423 .852

TOP NBA SCORERS 2012 CHART 2 OF 3 >>> MOST EFFICIENT SCORERS in 2011-2012 (complete regular season)
Each year QFTR publishes Real Player Ratings for every player in the NBA who has played at least 300 minutes. Real Player Ratings are comprehensive player ratings that are very carefully designed and quality controlled. Starting in 2012, the Ratings are supplemented by seven per 36 minutes charts which show player performance in seven of the very most important performance measures, all of which are components of Real Player Ratings (but there are other components that go into Real Player Ratings). These charts are stationed on the home page at all times. This is most likely the only place on the Internet where this key player information is shown in this optimal way.

Here we have the most efficient scorers of the NBA in 2011-2012 as indicated by shooting percentage or in other words field goal percentage. This is "FG%" in the chart. All items shown in the chart other than the percentages and the minutes played are per 36 minutes, which is much smarter to use than per game numbers.

For this and all the other charts, a minimum of 300 minutes of playing time is required. To be on this chart, players had to have a shooting percentage of .500 or higher AND they have to have scored at least 9 points per 36 minutes.

This is one of the seven "7/36 Charts". A short user guide for these is found in this Report.

Here now are how the most efficient scorers in the NBA in 2011-2012 rated and ranked:

Player               Tm   MP   FG  FGA  3P 3PA  FT FTA ORB  DRB  AST STL BLK TOV  PF  PTS  FG%  3P%  FT%
Tyson Chandler      NYK 2061  4.2  6.2 0.0 0.0 3.8 5.5 3.7  7.0  1.0 1.0 1.6 1.8 3.2 12.2 .679 .000 .689
DeAndre Jordan      LAC 1798  4.1  6.5 0.0 0.0 1.5 2.8 4.0  6.9  0.3 0.6 2.7 1.5 3.8  9.7 .632 .000 .525
Tiago Splitter      SAS 1121  6.8 11.0 0.0 0.0 4.0 5.8 3.0  6.8  2.1 0.7 1.5 2.8 4.3 17.6 .618      .691
Brandan Wright      DAL  791  6.6 10.6 0.0 0.0 2.4 3.7 2.8  5.1  0.6 1.0 2.9 1.0 2.8 15.5 .618 .000 .634
Andris Biedrins     GSW  739  1.9  3.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.4 2.2  6.4  0.8 1.1 2.2 0.7 6.1  3.8 .609      .111
Kosta Koufos        DEN  792  5.2  8.7 0.0 0.0 1.5 2.5 4.3  7.4  0.7 1.1 1.9 1.5 4.4 12.0 .599      .600
Chris Wilcox        BOS  481  4.8  8.0 0.0 0.0 1.8 2.9 2.8  6.3  0.9 0.8 0.7 2.2 4.8 11.4 .598      .615
Nick Collison       OKC 1307  3.3  5.5 0.0 0.0 1.2 1.7 3.3  4.3  2.3 0.9 0.8 1.7 4.2  7.8 .597 .000 .710
Kenneth Faried      DEN 1037  6.3 10.7 0.0 0.0 3.8 5.7 4.9  7.3  1.2 1.2 1.6 1.9 4.0 16.4 .586      .665
Amir Johnson        TOR 1553  4.5  7.9 0.0 0.1 1.3 1.9 3.5  6.0  1.8 0.8 1.6 2.2 4.8 10.5 .576 .400 .690
Dwight Howard       ORL 2070  7.2 12.6 0.0 0.1 4.9 9.9 3.5 10.2  1.8 1.4 2.0 3.0 2.8 19.4 .573 .000 .491
Nikola Pekovic      MIN 1264  7.3 12.9 0.0 0.0 4.0 5.3 5.2  4.7  0.9 0.8 0.9 2.5 2.8 18.5 .564      .743
Joel Anthony        MIA 1349  2.3  4.1 0.0 0.0 1.3 1.9 2.7  4.0  0.2 1.0 2.2 1.2 3.4  5.8 .559      .690
Andrew Bynum        LAL 2112  7.6 13.6 0.0 0.1 4.0 5.8 3.3  8.8  1.4 0.5 2.0 2.6 1.8 19.1 .558 .200 .692
JaVale McGee        TOT 1535  7.2 12.9 0.0 0.0 1.8 3.9 3.8  7.4  0.7 0.8 3.1 2.0 3.9 16.2 .556      .461
Marcin Gortat       PHO 2114  7.3 13.1 0.0 0.0 2.8 4.3 3.2  8.1  1.0 0.8 1.7 1.5 2.4 17.3 .555 .000 .649
Al Horford          ATL  348  5.9 10.7 0.0 0.1 2.3 3.1 2.7  5.3  2.5 1.0 1.4 1.7 2.2 14.1 .553 .000 .733
Blake Griffin       LAC 2392  8.4 15.4 0.0 0.2 3.7 7.0 3.3  7.5  3.2 0.8 0.7 2.3 3.3 20.6 .549 .125 .521
Ryan Hollins        TOT  522  3.2  5.8 0.0 0.0 2.7 5.2 2.3  3.3  0.6 0.3 1.2 2.4 5.4  9.0 .548      .520
Chris Andersen      DEN  486  4.4  8.0 0.0 0.0 3.7 6.1 3.6  7.4  0.4 1.4 3.4 1.3 3.9 12.4 .546      .610
Player               Tm   MP   FG  FGA  3P 3PA  FT FTA ORB  DRB  AST STL BLK TOV  PF  PTS  FG%  3P%  FT%
Ian Mahinmi         DAL 1139  4.1  7.5 0.0 0.0 3.0 4.6 3.4  5.7  0.4 1.2 1.0 1.6 5.6 11.2 .546 .000 .639
Greg Stiemsma       BOS  766  3.1  5.7 0.0 0.0 1.4 1.9 2.3  6.1  1.3 1.7 4.0 1.6 6.8  7.6 .545      .707
Nene Hilario        TOT 1110  6.8 12.7 0.0 0.1 3.7 5.4 2.0  7.4  2.6 1.4 1.2 3.1 3.1 17.4 .537 .000 .673
Jan Vesely          WAS 1078  3.9  7.3 0.0 0.0 1.1 2.1 3.4  4.9  1.6 1.3 1.1 2.0 5.2  8.9 .537 .000 .532
Gustavo Ayon        NOH 1088  4.6  8.6 0.0 0.0 1.3 2.1 2.8  5.9  2.4 1.8 1.5 1.5 3.9 10.6 .536 .000 .619
Serge Ibaka         OKC 1792  5.3  9.8 0.0 0.1 1.6 2.4 3.9  6.1  0.6 0.7 4.8 1.6 3.6 12.1 .535 .333 .661
Jason Thompson      SAC 1657  5.1  9.6 0.0 0.0 2.4 3.9 3.6  6.0  1.7 0.9 1.0 1.5 3.2 12.7 .535 .000 .602
DeJuan Blair        SAS 1363  7.1 13.3 0.0 0.0 1.9 3.1 4.1  5.2  2.1 1.6 0.3 2.4 4.4 16.1 .534 .000 .613
Emeka Okafor        NOH  781  5.3  9.9 0.0 0.0 1.8 3.4 3.2  6.6  1.1 0.7 1.2 1.7 3.4 12.3 .533      .514
Carlos Boozer       CHI 1948  8.3 15.6 0.0 0.0 1.8 2.5 2.1  8.3  2.3 1.2 0.4 2.1 3.1 18.3 .532 .000 .693
Steve Nash          PHO 1961  5.4 10.2 1.0 2.6 2.3 2.6 0.5  2.9 12.2 0.7 0.1 4.2 1.0 14.2 .532 .390 .894
Trevor Booker       WAS 1261  5.2  9.7 0.0 0.1 1.6 2.7 3.4  5.9  1.1 1.4 1.2 1.7 3.9 12.0 .531 .500 .602
LeBron James        MIA 2326  9.6 18.1 0.8 2.3 6.0 7.8 1.5  6.2  6.0 1.8 0.8 3.3 1.5 26.0 .531 .362 .771
Kevin Seraphin      WAS 1176  6.2 11.7 0.0 0.0 1.4 2.1 3.2  5.4  1.0 0.6 2.3 2.0 4.1 13.9 .531 .000 .671
Semih Erden         CLE  333  4.2  8.0 0.0 0.0 2.3 4.4 2.2  5.6  1.0 1.1 0.5 1.7 6.5 10.7 .527      .512
Manu Ginobili       SAS  792  6.8 13.0 2.4 5.7 4.0 4.6 0.8  4.5  6.9 1.1 0.5 2.9 2.5 20.0 .526 .413 .871
Timofey Mozgov      DEN  687  5.2 10.0 0.0 0.0 2.0 3.0 2.8  6.6  1.2 0.8 2.2 2.8 4.5 12.5 .526      .684
Greg Monroe         DET 2082  7.0 13.5 0.0 0.0 3.5 4.7 4.1  6.9  2.6 1.4 0.8 2.8 3.1 17.6 .521 .000 .739
Jason Smith         NOH  947  6.9 13.2 0.0 0.3 1.3 1.8 2.7  4.7  1.3 0.8 1.6 1.5 3.9 15.1 .520 .111 .702
Derrick Brown       CHA 1443  5.3 10.2 0.1 0.6 2.3 3.5 2.4  3.5  1.7 1.2 0.3 1.4 2.4 13.1 .518 .250 .667
Player               Tm   MP   FG  FGA  3P 3PA  FT FTA ORB  DRB  AST STL BLK TOV  PF  PTS  FG%  3P%  FT%
Brendan Haywood     DAL 1146  3.7  7.2 0.0 0.0 1.4 3.0 4.4  5.8  0.6 0.8 1.7 1.4 3.8  8.8 .518      .469
Dante Cunningham    MEM 1124  4.6  8.9 0.0 0.1 1.4 2.2 2.9  5.0  1.2 1.3 1.1 0.9 3.1 10.7 .516 .000 .652
Aaron Gray          TOR  813  3.7  7.1 0.0 0.0 1.1 2.1 3.7  8.8  1.2 1.0 0.8 2.3 5.6  8.5 .516      .532
Anderson Varejao    CLE  785  5.2 10.2 0.0 0.2 2.0 2.9 5.0  8.2  2.0 1.6 0.8 2.1 2.8 12.4 .514 .000 .672
Ed Davis            TOR 1534  4.0  7.9 0.0 0.0 1.7 2.5 3.1  7.1  1.4 0.9 1.5 1.6 3.7  9.7 .513 .000 .670
Ivan Johnson        ATL  934  5.4 10.6 0.1 0.2 2.8 3.9 2.5  6.2  1.2 1.7 0.7 2.7 4.5 13.7 .513 .333 .720
LaMarcus Aldridge   POR 1994  8.7 17.0 0.0 0.2 4.0 4.9 2.7  5.3  2.4 0.9 0.8 2.0 2.8 21.5 .512 .182 .814
Luc Mbah a Moute    MIL 1009  4.7  9.3 0.0 0.1 2.4 3.7 2.7  5.4  1.0 1.4 0.8 1.4 3.3 11.9 .510 .250 .641
Jon Leuer           MIL  555  6.3 12.4 0.2 0.6 1.4 1.8 2.9  4.9  1.6 0.9 1.1 1.2 4.3 14.1 .508 .333 .750
Joakim Noah         CHI 1945  4.6  9.1 0.0 0.0 2.9 3.8 4.5  7.2  3.0 0.8 1.7 1.7 3.0 12.1 .508 .000 .748
Jordan Williams     NJN  635  4.4  8.6 0.0 0.0 2.4 3.7 3.7  5.1  0.6 1.2 0.9 1.3 3.5 11.2 .507      .652
Thaddeus Young      PHI 1755  7.1 14.1 0.0 0.1 2.3 3.0 2.8  3.9  1.5 1.3 0.8 1.1 2.6 16.6 .507 .250 .771
Omer Asik           CHI  971  2.9  5.8 0.0 0.0 1.7 3.8 4.7  8.3  1.2 1.1 2.5 2.5 4.5  7.6 .506      .456
Samuel Dalembert    HOU 1446  5.0  9.8 0.0 0.0 2.2 2.8 3.9  7.4  0.8 0.9 2.8 2.0 4.0 12.2 .506 .000 .796
Craig Smith         POR  464  4.6  9.1 0.0 0.1 2.9 4.1 2.6  6.0  1.5 1.2 0.4 1.9 4.3 12.1 .504 .000 .717
Kevin Garnett       BOS 1864  7.6 15.0 0.1 0.2 3.1 3.7 1.3  8.3  3.4 1.1 1.2 2.1 2.7 18.3 .503 .333 .857
Carl Landry         NOH  999  6.6 13.0 0.0 0.1 5.3 6.6 2.8  4.9  1.4 0.5 0.4 2.3 3.2 18.4 .503 .000 .799
David Lee           GSW 2121  7.9 15.6 0.0 0.1 3.7 4.8 2.9  6.3  2.7 0.9 0.4 2.5 3.0 19.5 .503 .000 .782
Pau Gasol           LAL 2430  6.8 13.6 0.1 0.4 3.0 3.9 2.7  7.3  3.5 0.5 1.3 2.1 1.9 16.7 .501 .259 .782
Brandon Rush        GSW 1717  4.9  9.8 2.1 4.6 1.4 1.7 0.7  4.6  1.8 0.7 1.2 1.4 1.3 13.3 .501 .452 .793

