Inspired by Reddit user sabermetrical’s points scored vs points allowed graph, we created a similar graph for the NBA now that we’re a quarter through the 2015–16 season.
The losers are on point, with 1–25 Philadelphia, 7–17 Brooklyn, and 3–21 Los Angeles gracing the bottom left quadrant. Shout out to 6–18 New Orleans for being more “shootout” than “loser”.
If you want to see a shootout, gravitate towards games featuring the Kings, Rockets, or Suns. So take your pick from the gun-happy Rondo-Cousins, James Harden, or Bledsoe-Knight-backcourt shows.
As owners of the top three records in the league, the Warriors, Spurs, and Thunder are most prone to blowing opponents out. This is especially so for the Spurs of late. The last eight Spurs wins: +37, +25, +22, +51, +3, +20, +25, +20. Ludicrous. Also, with Kyrie Irving set to return on Dec 20, expect Cleveland’s dot to start pulling towards the right.
Congratulations Miami—you are the most “boring” team in the league by virtue of being most prone to slugfests. In actuality, this a prime example refuting the old “more points is more fun” myth. Through being an efficient team that rosters the likes of Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh, Goran Dragic, and the revelation Hassan Whiteside, I find Miami quite an interesting team to watch. In fact, things could get even more interesting in Miami now that Dwight Howard to Miami rumors are surfacing.
Finally, it looks like Dallas edges out Atlanta for the distinction of “most average”.
Its worth noting that the four quadrant format is a slightly different concept from standard point-differential tables. For example, Golden State averages about 115 points a game and gives up about 102 points a game, which is a 13-point differential. Meanwhile, San Antonio averages approximately 101 points a game while giving up 88 points, also a 13-point differential. But due to differences in scoring quantity, Golden State’s games are considered half-shootouts while San Antonio’s are considered half-slugfests.