TOP NBA SCORERS CHART 3 OF 3 >>> BEST THREE-POINT SCORERS in 2011-2012 (complete regular season)
Each year QFTR publishes Real Player Ratings for every player in the NBA who has played at least 300 minutes. Real Player Ratings are comprehensive player ratings that are very carefully designed and quality controlled. Starting in 2012, the Ratings are supplemented by seven per 36 minutes charts which show player performance in seven of the very most important performance measures, all of which are components of Real Player Ratings (but there are other components that go into Real Player Ratings). These charts are stationed on the home page at all times. This is most likely the only place on the Internet where this key player information is shown in this optimal way.

Here we have the best 3-point scorers of the NBA in 2011-2012 as indicated by 3-point shooting percentage. This is "3P%" in the chart. All items shown in the chart other than the percentages and the minutes played are per 36 minutes, which is much smarter to use than per game numbers.

For this and all the other charts, a minimum of 300 minutes of playing time is required. Players who make at least 2.2 three-point shots per 36 minutes and who have at least a .300 (30%) three-point shot shooting percentage are the only ones qualified to be on this list.

This is one of the seven "7/36 Charts". A short user guide for these is found in this Report.

Here now are how the best 3-point scorers in the NBA in 2011-2012 rated and ranked:

Player                 Tm   MP   FG  FGA  3P  3PA  FT FTA ORB DRB AST STL BLK TOV  PF  PTS  FG%  3P%  FT%
Steve Novak           NYK 1020  5.7 11.9 4.7 10.0 0.8 0.9 0.3 3.4 0.4 0.6 0.3 0.7 2.1 16.8 .478 .472 .846
Stephen Curry         GSW  732  7.1 14.6 2.7  6.0 1.9 2.3 0.7 3.6 6.8 1.9 0.4 3.2 3.0 18.8 .490 .455 .809
Ray Allen             BOS 1565  5.2 11.3 2.4  5.4 2.2 2.4 0.3 2.9 2.5 1.1 0.2 1.6 1.9 15.1 .458 .453 .915
Mike Miller           MIA  752  4.4 10.0 2.5  5.6 0.1 0.2 1.1 5.1 2.0 0.7 0.3 1.4 2.8 11.3 .435 .453 .400
Jordan Farmar         NJN  831  6.4 13.6 2.4  5.4 2.5 2.7 0.3 2.3 5.6 1.0 0.1 2.9 2.1 17.6 .467 .440 .905
Danny Green           SAS 1522  5.0 11.3 2.4  5.5 1.9 2.4 1.3 4.1 2.0 1.4 1.1 1.6 2.5 14.3 .442 .436 .790
Kyle Korver           CHI 1469  4.4 10.1 2.9  6.6 1.3 1.6 0.6 3.3 2.7 0.9 0.4 1.3 2.7 13.0 .432 .435 .833
Luke Babbitt          POR  537  4.8 11.6 2.9  6.7 1.1 1.3 1.1 5.3 1.1 0.7 0.3 1.8 3.1 13.5 .410 .430 .850
Jerryd Bayless        TOR  705  6.0 14.1 2.2  5.3 3.8 4.5 0.4 3.0 6.0 1.2 0.2 2.7 3.6 18.0 .424 .423 .852
Matt Bonner           SAS 1326  4.2  9.5 2.9  6.8 0.4 0.6 0.8 5.0 1.7 0.4 0.6 0.4 1.8 11.6 .440 .420 .762
Richard Jefferson     TOT 1748  4.2 10.1 2.3  5.5 1.2 1.8 0.5 4.0 1.8 0.8 0.4 1.0 2.5 11.9 .416 .420 .694
Gary Neal             SAS 1206  6.3 14.5 2.5  5.9 1.5 1.9 0.4 3.2 3.5 0.8 0.1 1.8 2.2 16.6 .436 .419 .781
J.J. Redick           ORL 1765  5.1 11.9 2.3  5.5 2.9 3.2 0.4 2.7 3.3 0.6 0.1 1.4 1.9 15.3 .425 .418 .911
Klay Thompson         GSW 1608  7.1 16.1 2.5  6.0 1.8 2.0 0.5 3.1 3.0 1.1 0.4 2.3 3.5 18.5 .443 .414 .868
Manu Ginobili         SAS  792  6.8 13.0 2.4  5.7 4.0 4.6 0.8 4.5 6.9 1.1 0.5 2.9 2.5 20.0 .526 .413 .871
James Jones           MIA  666  3.1  8.1 2.5  6.2 1.4 1.6 0.3 2.3 1.0 0.9 0.5 0.5 2.4 10.0 .380 .404 .833
Chase Budinger        HOU 1298  5.8 13.1 2.4  6.1 1.5 1.9 1.1 5.0 2.1 0.8 0.2 1.5 1.8 15.5 .442 .402 .771
Ryan Anderson         ORL 1964  6.1 13.9 3.0  7.7 2.7 3.1 4.1 4.5 1.0 0.9 0.5 1.0 2.7 18.0 .439 .393 .877
John Lucas            CHI  726  7.1 17.8 2.7  6.9 1.4 1.6 1.1 2.7 5.4 0.9 0.0 2.1 2.1 18.3 .399 .393 .875
Mo Williams           LAC 1472  6.4 14.9 2.3  5.8 1.8 2.0 0.6 1.9 3.9 1.2 0.2 2.1 2.5 16.8 .426 .389 .900
Player                 Tm   MP   FG  FGA  3P  3PA  FT FTA ORB DRB AST STL BLK TOV  PF  PTS  FG%  3P%  FT%
Cartier Martin        WAS  391  5.4 12.3 2.7  6.9 1.0 1.7 1.1 4.2 0.9 1.0 0.2 1.2 3.2 14.5 .440 .387 .579
Randy Foye            LAC 1682  5.5 13.8 2.7  7.0 1.6 1.8 0.5 2.4 3.1 1.0 0.5 1.6 2.8 15.2 .398 .386 .859
Chauncey Billups      LAC  607  4.9 13.5 2.8  7.4 5.0 5.6 0.2 2.7 4.7 0.5 0.2 2.3 2.4 17.7 .364 .384 .895
Jannero Pargo         ATL  671  5.6 13.6 2.8  7.4 1.0 1.1 0.5 3.4 5.2 1.1 0.1 2.6 3.4 15.1 .415 .384 .950
Roger Mason           WAS  697  5.3 13.3 3.0  8.0 1.1 1.4 0.4 3.2 2.4 0.7 0.3 1.7 1.7 14.8 .399 .383 .778
Jason Terry           DAL 2000  6.4 14.9 2.5  6.6 1.8 2.0 0.3 2.4 4.1 1.3 0.2 2.3 1.2 17.1 .430 .378 .883
Andrew Goudelock      LAL  419  5.8 14.9 2.4  6.4 0.9 1.0 0.4 2.2 1.7 0.3 0.0 1.8 2.7 15.0 .391 .373 .917
Anthony Morrow        NJN 1636  6.0 14.5 2.3  6.3 2.1 2.3 0.7 2.1 1.3 1.0 0.2 1.5 1.9 16.4 .413 .371 .933
Vladimir Radmanovic   ATL  755  3.5  9.4 2.4  6.4 1.0 1.4 1.6 5.2 2.6 1.0 0.7 1.7 3.0 10.5 .376 .370 .759
Jason Richardson      ORL 1591  5.5 13.5 2.3  6.3 0.9 1.6 0.8 3.6 2.4 1.2 0.5 1.4 2.1 14.2 .408 .368 .594
Jimmer Fredette       SAC 1135  5.5 14.1 2.5  6.9 1.3 1.5 0.5 1.8 3.4 1.0 0.1 2.1 2.3 14.7 .386 .361 .833
Dorell Wright         GSW 1650  4.8 11.5 2.3  6.4 1.7 2.1 1.3 4.8 2.1 1.3 0.6 1.1 2.1 13.7 .422 .360 .816
Kevin Martin          HOU 1264  6.3 15.3 2.2  6.4 4.6 5.1 0.4 2.6 3.1 0.8 0.1 2.0 2.0 19.4 .413 .347 .894
J.R. Smith            NYK  967  6.1 15.1 2.5  7.2 1.5 2.0 1.1 4.0 3.1 2.0 0.2 1.7 3.2 16.2 .407 .347 .709
Daequan Cook          OKC  989  4.0 10.8 2.9  8.3 0.5 0.8 0.4 4.0 0.5 0.8 0.4 0.6 2.5 11.3 .368 .346 .636
Mickael Pietrus       BOS  921  4.1 10.6 2.4  7.1 0.8 1.2 0.7 4.4 1.0 0.8 0.4 1.3 3.2 11.3 .385 .335 .645

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TOP NBA DEFENDERS CHART 1 OF 3 >>> TOP REBOUNDERS in 2011-2012 (complete regular season)
Each year QFTR publishes Real Player Ratings for every player in the NBA who has played at least 300 minutes. Real Player Ratings are comprehensive player ratings that are very carefully designed and quality controlled. Starting in 2012, the Ratings are supplemented by seven per 36 minutes charts which show player performance in seven of the very most important performance measures, all of which are components of Real Player Ratings (but there are other components that go into Real Player Ratings). These charts are stationed on the home page at all times. This is most likely the only place on the Internet where this key player information is shown in this optimal way.

Here we have the best defensive rebounders of the NBA in 2011-2012 as indicated by defensive rebounds per 36 minutes playing time. This is "DRB" in the chart. All items shown in the chart other than the percentages and the minutes played are per 36 minutes are per 36 minutes, which is much smarter to use than per game numbers.

For this and all the other charts, a minimum of 300 minutes of playing time is required. Only players who made at least 6.5 defensive rebounds per 36 minutes are shown here.

This is one of the seven "7/36 Charts". A short user guide for these is found in this Report.

Here now are how the best defensive rebounders in the NBA in 2011-2012 rated and ranked:

Player              Tm   MP   FG  FGA  3P 3PA  FT FTA ORB  DRB AST STL BLK TOV  PF  PTS  FG%  3P%  FT%
Dwight Howard      ORL 2070  7.2 12.6 0.0 0.1 4.9 9.9 3.5 10.2 1.8 1.4 2.0 3.0 2.8 19.4 .573 .000 .491
Marcus Camby       TOT 1352  3.4  7.6 0.1 0.1 0.8 1.7 4.2  9.9 2.8 1.3 2.3 1.5 3.4  7.6 .446 .400 .453
Tim Duncan         SAS 1634  8.0 16.1 0.0 0.1 3.8 5.5 2.4  9.0 2.9 0.8 1.9 2.1 2.2 19.7 .492 .000 .695
Andrew Bynum       LAL 2112  7.6 13.6 0.0 0.1 4.0 5.8 3.3  8.8 1.4 0.5 2.0 2.6 1.8 19.1 .558 .200 .692
Aaron Gray         TOR  813  3.7  7.1 0.0 0.0 1.1 2.1 3.7  8.8 1.2 1.0 0.8 2.3 5.6  8.5 .516      .532
Joel Przybilla     POR  449  1.8  3.8 0.0 0.0 0.9 1.4 2.3  8.7 0.5 0.3 1.3 1.8 5.3  4.4 .458      .611
Kevin Love         MIN 2145  8.0 17.8 1.8 4.7 6.4 7.7 3.8  8.5 1.9 0.8 0.5 2.1 2.6 24.0 .448 .372 .824
Jamaal Magloire    TOR  374  1.6  4.3 0.0 0.0 0.7 2.6 2.4  8.5 0.6 0.4 1.0 2.1 6.4  3.9 .378      .259
Omer Asik          CHI  971  2.9  5.8 0.0 0.0 1.7 3.8 4.7  8.3 1.2 1.1 2.5 2.5 4.5  7.6 .506      .456
Carlos Boozer      CHI 1948  8.3 15.6 0.0 0.0 1.8 2.5 2.1  8.3 2.3 1.2 0.4 2.1 3.1 18.3 .532 .000 .693
Kevin Garnett      BOS 1864  7.6 15.0 0.1 0.2 3.1 3.7 1.3  8.3 3.4 1.1 1.2 2.1 2.7 18.3 .503 .333 .857
Jordan Hill        TOT  551  5.4 10.8 0.0 0.2 2.0 3.1 4.0  8.2 1.0 0.9 1.8 2.0 4.6 12.7 .497 .000 .638
Anderson Varejao   CLE  785  5.2 10.2 0.0 0.2 2.0 2.9 5.0  8.2 2.0 1.6 0.8 2.1 2.8 12.4 .514 .000 .672
DeMarcus Cousins   SAC 1950  8.3 18.4 0.0 0.3 4.8 6.9 4.9  8.1 1.9 1.7 1.4 3.1 4.7 21.4 .448 .143 .702
Marcin Gortat      PHO 2114  7.3 13.1 0.0 0.0 2.8 4.3 3.2  8.1 1.0 0.8 1.7 1.5 2.4 17.3 .555 .000 .649
Reggie Evans       LAC  771  1.6  3.4 0.0 0.0 1.7 3.3 4.7  8.0 0.8 1.4 0.3 2.1 5.5  4.9 .472      .507
Udonis Haslem      MIA 1589  3.4  8.1 0.0 0.0 1.9 2.3 2.7  8.0 1.0 0.8 0.5 1.4 3.2  8.7 .423      .814
Al Jefferson       UTA 2075  9.0 18.2 0.0 0.1 2.4 3.1 2.3  7.8 2.3 0.8 1.8 1.1 2.7 20.3 .492 .250 .774
Andrew Bogut       MIL  364  6.0 13.5 0.0 0.1 1.4 2.3 2.2  7.7 3.1 1.2 2.4 2.4 3.6 13.5 .449 .000 .609
Josh Smith         ATL 2329  7.8 17.0 0.4 1.7 3.1 5.0 2.1  7.7 4.0 1.4 1.8 2.5 2.7 19.2 .458 .257 .630
Player              Tm   MP   FG  FGA  3P 3PA  FT FTA ORB  DRB AST STL BLK TOV  PF  PTS  FG%  3P%  FT%
Blake Griffin      LAC 2392  8.4 15.4 0.0 0.2 3.7 7.0 3.3  7.5 3.2 0.8 0.7 2.3 3.3 20.6 .549 .125 .521
Spencer Hawes      PHI  920  6.1 12.5 0.1 0.5 1.6 2.2 3.1  7.5 3.8 0.6 1.9 2.2 3.9 13.9 .489 .250 .727
Kris Humphries     NJN 2162  5.4 11.2 0.0 0.0 3.5 4.6 3.9  7.5 1.5 0.8 1.2 2.0 2.9 14.2 .481      .752
Chris Andersen     DEN  486  4.4  8.0 0.0 0.0 3.7 6.1 3.6  7.4 0.4 1.4 3.4 1.3 3.9 12.4 .546      .610
Samuel Dalembert   HOU 1446  5.0  9.8 0.0 0.0 2.2 2.8 3.9  7.4 0.8 0.9 2.8 2.0 4.0 12.2 .506 .000 .796
Nene Hilario       TOT 1110  6.8 12.7 0.0 0.1 3.7 5.4 2.0  7.4 2.6 1.4 1.2 3.1 3.1 17.4 .537 .000 .673
Kosta Koufos       DEN  792  5.2  8.7 0.0 0.0 1.5 2.5 4.3  7.4 0.7 1.1 1.9 1.5 4.4 12.0 .599      .600
JaVale McGee       TOT 1535  7.2 12.9 0.0 0.0 1.8 3.9 3.8  7.4 0.7 0.8 3.1 2.0 3.9 16.2 .556      .461
Kenneth Faried     DEN 1037  6.3 10.7 0.0 0.0 3.8 5.7 4.9  7.3 1.2 1.2 1.6 1.9 4.0 16.4 .586      .665
Pau Gasol          LAL 2430  6.8 13.6 0.1 0.4 3.0 3.9 2.7  7.3 3.5 0.5 1.3 2.1 1.9 16.7 .501 .259 .782
Evan Turner        PHI 1713  5.5 12.4 0.2 1.0 1.5 2.3 0.6  7.3 3.8 0.8 0.4 2.2 2.5 12.8 .446 .224 .676
Lavoy Allen        PHI  624  4.6  9.6 0.0 0.0 0.6 0.8 2.7  7.2 2.0 0.7 1.0 1.2 4.2  9.7 .473      .786
Ersan Ilyasova     MIL 1655  6.4 13.0 1.1 2.4 3.1 4.0 4.3  7.2 1.5 0.9 1.0 1.7 2.9 17.0 .492 .455 .781
Chris Kaman        NOH 1372  7.0 15.7 0.0 0.0 2.2 2.8 2.3  7.2 2.7 0.7 2.0 3.4 2.8 16.2 .446      .785
Joakim Noah        CHI 1945  4.6  9.1 0.0 0.0 2.9 3.8 4.5  7.2 3.0 0.8 1.7 1.7 3.0 12.1 .508 .000 .748
Zach Randolph      MEM  735  6.5 14.0 0.1 0.4 2.8 4.3 3.8  7.2 2.4 1.0 0.2 2.0 2.8 15.9 .463 .250 .659
Ed Davis           TOR 1534  4.0  7.9 0.0 0.0 1.7 2.5 3.1  7.1 1.4 0.9 1.5 1.6 3.7  9.7 .513 .000 .670
Tyson Chandler     NYK 2061  4.2  6.2 0.0 0.0 3.8 5.5 3.7  7.0 1.0 1.0 1.6 1.8 3.2 12.2 .679 .000 .689
Derrick Favors     UTA 1376  5.8 11.6 0.0 0.0 3.3 5.1 4.1  7.0 1.1 1.0 1.7 2.7 3.8 14.9 .499      .649
Marc Gasol         MEM 2370  5.4 11.2 0.0 0.2 3.6 4.8 1.8  7.0 3.1 0.9 1.8 1.8 3.1 14.5 .482 .083 .748
Player              Tm   MP   FG  FGA  3P 3PA  FT FTA ORB  DRB AST STL BLK TOV  PF  PTS  FG%  3P%  FT%
Enes Kanter        UTA  874  4.8  9.7 0.0 0.0 2.9 4.3 4.4  7.0 0.3 0.7 0.9 2.2 3.6 12.5 .496 .000 .667
Nikola Vucevic     PHI  812  5.8 12.9 0.1 0.4 0.8 1.5 3.9  7.0 1.4 0.9 1.5 1.5 4.9 12.5 .450 .375 .529
Kevin Durant       OKC 2546  9.1 18.3 1.9 4.9 6.1 7.1 0.6  6.9 3.3 1.2 1.1 3.5 1.9 26.2 .496 .387 .860
DeAndre Jordan     LAC 1798  4.1  6.5 0.0 0.0 1.5 2.8 4.0  6.9 0.3 0.6 2.7 1.5 3.8  9.7 .632 .000 .525
Greg Monroe        DET 2082  7.0 13.5 0.0 0.0 3.5 4.7 4.1  6.9 2.6 1.4 0.8 2.8 3.1 17.6 .521 .000 .739
Ben Wallace        DET  980  1.2  3.2 0.0 0.1 0.6 1.7 3.0  6.9 1.6 1.7 1.9 1.2 2.2  3.1 .395 .250 .340
Tiago Splitter     SAS 1121  6.8 11.0 0.0 0.0 4.0 5.8 3.0  6.8 2.1 0.7 1.5 2.8 4.3 17.6 .618      .691
Roy Hibbert        IND 1937  6.2 12.4 0.0 0.0 3.2 4.4 4.0  6.7 2.0 0.6 2.4 2.4 3.6 15.5 .497 .000 .711
Zaza Pachulia      ATL 1640  3.7  7.4 0.0 0.0 2.6 3.5 3.4  6.7 1.7 1.2 0.6 1.8 3.8 10.0 .499      .741
Kurt Thomas        POR  803  3.3  7.0 0.0 0.0 0.6 0.9 1.7  6.7 2.1 1.1 1.4 1.4 5.5  7.2 .465      .700
Channing Frye      PHO 1669  5.5 13.2 2.0 5.7 1.6 1.8 1.5  6.6 1.9 0.9 1.5 1.4 3.8 14.5 .416 .346 .890
Paul Millsap       UTA 2100  7.3 14.8 0.1 0.5 3.5 4.4 3.1  6.6 2.6 2.0 0.9 1.9 3.8 18.2 .495 .226 .792
Timofey Mozgov     DEN  687  5.2 10.0 0.0 0.0 2.0 3.0 2.8  6.6 1.2 0.8 2.2 2.8 4.5 12.5 .526      .684
Emeka Okafor       NOH  781  5.3  9.9 0.0 0.0 1.8 3.4 3.2  6.6 1.1 0.7 1.2 1.7 3.4 12.3 .533      .514
Al Harrington      DEN 1761  7.1 15.8 2.1 6.2 2.4 3.6 1.5  6.5 1.8 1.2 0.2 2.3 3.7 18.6 .446 .333 .676

TOP NBA DEFENDERS CHART 2 OF 3 >>> TOP BLOCKERS in 2011-2012 (complete regular season)
Each year QFTR publishes Real Player Ratings for every player in the NBA who has played at least 300 minutes. Real Player Ratings are comprehensive player ratings that are very carefully designed and quality controlled. Starting in 2012, the Ratings are supplemented by seven per 36 minutes charts which show player performance in seven of the very most important performance measures, all of which are components of Real Player Ratings (but there are other components that go into Real Player Ratings). These charts are stationed on the home page at all times. This is most likely the only place on the Internet where this key player information is shown in this optimal way.

Here we have the best (defensive) blockers of the NBA in 2011-2012 as indicated by blocks per 36 minutes playing time. This is "BLK" in the chart. All items shown in the chart other than the percentages and the minutes played are per 36 minutes, which is much smarter to use than per game numbers.

For this and all the other charts, a minimum of 300 minutes of playing time is required. Only players who made at least 1.5 blocks per 36 minutes are shown here.

This is one of the seven "7/36 Charts". A short user guide for these is found in this Report.

Here now are how the best blockers in the NBA in 2011-2012 rated and ranked:

Player              Tm   MP   FG  FGA  3P 3PA  FT FTA ORB  DRB AST STL BLK TOV  PF  PTS  FG%  3P%  FT%
Serge Ibaka        OKC 1792  5.3  9.8 0.0 0.1 1.6 2.4 3.9  6.1 0.6 0.7 4.8 1.6 3.6 12.1 .535 .333 .661
Larry Sanders      MIL  643  4.7 10.3 0.0 0.1 1.0 2.1 3.5  5.5 1.8 1.8 4.3 2.4 7.4 10.4 .457 .000 .474
Greg Stiemsma      BOS  766  3.1  5.7 0.0 0.0 1.4 1.9 2.3  6.1 1.3 1.7 4.0 1.6 6.8  7.6 .545      .707
Chris Andersen     DEN  486  4.4  8.0 0.0 0.0 3.7 6.1 3.6  7.4 0.4 1.4 3.4 1.3 3.9 12.4 .546      .610
JaVale McGee       TOT 1535  7.2 12.9 0.0 0.0 1.8 3.9 3.8  7.4 0.7 0.8 3.1 2.0 3.9 16.2 .556      .461
Brandan Wright     DAL  791  6.6 10.6 0.0 0.0 2.4 3.7 2.8  5.1 0.6 1.0 2.9 1.0 2.8 15.5 .618 .000 .634
Bismack Biyombo    CHA 1455  3.2  6.9 0.0 0.0 1.7 3.5 2.8  6.3 0.7 0.5 2.8 1.8 3.6  8.1 .464      .483
Samuel Dalembert   HOU 1446  5.0  9.8 0.0 0.0 2.2 2.8 3.9  7.4 0.8 0.9 2.8 2.0 4.0 12.2 .506 .000 .796
Ekpe Udoh          TOT 1290  3.5  8.2 0.0 0.1 2.4 3.2 2.8  4.3 1.6 1.1 2.8 1.5 4.9  9.5 .431 .000 .754
DeAndre Jordan     LAC 1798  4.1  6.5 0.0 0.0 1.5 2.8 4.0  6.9 0.3 0.6 2.7 1.5 3.8  9.7 .632 .000 .525
Jermaine ONeal     BOS  570  3.3  7.6 0.0 0.0 1.3 2.0 2.3  6.2 0.6 0.5 2.7 1.3 5.1  7.9 .433      .677
Omer Asik          CHI  971  2.9  5.8 0.0 0.0 1.7 3.8 4.7  8.3 1.2 1.1 2.5 2.5 4.5  7.6 .506      .456
Andrew Bogut       MIL  364  6.0 13.5 0.0 0.1 1.4 2.3 2.2  7.7 3.1 1.2 2.4 2.4 3.6 13.5 .449 .000 .609
Roy Hibbert        IND 1937  6.2 12.4 0.0 0.0 3.2 4.4 4.0  6.7 2.0 0.6 2.4 2.4 3.6 15.5 .497 .000 .711
Robin Lopez        PHO  895  5.0 10.8 0.0 0.0 4.0 5.6 3.6  4.8 0.8 0.7 2.4 1.7 5.1 14.0 .461      .714
Anthony Randolph   MIN  517  6.5 13.9 0.0 0.1 4.5 5.8 2.9  5.6 1.3 0.9 2.4 2.8 3.9 17.5 .470 .000 .762
Marcus Camby       TOT 1352  3.4  7.6 0.1 0.1 0.8 1.7 4.2  9.9 2.8 1.3 2.3 1.5 3.4  7.6 .446 .400 .453
Taj Gibson         CHI 1284  5.6 11.3 0.0 0.0 2.4 3.8 3.8  5.5 1.3 0.8 2.3 1.7 3.7 13.6 .495      .622
Kevin Seraphin     WAS 1176  6.2 11.7 0.0 0.0 1.4 2.1 3.2  5.4 1.0 0.6 2.3 2.0 4.1 13.9 .531 .000 .671
Joel Anthony       MIA 1349  2.3  4.1 0.0 0.0 1.3 1.9 2.7  4.0 0.2 1.0 2.2 1.2 3.4  5.8 .559      .690
Player              Tm   MP   FG  FGA  3P 3PA  FT FTA ORB  DRB AST STL BLK TOV  PF  PTS  FG%  3P%  FT%
Andris Biedrins    GSW  739  1.9  3.1 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.4 2.2  6.4 0.8 1.1 2.2 0.7 6.1  3.8 .609      .111
Timofey Mozgov     DEN  687  5.2 10.0 0.0 0.0 2.0 3.0 2.8  6.6 1.2 0.8 2.2 2.8 4.5 12.5 .526      .684
Louis Amundson     IND  753  4.3  9.9 0.0 0.0 1.7 3.9 4.5  6.1 0.7 1.3 2.1 2.2 6.0 10.2 .430      .427
Earl Clark         ORL  559  3.3  9.0 0.0 0.0 1.4 1.9 2.3  5.7 1.2 0.8 2.1 1.6 4.6  7.9 .367      .724
Tyrus Thomas       CHA 1013  4.3 11.6 0.0 0.1 2.2 2.9 1.7  5.4 1.2 1.3 2.1 1.9 5.1 10.8 .367 .333 .759
Elton Brand        PHI 1732  6.0 12.1 0.0 0.0 1.8 2.4 3.0  5.9 2.0 1.2 2.0 1.4 3.7 13.7 .494 .000 .733
Andrew Bynum       LAL 2112  7.6 13.6 0.0 0.1 4.0 5.8 3.3  8.8 1.4 0.5 2.0 2.6 1.8 19.1 .558 .200 .692
Dwight Howard      ORL 2070  7.2 12.6 0.0 0.1 4.9 9.9 3.5 10.2 1.8 1.4 2.0 3.0 2.8 19.4 .573 .000 .491
Chris Kaman        NOH 1372  7.0 15.7 0.0 0.0 2.2 2.8 2.3  7.2 2.7 0.7 2.0 3.4 2.8 16.2 .446      .785
Tim Duncan         SAS 1634  8.0 16.1 0.0 0.1 3.8 5.5 2.4  9.0 2.9 0.8 1.9 2.1 2.2 19.7 .492 .000 .695
Spencer Hawes      PHI  920  6.1 12.5 0.1 0.5 1.6 2.2 3.1  7.5 3.8 0.6 1.9 2.2 3.9 13.9 .489 .250 .727
James Johnson      TOR 1561  5.4 11.9 0.4 1.4 1.9 2.7 1.7  5.0 2.8 1.6 1.9 2.3 4.1 13.1 .450 .317 .704
Kosta Koufos       DEN  792  5.2  8.7 0.0 0.0 1.5 2.5 4.3  7.4 0.7 1.1 1.9 1.5 4.4 12.0 .599      .600
Darko Milicic      MIN  472  4.5  9.9 0.0 0.0 1.2 2.8 2.7  4.7 1.3 0.7 1.9 2.4 4.5 10.2 .454      .432
Nazr Mohammed      OKC  692  4.1  8.8 0.0 0.1 0.7 1.2 3.1  5.8 0.7 1.0 1.9 1.4 5.3  8.9 .467 .000 .565
Ben Wallace        DET  980  1.2  3.2 0.0 0.1 0.6 1.7 3.0  6.9 1.6 1.7 1.9 1.2 2.2  3.1 .395 .250 .340
Marc Gasol         MEM 2370  5.4 11.2 0.0 0.2 3.6 4.8 1.8  7.0 3.1 0.9 1.8 1.8 3.1 14.5 .482 .083 .748
Jordan Hill        TOT  551  5.4 10.8 0.0 0.2 2.0 3.1 4.0  8.2 1.0 0.9 1.8 2.0 4.6 12.7 .497 .000 .638
Al Jefferson       UTA 2075  9.0 18.2 0.0 0.1 2.4 3.1 2.3  7.8 2.3 0.8 1.8 1.1 2.7 20.3 .492 .250 .774
Josh Smith         ATL 2329  7.8 17.0 0.4 1.7 3.1 5.0 2.1  7.7 4.0 1.4 1.8 2.5 2.7 19.2 .458 .257 .630
Player              Tm   MP   FG  FGA  3P 3PA  FT FTA ORB  DRB AST STL BLK TOV  PF  PTS  FG%  3P%  FT%
Derrick Favors     UTA 1376  5.8 11.6 0.0 0.0 3.3 5.1 4.1  7.0 1.1 1.0 1.7 2.7 3.8 14.9 .499      .649
Francisco Garcia   SAC  798  3.9 10.3 1.7 5.9 1.1 1.4 0.5  4.0 1.4 1.6 1.7 1.0 3.3 10.6 .376 .290 .800
Marcin Gortat      PHO 2114  7.3 13.1 0.0 0.0 2.8 4.3 3.2  8.1 1.0 0.8 1.7 1.5 2.4 17.3 .555 .000 .649
Brendan Haywood    DAL 1146  3.7  7.2 0.0 0.0 1.4 3.0 4.4  5.8 0.6 0.8 1.7 1.4 3.8  8.8 .518      .469
Joakim Noah        CHI 1945  4.6  9.1 0.0 0.0 2.9 3.8 4.5  7.2 3.0 0.8 1.7 1.7 3.0 12.1 .508 .000 .748
Tyson Chandler     NYK 2061  4.2  6.2 0.0 0.0 3.8 5.5 3.7  7.0 1.0 1.0 1.6 1.8 3.2 12.2 .679 .000 .689
Kenneth Faried     DEN 1037  6.3 10.7 0.0 0.0 3.8 5.7 4.9  7.3 1.2 1.2 1.6 1.9 4.0 16.4 .586      .665
Amir Johnson       TOR 1553  4.5  7.9 0.0 0.1 1.3 1.9 3.5  6.0 1.8 0.8 1.6 2.2 4.8 10.5 .576 .400 .690
Kenyon Martin      LAC  940  3.7  8.4 0.1 0.5 0.8 2.1 1.9  5.1 0.7 1.7 1.6 1.2 3.9  8.3 .441 .231 .370
Jason Smith        NOH  947  6.9 13.2 0.0 0.3 1.3 1.8 2.7  4.7 1.3 0.8 1.6 1.5 3.9 15.1 .520 .111 .702
Tristan Thompson   CLE 1424  4.9 11.2 0.0 0.1 2.7 4.9 4.7  5.1 0.7 0.7 1.6 2.0 3.4 12.5 .439 .000 .552
Gustavo Ayon       NOH 1088  4.6  8.6 0.0 0.0 1.3 2.1 2.8  5.9 2.4 1.8 1.5 1.5 3.9 10.6 .536 .000 .619
Channing Frye      PHO 1669  5.5 13.2 2.0 5.7 1.6 1.8 1.5  6.6 1.9 0.9 1.5 1.4 3.8 14.5 .416 .346 .890
Travis Outlaw      SAC  500  4.3 12.6 1.2 4.3 2.2 3.3 1.4  3.0 1.2 1.4 1.5 1.4 2.4 12.0 .343 .267 .674
Kendrick Perkins   OKC 1744  2.6  5.4 0.0 0.0 1.5 2.3 2.5  6.3 1.6 0.5 1.5 2.4 3.9  6.8 .489      .652
Tiago Splitter     SAS 1121  6.8 11.0 0.0 0.0 4.0 5.8 3.0  6.8 2.1 0.7 1.5 2.8 4.3 17.6 .618      .691
Nikola Vucevic     PHI  812  5.8 12.9 0.1 0.4 0.8 1.5 3.9  7.0 1.4 0.9 1.5 1.5 4.9 12.5 .450 .375 .529

TOP NBA DEFENDERS CHART 3 OF 3 >>> TOP THIEVES / FAST BREAKERS in 2011-2012 (complete regular season)
Each year QFTR publishes Real Player Ratings for every player in the NBA who has played at least 300 minutes. Real Player Ratings are comprehensive player ratings that are very carefully designed and quality controlled. Starting in 2012, the Ratings are supplemented by seven per 36 minutes charts which show player performance in seven of the very most important performance measures, all of which are components of Real Player Ratings (but there are other components that go into Real Player Ratings). These charts are stationed on the home page at all times. This is most likely the only place on the Internet where this key player information is shown in this optimal way.

Here we have the best thieves / fast breakers of the NBA in 2011-2012 as indicated by steals per 36 minutes playing time. This is "STL" in the chart. All items shown in the chart other than the percentages and the minutes played are per 36 minutes, which is much smarter to use than per game numbers.

For this and all the other charts, a minimum of 300 minutes of playing time is required. Only players who made at least 1.7 steals per 36 minutes are shown here.

This is one of the seven "7/36 Charts". A short user guide for these is found in this Report.

Here now are how the best thieves / fast breakers in the NBA in 2011-2012 rated and ranked:

Player               Tm   MP   FG  FGA  3P 3PA  FT FTA ORB DRB  AST STL BLK TOV  PF  PTS  FG%  3P%  FT%
Tony Allen          MEM 1525  5.0 10.6 0.2 0.6 3.3 4.1 2.3 3.2  1.9 2.5 0.8 2.2 3.4 13.4 .469 .308 .800
Sundiata Gaines     NJN  793  4.6 12.3 1.3 3.7 2.7 4.4 1.2 3.7  5.7 2.5 0.1 2.4 2.6 13.2 .376 .341 .615
Chris Paul          LAC 2181  7.0 14.7 1.3 3.5 4.3 5.0 0.7 2.8  9.0 2.5 0.1 2.0 2.3 19.6 .478 .371 .861
Eric Bledsoe        LAC  464  3.8  9.8 0.5 2.3 2.2 3.4 1.7 3.3  5.1 2.4 1.1 3.6 4.5 10.2 .389 .200 .636
Ronnie Price        PHO  517  3.4  9.1 0.9 3.1 1.4 1.7 1.3 2.6  4.7 2.4 0.2 3.2 5.0  9.1 .377 .295 .800
Mike Conley         MEM 2174  4.9 11.3 1.0 2.6 2.3 2.6 0.4 2.2  6.7 2.3 0.2 2.1 2.2 13.0 .433 .377 .861
Ricky Rubio         MIN 1404  3.6 10.0 0.8 2.4 3.2 4.0 0.5 3.8  8.6 2.3 0.2 3.4 2.5 11.2 .357 .340 .803
Baron Davis         NYK  595  4.1 11.1 1.6 5.1 1.0 1.5 0.8 2.6  8.2 2.1 0.2 4.6 3.7 10.8 .370 .306 .667
Jason Kidd          DAL 1379  2.6  7.1 2.1 5.8 0.6 0.7 0.4 4.8  6.9 2.1 0.3 2.4 2.2  7.8 .363 .354 .786
Jeremy Lin          NYK  940  6.5 14.7 0.9 2.9 5.6 7.0 0.7 3.4  8.3 2.1 0.3 4.8 3.0 19.6 .446 .320 .798
Iman Shumpert       NYK 1705  4.5 11.3 1.0 3.3 1.8 2.3 0.9 3.0  3.5 2.1 0.2 2.3 3.7 11.9 .401 .306 .798
Corey Brewer        DEN 1287  5.6 13.0 0.9 3.6 2.5 3.6 1.2 3.0  2.5 2.0 0.5 1.6 3.2 14.7 .434 .260 .692
Paul George         IND 1958  5.2 11.7 1.7 4.3 2.7 3.3 1.0 5.8  2.9 2.0 0.7 2.2 3.5 14.7 .440 .385 .802
Kawhi Leonard       SAS 1534  4.7  9.5 1.0 2.6 1.6 2.1 2.4 5.2  1.6 2.0 0.6 1.0 2.1 11.9 .493 .376 .773
Paul Millsap        UTA 2100  7.3 14.8 0.1 0.5 3.5 4.4 3.1 6.6  2.6 2.0 0.9 1.9 3.8 18.2 .495 .226 .792
J.R. Smith          NYK  967  6.1 15.1 2.5 7.2 1.5 2.0 1.1 4.0  3.1 2.0 0.2 1.7 3.2 16.2 .407 .347 .709
Delonte West        DAL 1060  5.6 12.2 0.9 2.6 2.1 2.4 0.4 3.0  4.7 2.0 0.4 2.6 2.3 14.3 .461 .355 .886
Mario Chalmers      MIA 1825  4.4  9.8 2.0 5.1 1.6 2.0 0.3 3.1  4.4 1.9 0.2 2.8 3.3 12.4 .448 .388 .792
Stephen Curry       GSW  732  7.1 14.6 2.7 6.0 1.9 2.3 0.7 3.6  6.8 1.9 0.4 3.2 3.0 18.8 .490 .455 .809
Carlos Delfino      MIL 1537  4.3 10.6 2.0 5.6 0.9 1.1 0.5 4.4  2.9 1.9 0.2 1.5 2.3 11.4 .402 .360 .792
Player               Tm   MP   FG  FGA  3P 3PA  FT FTA ORB DRB  AST STL BLK TOV  PF  PTS  FG%  3P%  FT%
Earl Watson         UTA 1033  1.9  5.6 0.3 1.8 1.1 1.6 1.0 3.2  7.6 1.9 0.8 3.0 3.7  5.2 .338 .192 .674
Trevor Ariza        NOH 1350  4.5 10.7 0.8 2.3 2.1 2.7 1.1 4.6  3.6 1.8 0.7 2.0 1.9 11.8 .417 .333 .775
Gustavo Ayon        NOH 1088  4.6  8.6 0.0 0.0 1.3 2.1 2.8 5.9  2.4 1.8 1.5 1.5 3.9 10.6 .536 .000 .619
Rodrigue Beaubois   DAL 1151  5.9 13.9 1.2 4.1 1.8 2.2 0.6 4.1  4.8 1.8 0.9 2.2 3.1 14.8 .422 .288 .841
Reggie Jackson      OKC  501  3.7 11.4 0.9 4.5 1.8 2.1 1.0 2.8  5.1 1.8 0.1 2.6 2.2 10.1 .321 .210 .862
LeBron James        MIA 2326  9.6 18.1 0.8 2.3 6.0 7.8 1.5 6.2  6.0 1.8 0.8 3.3 1.5 26.0 .531 .362 .771
Nate Robinson       GSW 1192  6.2 14.6 2.0 5.5 2.8 3.4 0.5 2.6  7.0 1.8 0.1 2.3 3.6 17.2 .424 .365 .832
Walker Russell      DET  357  3.3  9.6 0.4 1.3 1.4 2.2 0.7 1.9  5.8 1.8 0.1 3.3 2.9  8.5 .347 .308 .636
Larry Sanders       MIL  643  4.7 10.3 0.0 0.1 1.0 2.1 3.5 5.5  1.8 1.8 4.3 2.4 7.4 10.4 .457 .000 .474
Chris Singleton     WAS 1431  2.9  7.8 1.1 3.2 0.8 1.1 1.1 4.8  1.2 1.8 0.8 1.0 4.4  7.7 .372 .346 .682
Dwyane Wade         MIA 1625  9.2 18.5 0.3 1.2 5.2 6.6 1.6 3.6  5.0 1.8 1.4 2.9 2.4 24.0 .497 .268 .791
DeMarcus Cousins    SAC 1950  8.3 18.4 0.0 0.3 4.8 6.9 4.9 8.1  1.9 1.7 1.4 3.1 4.7 21.4 .448 .143 .702
Goran Dragic        HOU 1752  5.7 12.3 1.4 4.2 3.1 3.9 1.1 2.4  7.2 1.7 0.2 3.2 3.4 15.9 .462 .337 .805
Andre Iguodala      PHI 2209  4.7 10.3 1.2 3.1 2.0 3.2 0.9 5.3  5.5 1.7 0.5 1.9 1.5 12.6 .454 .394 .617
Kyle Lowry          HOU 1510  5.0 12.2 1.9 5.0 4.1 4.7 0.9 4.2  7.4 1.7 0.3 3.1 3.2 16.0 .409 .374 .864
Rajon Rondo         BOS 1957  4.7 10.5 0.2 0.8 2.0 3.3 1.1 3.6 11.4 1.7 0.1 3.6 1.8 11.6 .448 .238 .597
Lance Stephenson    IND  442  3.8 10.2 0.3 2.4 0.7 1.4 1.0 3.3  3.7 1.7 0.4 2.9 2.4  8.6 .376 .133 .471
Greg Stiemsma       BOS  766  3.1  5.7 0.0 0.0 1.4 1.9 2.3 6.1  1.3 1.7 4.0 1.6 6.8  7.6 .545      .707
Jeff Teague         ATL 2183  5.3 11.1 0.8 2.5 2.3 3.1 0.3 2.3  5.3 1.7 0.6 2.2 2.4 13.7 .476 .342 .757
Ben Wallace         DET  980  1.2  3.2 0.0 0.1 0.6 1.7 3.0 6.9  1.6 1.7 1.9 1.2 2.2  3.1 .395 .250 .340
Player               Tm   MP   FG  FGA  3P 3PA  FT FTA ORB DRB  AST STL BLK TOV  PF  PTS  FG%  3P%  FT%
Russell Westbrook   OKC 2331  8.9 19.6 1.0 3.0 5.3 6.4 1.5 3.2  5.6 1.7 0.3 3.7 2.3 24.1 .457 .316 .823

From day one we knew that QFTR would never be a hang out place, a place where people come to comment on basketball news and blogs and what not. For one thing, we knew it could never possibly be even a moderate traffic Site (let alone a high traffic Site) regardless of the quality or quantity of basketball content loaded on to it. (It took years and about 15 books worth of content just to go from zero traffic to low traffic). Although you wouldn't expect it to be all that popular, it seems that a serious and unique basketball Site has even a lower potential audience than one would expect.

For another thing, QFTR is too serious for the quick little comments that are a dime a dozen at basketball Sites and blogs around the Internet. And most people who comment like to make only short little comments.

And of course it is well known that only a tiny percentage of blogs get more than a tiny number of comments and that essentially all of the blogs that do get comments are part of blog networks and/or they are run by celebrities.

And there are other reasons but those are the main ones.

The truth though is that your QFTR producer never had the resources to moderate and / or to participate in discussions at QFTR. Before there was a QFTR we participated in forums, and for about 18 months after there was a QFTR we still posted at a couple of forums, but we had to discontinue due to lack of time and because posting at forums was useless for getting traffic to QFTR that would return for future visits. As mentioned above in "Your Ball, Take Your Best Shot, Option 3," QFTR has only roughly 1/10 of the time it would like for producing content and for getting the background work done. So we are not even close to having the time to deal with comments that would go directly onto QFTR. So actually, we are glad that there has been very little interest.

Having said that, until January 2012 there was an option for commenting on Reports etc.. There was a page called "QFTR Discussions" where all comments on all Reports would appear in one place. These were going to be more serious and lengthy comments than the ones you see around the Internet.

Along with the discussion page there was to be an "open blog" called "My Quest for the Ring". Anyone who demonstrated the ability to make important, interesting, and/or useful contributions toward explaining how playoff games are won and lost would be given the keys and would be allowed to post whatever whenever. These would be full posts and not just comments. This would be a collaboration blog.

Both Discussions and My Quest for the Ring were nice, creative ideas, but there were no takers because of some combination of the following:

--Hardly anyone is qualified to discuss basketball at a high level.
--No one who is qualified has the time.
--QFTR traffic has been too low and/or it has the wrong people visiting, so therefore those who might have posted have never seen the option.

Although all of the links to these pages are removed from the QFTR home page as of January 2012 (except for the ones just above) the pages themselves are not being taken down. So if anyone (and it can be just one single person) is interested in posting to either of these Sites, please send an email to:
thequestforthering1 @ gmail dot com
[Remove the spaces and replace "dot" with an actual (.)

If even one person is interested and posts at either of those sites, we will restore all of the links that were removed.

>>>I WANT TO STICK WITH THE WAY OTHER SITES PRESENT POSTS
Due to the number of, uniqueness of, and importance of the many other home page features we have, only one Report loads at a time, currently the one just above. To see the next Report (which would be the one that came out just before the one above) on this home page, click "Older Posts" that is at the very bottom of the Report showing above, just above the section header "Your Ball: Take Your Best Shot".

>>ALTERNATIVE HOME PAGES
There are three home pages, all of which have all of the Reports but which have completely different features appearing on the sidebar and below the one Report that is shown at a time. These pages have been designed so that they fully load in about 10 seconds (no more super long load times we used to be known for.)

HOME PAGE A: ALL REPORTS, READERS CONTAINING REPORTS 1-100, AND UNIQUE FEATURES
HOME PAGE B: ALL REPORTS, READERS CONTAINING REPORTS 1-100, AND UNIQUE FEATURES
HOME PAGE C: ALL REPORTS, READERS CONTAINING REPORTS 1-100, AND UNIQUE FEATURES

>>REPORT READERS: Complete freedom to rapidly choose and read what you need or want to read. The latest 40 Reports are found near the top of all three of the primary home pages (linked to just above) while Reports #41-#100 are found in three separate readers placed at various points down the page on all three primary home pages.

>>EXPRESS VERSION: Every Single Report but no Features: a Fast Loading Page: Click Here

>>FAST BREAK VERSION: The Latest 100 Reports via Report Readers Only; no Features, a Fast Loading Page: Click Here

>>QUEST ARCHIVE HOME PAGES--REPORT ARCHIVES AND A SMALL NUMBER OF CLASSIC FEATURES THAT WON'T FIT ON OTHER HOME PAGES
QUEST 4: REPORTS 101-200
QUEST 5: REPORTS 201-300
QUEST 6: REPORTS 301-400
QUEST 7: REPORTS 401-500
QUEST 8: REPORTS 501-600
QUEST 9: REPORTS 601-700
QUEST 10: REPORTS 701-800

>>FEATURES ONLY HOME PAGES: NO REPORTS, JUST FEATURES THAT WE CAN'T FIT ANYWHERE ELSE
QUEST OVERTIME
QUEST CLASSIC

>>COMPLETE TITLE INDEX: : A Complete Report Title Index, with Express Version Links to all Reports

>>LATEST 25 Reports: Direct links to the latest 25 Reports (with no truncated titles as you find with the poorly designed Google archive). This is located near the very bottom of this page.

>>GOOGLE ARCHIVE you will find this, with Reports shown by week not very far below.

>>I'M NEW AND I DON'T KNOW WHERE I WANT TO GO: Welcome to the Real Zone. Simply browse the page and see for yourself what is here. You will not be disappointed.

>>OR YOU CAN DO A CUSTOM GOOGLE SEARCH OF THE 20 BOOKS AND COUNTING CONTAINED ON THIS SITE>>>>>

TWO WAYS TO LOOK AT HOW LONG QUEST FOR THE RING HAS BEEN KEEPING IT REAL >>>

The above shows you in two different ways the exact amount of time since The Quest for the Ring began to completely explain how the Quest is won, while having as much fun as possible at the expense of basketball pretenders and player haters. The first panel shows how long it has been in each of seven units. The second panel shows how long it has been in the more usual "remainder" way.

QUEST FOR THE RING SOMETIMES GOES INTO HIATUS
Regardless of any temporary unavoidable absences, the Quest is in this project to explain in detail for the very long term--indefinitely, for many, many, many years ahead. At this writing we have the equivalent of 15 basketball books under our belt and we plan on doing dozens more. Count on us being right where basketball is at, which is here, actually.

WELCOME TO THE QUEST--THINGS ARE VERY DIFFERENT HERE

WELCOME TO THE QUEST FOR THE RING, ALSO KNOWN AS THE REAL ZONE
This is one of the most serious basketball sites on the internet, focusing on how and why playoff games and NBA Championships are won and lost. We also love to take comedy and music breaks, but not every day.

WELCOME TO THE QUEST FOR THE RING (QFTR). YOU HAVE LEFT THE HYPE ZONE AND HAVE ARRIVED IN THE REAL ZONE. Please check any rose colored glasses at the door. The Hype Zone that you most likely just came from is where you can find out about the personalities and the styles and how popular they are and what they are up to lately. The QFTR Real Zone is where we DO NOT think personalities and styles and how popular or unpopular they are things to waste time on just for ratings or traffic.

Instead of hype, here we post as much truth about how NBA playoff games and Championships are won as we can 365 days a year and at at any hour of the day or night. Please have a productive visit, and a nice trip back to the Hype Zone when your visit is over.

UNIQUE SITE DESIGN
The Quest is organized in a completely different way from what you are used to on the Internet. We have combined the best features of the blog and the conventional web site formats, the latter being the norm for large organizations. However, since we do not like the idea of using flash to "wow" visitors, we do not use flash except within video and other discrete components. So we are state of the art in terms of expanding the power of visitors to get exactly what they want very quickly, but we do not have the latest flash gadgetry just to "keep up with the Joneses".

More broadly, you will find that Quest for the Ring never seeks to keep up with the Joneses, simply because the Joneses never had the nerve and the intelligence to do what we do.

Unlike many Internet operations QFTR is never going to quit due to low traffic; we have learned over the last decade that traffic is about 95% determined by variables completely out of our control. The 5% that we do control is not enough to change traffic in any significant way. The corporate, hype, and porn sites get all the easy (and sleazy!) traffic. QFTR gets a relatively small amount of traffic but how could it possibly be otherwise? QFTR gets high quality traffic from serious, intelligent people (who are in limited supply) and that is exactly how it was inevitably going to be.

2009: A PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATION COMES TO QUEST
The QFTR Home Page consists of numerous types of content, organized carefully into clearly labelled sections. Features can be any educational and / or entertaining basketball content you can think of, including everything from music players to videos to photos to breaking NBA news readers to top teams performance breakdown pages.

Quest for the Ring has a world class link system for easy access to many of the Worlds' most important basketball resources. (We don't give a damn that all the outbound links might hurt our placement in search results, because we are not going to cheat visitors just to get more "fly by night" visitors.) But the Quest visitor does not HAVE to hunt for links to have an intelligent and entertaining experience because QFTR is a massive resource in and of itself.

THERE MUST BE FIFTY WAYS TO READ REPORTS [AS PAUL SIMON SANG YEARS AGO, LOL]
Well, maybe not fifty, but there are close to ten ways to find out about, select, and read Quest Reports! The standard, traditional blog presentation is available as one of the many ways to choose, access, and read reports. On the Home Page, only one report loads in the traditional format in order to keep this page as quick loading as possible. See the "Total Freedom of Navigation" section not far below the main Report you have loaded for complete details about how to find, choose, and read reports.

THE QUEST USER GUIDE VERSUS THE MERE ABOUT PAGE
Other sites very often have undeveloped and limited in scope "about pages" which is usually all they have for what we call a "User Guide". The QFTR User Guide is a little blog in itself with several dozen articles explaining aspects of the Site and how you can benefit from them. This approach is a vast improvement, quantitatively and qualitatively, over a mere "about page" While many other sites don't help their visitors to make the best use of the content, we do. Also, the User Guide is chock loaded with invitations to visitors to participate in all kinds of ways, including for example advertising for free, link exchange, and getting a team site supported by Quest. You can access User Guide articles either by visiting the User Guide dedicated page or by locating the list of User Guide articles right on the primary QFTR Home Page.

MOST RECENT LEAGUE WIDE REAL PLAYER RATINGS

Note: This is generally a once a year, end of season Report. For many teams and players, more recent ratings are often available.

NBA REAL PLAYER RATINGS
2009-10 REGULAR SEASON

POSITION AND TEAM CODES
In the Real Player and related ratings shown for the League, two codes follow each players' name (and before his rating). The first code tells you the players' team and the second one tells you his position.

TEAM CODES
ATLA Atlanta Hawks
BOST Boston Celtics
CHAR Charlotte Bobcats
CHIC Chicago Bulls
CLEV Cleveland Cavaliers
DALL Dallas Mavericks
DENV Denver Nuggets
DETR Detroit Pistons
GOLS Golden State Warriors
HOUS Houston Rockets
INDI Indiana Pacers
LACL Los Angeles Clippers
LALK Los Angeles Lakers
MEMP Memphis Grizzlies
MIAM Miami Heat
MILW Milwaukee Bucks
MINN Minnesota Timberwolves
NJRS New Jersey Nets
NORL New Orleans Hornets
NWYR New York Knicks
OKLA Oklahoma Thunder
ORLA Orlando Magic
PHIL Philadelphia 76'ers
PHNX Phoenix Suns
PORT Portland Trailblazers
SACR Sacramento Kings
SANA San Antonio Spurs
TORO Toronto Raptors
UTAH Utah Jazz
WASH Washington Wizards

POSITION CODES
PG Point Guard
SG Shooting Guard
SF Small Forward
PF Power Forward
C Center

SCALE FOR REGULAR SEASON REAL PLAYER RATINGS
Perfect for all Practical Purposes / Major Historic Super Star 1.100 and more
Historic Super Star 1.000 1.099
Super Star 0.900 0.999
A Star Player / A well above normal starter 0.820 0.899
Very Good Player / A solid starter 0.760 0.819
Major Role Player / Good enough to start 0.700 0.759
Good Role Player / Often a good 6th man 0.640 0.699
Satisfactory Role Player / Preferably should not start 0.580 0.639
Marginal Role Player / Generally should not start 0.520 0.579
Poor Player / Should never start 0.460 0.519
Very Poor Player 0.400 0.459
Extremely Poor Player .399 and less

NBA REAL PLAYER RATINGS
2009-10 REGULAR SEASON
--Shows the real quality of players
--Includes all tracked actions and also includes untracked or hidden defending
--The average Real Player Rating for all players who play 300 minutes or more is about .700.
--All players who have played at least 300 minutes are included here and in all other ratings to follow in coming days

MAJOR HISTORIC SUPERSTARS
1 LeBron James CLEV SF 1.382
2 Tim Duncan SANA PF 1.254
3 Chris Paul NORL PG 1.202
4 Dwight Howard ORLA C 1.121
5 Andrew Bogut MILW C 1.112

HISTORIC SUPERSTARS
6 Steve Nash PHNX PG 1.095
7 Jason Kidd DALL PG 1.092
8 Rajon Rondo BOST PG 1.084
9 Deron Williams UTAH PG 1.076
10 Dwyane Wade MIAM SG 1.075
11 Marcus Camby LACL C 1.071
12 Pau Gasol LALK PF 1.065
13 Greg Oden PORT C 1.060
14 Kevin Durant OKLA SF 1.051
15 Dirk Nowitzki DALL PF 1.034
16 Josh Smith ATLA SF 1.033
17 Kevin Garnett BOST PF 1.033
18 Manu Ginobili SANA SG 1.023
19 Kobe Bryant LALK SG 1.005

SUPERSTARS
20 Carlos Boozer UTAH PF 0.994
21 Lamar Odom LALK PF 0.982
22 Andrei Kirilenko UTAH SF 0.976
23 Chris Bosh TORO PF 0.972
24 David Lee NWYR C 0.971
25 Al Horford ATLA C 0.970
26 Marcus Camby PORT C 0.967
27 Jameer Nelson ORLA PG 0.959
28 Joakim Noah CHIC C 0.955
29 John Salmons MILW SF 0.937
30 Andrew Bynum LALK C 0.936
31 Troy Murphy INDI PF 0.934
32 Kevin Love MINN PF 0.934
33 Anderson Varejao CLEV C 0.933
34 Brendan Haywood DALL C 0.929
35 Vince Carter ORLA SG 0.928
36 Gerald Wallace CHAR SF 0.918
37 Sergio Rodriguez SACR PG 0.908
38 Tyrus Thomas CHIC PF 0.904
39 Derrick Rose CHIC PG 0.903

STARS
40 Baron Davis LACL PG 0.899
41 Russell Westbrook OKLA PG 0.897
42 Zach Randolph MEMP PF 0.885
43 Danny Granger INDI SF 0.885
44 Marc Gasol MEMP C 0.885
45 Joe Johnson ATLA SG 0.883
46 Chauncey Billups DENV PG 0.883
47 Roy Hibbert INDI C 0.880
48 Ben Wallace DETR C 0.877
49 Andre Miller PORT PG 0.874
50 Carmelo Anthony DENV SF 0.874
51 Brandon Jennings MILW PG 0.870
52 Tyrus Thomas CHAR PF 0.870
53 A.J. Price INDI PG 0.868
54 Paul Millsap UTAH PF 0.866
55 Craig Smith LACL PF 0.865
56 Samuel Dalembert PHIL C 0.864
57 Andre Iguodala PHIL SG 0.858
58 Raymond Felton CHAR PG 0.857
59 Delonte West CLEV SG 0.856
60 Al Jefferson MINN C 0.856
61 Eric Maynor OKLA PG 0.856
62 Serge Ibaka OKLA PF 0.855
63 Nene Hilario DENV C 0.852
64 Chris Andersen DENV PF 0.849
65 Shaquille O'Neal CLEV C 0.842
66 Brandon Roy PORT SG 0.842
67 Ryan Anderson ORLA PF 0.840
68 Antonio McDyess SANA PF 0.839
69 Tony Parker SANA PG 0.837
70 Paul Pierce BOST SF 0.836
71 Mo Williams CLEV PG 0.835
72 Kyle Lowry HOUS PG 0.835
73 Ersan Ilyasova MILW SF 0.828
74 Amare Stoudemire PHNX PF 0.828
75 Luke Ridnour MILW PG 0.827
76 Erick Dampier DALL C 0.826
77 Tyreke Evans SACR PG 0.825
78 Andris Biedrins GOLS C 0.825
79 Kyle Korver UTAH SG 0.824
80 Anthony Randolph GOLS PF 0.820

VERY GOOD PLAYERS / SOLID STARTERS
81 Eric Maynor UTAH PG 0.819
82 Carlos Arroyo MIAM PG 0.819
83 Antawn Jamison CLEV PF 0.819
84 Nazr Mohammed CHAR C 0.818
85 Luol Deng CHIC SF 0.817
86 Dorell Wright MIAM SG 0.817
87 LaMarcus Aldridge PORT PF 0.817
88 Carl Landry HOUS PF 0.816
89 Luis Scola HOUS PF 0.816
90 Nick Collison OKLA PF 0.812
91 Carlos Delfino MILW SG 0.809
92 Kendrick Perkins BOST C 0.807
93 Jermaine O'Neal MIAM C 0.805
94 Nate Robinson NWYR PG 0.804
95 Goran Dragic PHNX PG 0.803
96 Mike Bibby ATLA PG 0.803
97 Stephen Curry GOLS PG 0.803
98 Mehmet Okur UTAH C 0.800
99 Jose Calderon TORO PG 0.797
100 Jason Terry DALL SG 0.791
101 Ronnie Price UTAH PG 0.784
102 DeJuan Blair SANA PF 0.784
103 Chris Kaman LACL C 0.783
104 Shaun Livingston WASH PG 0.783
105 Joel Przybilla PORT C 0.782
106 David West NORL PF 0.781
107 John Salmons CHIC SF 0.776
108 Matt Barnes ORLA SF 0.775
109 Darren Collison NORL PG 0.775
110 Ronny Turiaf GOLS C 0.774
111 Udonis Haslem MIAM PF 0.774
112 Shawn Marion DALL SF 0.772
113 Jason Williams ORLA PG 0.771
114 Keyon Dooling NJRS PG 0.771
115 Andray Blatche WASH C 0.770
116 James Harden OKLA SG 0.770
117 Brook Lopez NJRS C 0.770
118 Ray Allen BOST SG 0.770
119 Amir Johnson TORO SF 0.769
120 Ty Lawson DENV PG 0.768
121 Beno Udrih SACR PG 0.768
122 Chuck Hayes HOUS PF 0.765
123 Matt Bonner SANA PF 0.763
124 Reggie Evans TORO PF 0.763
125 Gilbert Arenas WASH PG 0.760

MAJOR ROLE PLAYERS / GOOD ENOUGH TO START
126 Zydrunas Ilgauskas CLEV C 0.758
127 Rasheed Wallace BOST PF 0.757
128 Lou Williams PHIL SG 0.756
129 Stephen Jackson CHAR SF 0.754
130 Dan Gadzuric MILW C 0.754
131 Jamario Moon CLEV SF 0.754
132 Ron Artest LALK SF 0.752
133 Rodney Stuckey DETR PG 0.749
134 Shelden Williams BOST PF 0.748
135 Oleksiy Pecherov MINN C 0.748
136 Aaron Brooks HOUS PG 0.747
137 Boris Diaw CHAR PF 0.746
138 C.J. Watson GOLS PG 0.746
139 Brendan Haywood WASH C 0.744
140 Emeka Okafor NORL C 0.742
141 Taj Gibson CHIC PF 0.741
142 J.R. Smith DENV SG 0.738
143 Mike Miller WASH SF 0.732
144 Channing Frye PHNX C 0.731
145 Louis Amundson PHNX PF 0.731
146 Elton Brand PHIL PF 0.726
147 D.J. Mbenga LALK C 0.725
148 Tayshaun Prince DETR SF 0.724
149 Francisco Garcia SACR SG 0.724
150 Tyler Hansbrough INDI PF 0.724
151 Trevor Ariza HOUS SG 0.723
152 Allen Iverson PHIL SG 0.722
153 Rashard Lewis ORLA PF 0.721
154 Richard Jefferson SANA SF 0.721
155 Luc Richard Mbah a Moute MILW SF 0.721
156 Jamal Crawford ATLA SG 0.721
157 Brad Miller CHIC C 0.720
158 Josh Boone NJRS C 0.718
159 Jason Richardson PHNX SG 0.718
160 Sebastian Telfair LACL PG 0.717
161 Marvin Williams ATLA PF 0.716
162 David Andersen HOUS C 0.715
163 Caron Butler DALL SF 0.715
164 Michael Beasley MIAM PF 0.714
165 George Hill SANA PG 0.713
166 Ronnie Brewer UTAH SG 0.712
167 D.J. Augustin CHAR PG 0.712
168 Monta Ellis GOLS PG 0.711
169 Sean May SACR PF 0.710
170 Anthony Tolliver GOLS PF 0.709
171 Kenyon Martin DENV PF 0.709
172 Tyson Chandler CHAR C 0.709
173 Rodrigue Beaubois DALL PG 0.707
174 Stephen Jackson GOLS SF 0.704
175 Shane Battier HOUS SF 0.703
176 Stephen Graham CHAR SF 0.702
177 Mike Conley MEMP PG 0.702
178 Earl Watson INDI PG 0.701
179 T.J. Ford INDI PG 0.700

GOOD ROLE PLAYERS / OFTEN GOOD 6TH MAN PLAYERS
180 Ramon Sessions MINN PG 0.699
181 Corey Maggette GOLS SF 0.699
182 Marcin Gortat ORLA PF 0.698
183 Terrence Williams NJRS SG 0.698
184 Jarrett Jack TORO PG 0.698
185 James Singleton WASH SF 0.696
186 JaVale McGee WASH C 0.694
187 Jose Juan Barea DALL PG 0.694
188 Marcus Thornton NORL SG 0.693
189 Daequan Cook MIAM SG 0.691
190 Jordan Farmar LALK PG 0.689
191 Kirk Hinrich CHIC PG 0.689
192 Carl Landry SACR PF 0.689
193 Shannon Brown LALK PG 0.687
194 Anthony Carter DENV PG 0.686
195 Jason Thompson SACR PF 0.686
196 Mike Dunleavy INDI SF 0.686
197 Robin Lopez PHNX C 0.684
198 Spencer Hawes SACR C 0.680
199 Rudy Fernandez PORT SG 0.678
200 Drew Gooden LACL PF 0.678
201 Steve Blake LACL PG 0.677
202 Bobby Simmons NJRS SF 0.676
203 Larry Hughes NWYR SG 0.675
204 Jerry Stackhouse MILW SF 0.675
205 Quentin Richardson MIAM SG 0.675
206 Rudy Gay MEMP SF 0.675
207 Darko Milicic MINN C 0.674
208 Drew Gooden DALL PF 0.674
209 Reggie Williams GOLS SF 0.673
210 Ronald Murray CHAR SG 0.671
211 Grant Hill PHNX SF 0.669
212 Nate Robinson BOST PG 0.668
213 Travis Outlaw LACL SF 0.668
214 Steve Blake PORT PG 0.667
215 Devin Harris NJRS PG 0.665
216 Antawn Jamison WASH PF 0.665
217 Danilo Gallinari NWYR SF 0.664
218 Wilson Chandler NWYR SF 0.664
219 Gerald Henderson CHAR SG 0.664
220 Tony Allen BOST SG 0.663
221 Kyrylo Fesenko UTAH C 0.662
222 Anthony Morrow GOLS SG 0.661
223 Jordan Hill HOUS PF 0.661
224 Jared Dudley PHNX SF 0.660
225 Daniel Gibson CLEV PG 0.660
226 Jeff Green OKLA PF 0.659
227 Josh McRoberts INDI PF 0.659
228 Anthony Johnson ORLA PG 0.658
229 J.J. Redick ORLA SG 0.658
230 Al Harrington NWYR PF 0.655
231 Luther Head INDI PG 0.654
232 Nicolas Batum PORT SF 0.653
233 Theo Ratliff CHAR C 0.650
234 Mario Chalmers MIAM PG 0.648
235 Brandon Bass ORLA PF 0.648
236 Kris Humphries NJRS PF 0.646
237 Chris Duhon NWYR PG 0.643
238 Nenad Krstic OKLA C 0.642
239 Kris Humphries DALL PF 0.642

SATISFACTORY ROLE PLAYERS / USUALLY DO NOT START
240 Rasho Nesterovic TORO C 0.637
241 Hedo Turkoglu TORO SF 0.635
242 Johan Petro DENV C 0.635
243 Randy Foye WASH PG 0.634
244 Jrue Holiday PHIL PG 0.633
245 Mickael Pietrus ORLA SG 0.631
246 Jared Jeffries NWYR PF 0.627
247 Leandro Barbosa PHNX SG 0.626
248 Joel Anthony MIAM C 0.624
249 O.J. Mayo MEMP SG 0.622
250 Chase Budinger HOUS SF 0.621
251 Roger Mason SANA SG 0.619
252 Caron Butler WASH SF 0.617
253 Peja Stojakovic NORL SF 0.615
254 Marreese Speights PHIL PF 0.613
255 Jamaal Tinsley MEMP PG 0.613
256 Bobby Brown NORL PG 0.611
257 Jonas Jerebko DETR SF 0.610
258 Omri Casspi SACR SF 0.609
259 Kurt Thomas MILW PF 0.608
260 Thaddeus Young PHIL SF 0.607
261 Brandon Rush INDI SG 0.606
262 Hasheem Thabeet MEMP C 0.605
263 Damien Wilkins MINN SG 0.601
264 Rodney Carney PHIL SF 0.601
265 Earl Boykins WASH PG 0.599
266 J.J. Hickson CLEV PF 0.599
267 Willie Green PHIL SG 0.598
268 Anthony Parker CLEV SG 0.596
269 Jamaal Magloire MIAM C 0.594
270 Wesley Matthews UTAH SG 0.592
271 Devean George GOLS SG 0.592
272 Richard Hamilton DETR SG 0.592
273 Kevin Martin SACR SG 0.591
274 Andrea Bargnani TORO C 0.591
275 Ryan Gomes MINN SF 0.589
276 Thabo Sefolosha OKLA SF 0.589
277 Rafer Alston NJRS PG 0.589
278 Tracy McGrady NWYR SG 0.588
279 Marco Belinelli TORO SG 0.587
280 Michael Finley BOST SF 0.585
281 Marcus Williams MEMP PG 0.583
282 Martell Webster PORT SG 0.583
283 Charlie Villanueva DETR PF 0.582

MARGINAL ROLE PLAYERS / RARELY START
284 Derek Fisher LALK PG 0.578
285 Jannero Pargo CHIC PG 0.577
286 Toney Douglas NWYR PG 0.577
287 Chris Hunter GOLS PF 0.576
288 Derrick Brown CHAR SF 0.575
289 Yi Jianlian NJRS PF 0.575
290 Nathan Jawai MINN PF 0.575
291 Ime Udoka SACR SG 0.574
292 Sergio Rodriguez NWYR PG 0.574
293 Arron Afflalo DENV SG 0.573
294 Kevin Martin HOUS SG 0.572
295 Hakim Warrick MILW PF 0.571
296 Al Thornton WASH SF 0.569
297 Will Bynum DETR PG 0.568
298 Jonny Flynn MINN PG 0.568
299 James Posey NORL SF 0.564
300 Mikki Moore GOLS C 0.561
301 Darius Songaila NORL PF 0.561
302 Jerryd Bayless PORT PG 0.556
303 Jon Brockman SACR PF 0.554
304 Sasha Vujacic LALK SG 0.554
305 Dante Cunningham PORT SF 0.551
306 Michael Redd MILW SG 0.551
307 Eric Gordon LACL SG 0.550
308 C.J. Miles UTAH SF 0.549
309 Al Thornton LACL SF 0.547
310 Julian Wright NORL SF 0.545
311 Jeff Teague ATLA PG 0.544
312 Marquis Daniels BOST SG 0.543
313 Dahntay Jones INDI SG 0.542
314 Chris Douglas-Roberts NJRS SG 0.541
315 Zaza Pachulia ATLA C 0.538
316 Etan Thomas OKLA C 0.538
317 Sonny Weems TORO SG 0.537
318 Devin Brown NORL SG 0.533
319 Jason Maxiell DETR PF 0.532
320 Bill Walker NWYR SG 0.532
321 Courtney Lee NJRS SG 0.528
322 James Jones MIAM SF 0.525
323 Donte Greene SACR SF 0.524
324 Kenny Thomas SACR PF 0.523
325 Wayne Ellington MINN SG 0.521
326 Juwan Howard PORT PF 0.520

POOR PLAYERS / SHOULD NEVER START
327 Charlie Bell MILW SG 0.518
328 Corey Brewer MINN SF 0.518
329 Hakim Warrick CHIC PF 0.514
330 DeAndre Jordan LACL C 0.512
331 Rasual Butler LACL SG 0.509
332 Glen Davis BOST PF 0.508
333 Sam Young MEMP SF 0.508
334 Austin Daye DETR SF 0.507
335 Ronald Murray CHIC SG 0.504
336 Vladimir Radmanovic GOLS SF 0.494
337 Solomon Jones INDI PF 0.493
338 Ben Gordon DETR SG 0.491
339 James Johnson CHIC PF 0.487
340 Rafer Alston MIAM PG 0.482
341 Eduardo Najera DALL PF 0.482
342 Chucky Atkins DETR PG 0.477
343 Earl Clark PHNX SF 0.474
344 Joey Graham DENV SF 0.473
345 Fabricio Oberto WASH C 0.468
346 Jason Smith PHIL PF 0.466
347 Andres Nocioni SACR SF 0.464
348 Jared Jeffries HOUS PF 0.462
349 Nick Young WASH SG 0.462
350 Maurice Evans ATLA SF 0.462
351 Keith Bogans SANA SG 0.462
352 Josh Howard DALL SF 0.460

VERY POOR PLAYERS
353 Eddie House NWYR SG 0.454
354 Joe Smith ATLA PF 0.453
355 Kwame Brown DETR C 0.452
356 Antoine Wright TORO SF 0.451
357 Darrell Arthur MEMP PF 0.443
358 Jarvis Hayes NJRS SF 0.438
359 Ricky Davis LACL SF 0.437
360 Mardy Collins LACL PG 0.436
361 Malik Hairston SANA SG 0.433
362 Jeff Pendergraph PORT PF 0.432
363 Jermaine Taylor HOUS SG 0.428
364 Chris Wilcox DETR C 0.417
365 DeMar DeRozan TORO SG 0.414
366 Jodie Meeks MILW SG 0.413
367 Quinton Ross DALL SF 0.406

EXTREMELY POOR PLAYERS
368 Morris Peterson NORL SG 0.394
369 Josh Powell LALK PF 0.386
370 Jason Kapono PHIL SG 0.383
371 Jawad Williams CLEV SF 0.369
372 DeMarre Carroll MEMP SF 0.357
373 Ryan Hollins MINN C 0.351
374 Steve Novak LACL SF 0.345
375 Trenton Hassell NJRS SF 0.342
376 Brian Scalabrine BOST C 0.329
377 Michael Finley SANA SF 0.321
378 Sasha Pavlovic MINN SG 0.314
379 DeShawn Stevenson WASH SG 0.287
380 Malik Allen DENV PF 0.282
381 DaJuan Summers DETR SF 0.266

SCALE FOR REGULAR SEASON REAL PLAYER RATINGS
Perfect for all Practical Purposes / Major Historic Super Star 1.100 and more
Historic Super Star 1.000 1.099
Super Star 0.900 0.999
A Star Player / A well above normal starter 0.820 0.899
Very Good Player / A solid starter 0.760 0.819
Major Role Player / Good enough to start 0.700 0.759
Good Role Player / Often a good 6th man 0.640 0.699
Satisfactory Role Player / Usually do not start 0.580 0.639
Marginal Role Player / Rarely start 0.520 0.579
Poor Player / Should never start 0.460 0.519
Very Poor Player 0.400 0.459
Extremely Poor Player .399 and less

AVERAGE RATINGS BY POSITION
Not all positions are created equal. These are the average ratings by position among all NBA players who play 300 minutes or more. There are very few small forwards and shooting guards who are superstars. Most (but definitely not all) superstars are players who can play point guard, power forward, or center.

Point Guard .750
Shooting Guard .640
Small Forward .640
Power Forward .720
Center .750
All Positions / All Players (NBA Overall Average) .700

PLAYOFF GRADE PLAYERS
Playoff Grade Players have ratings of .560 and higher. Players with ratings below .560 should not play in the playoffs unless the team is forced to play them so that they have two players at a position and/or so that the team has at least eight players playing in the playoffs and/or because the coach is absolutely certain the low rating player will play better in the playoffs than he did in the regular season.

REGULAR SEASON STARTING PLAYERS
All starters on all teams should have ratings of .575 and higher. If a team has no player at a postion with at least a .575 rating, then it is extremely deficient at that position due to injuries or due to management incompetence.

THE ALL IMPORTANT, AWARD WINNING REAL PLAYER RATINGS USER GUIDE
The above are a few hightlights from the User Guide for Real Player Ratings. For complete details regarding how the Real Player Ratings are designed, how and why they work, and how exactly you can use them, see the User Guide. The User Guide for Real Player Ratings is a necessary reference for anyone who wants to truly understand the value of, the validity of, and the ways you can use the Real Player Rating performance measures.

Also, you should become a regular visitor to Quest for the Ring if you want to get the full advantage of reading and using Real Player Ratings Series performance measures. The more you visit and check out ratings, the more quickly and easily you will be able to evaluate what you are seeing.

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