Thinking Basketball

The Athletic's Dave DuFour on things and the NBA MVP. We compare 2020 LeBron James to another historical MVP winner. Dr. Maia Majumder also stops by (52:00) to provide insight into modeling COVID-19 and why we should exercise caution when it comes to public numbers or models...and avoid social gatherings. Follow them at @DaveDuFourNBA and @MaiaMajumder. Support at patreon.com/thinkingbasketball and access the post show pie cast with Dave.

I take a first look at the new Box Plus-Minus on Basketball-Reference that goes back to 1974, including an all-time top-10 list based on playoff BPM. What kind of player does the model love? What are the improvements from the old 1.0 on the site? And can the emerging Jayson Tatum unseat Giannis Antetokoumnpo in his quest to do something no one has ever done? Support at www.patreon.com/thinkingbasketball

The undiscussed scandal of the dunk contest! A lesson in comparing statistical profiles. Plus, The Athletic's Danny Leroux discusses lessons from others sports and what it was like to find basketball later in life...and how that influences the way he views the game. Follow Danny @DannyLeroux. Support at www.patreon.com/thinkingbasketball (Patreon post show on big men and the Most Improved Player)

Eric Leidersdorf, director of biomechanics of P3 Sports Science, helps expand on our idea of “athleticism” and discusses his experience measuring and testing over 600 NBA players. What happened when Zion Williamson was measured in high school? How are Luka Doncic, James Harden and Nikola Jokic athletic in non-traditional ways? Follow P3 on twitter at @P3sportscience. Support at www.patreon.com/thinkingbasketball and get a FREE week trial at the Athletic at http://www.theathletic.com/thinkingbasketballpod

Jackson Frank of the Athletic stops by to discuss the beginning of Zion Williamson's career, the white shot scoring of Damian Lillard and the nuances of first-time All-Star Jayson Tatum. Follow Jackson @jackfrank_jjf. Support at www.patreon.com/thinkingbasketball and get a FREE month trial at the Athletic at http://www.theathletic.com/thinkingbasketballpod

Who are the best players after the All-Stars? It's the 2nd annual sub All-Star team, where I agonizingly select the next group of players who are still valuable, but not quite All-Stars. Apologies to Montrezl Harrell in advance. Support at www.patreon.com/thinkingbasketball

How much should defense factor into the MIP discussion? Is the award too scoring centric? I stack up the Most Improved players this year by diving into overall changes in impact and looking at where players have grown on offense and defense. Support at www.patreon.com/thinkingbasketball and get a FREE week trial at the Athletic at http://www.theathletic.com/thinkingbasketballpod

Heat VP Shane Battier joins to discuss how players use data as part of their game preparation and how it can create an advantage. How has the scouting process changed in the last 20 years? Are players resistant to more data? And did he really have a special packet of information delivered before each game by the analytics maesters in Houston? Support at www.patreon.com/thinkingbasketball

ESPN's Andre Snellings and I go deep on a classic player comparison between Tim Duncan and Kevin Garnett. We stack up their playoff comparisons, historical impact metrics, team circumstances and how they would fare in today's NBA. Follow Andre @ProfessorDrz and support at www.patreon.com/thinkingbasketball

How important is rebounding? And how much do rebounding stats really tell us about players today? This episode takes a deep dive into the value of rebounding, the context behind rebounding numbers and the diminishing returns involved. http://basketball-statistics.com/blog1/2009/12/06/the-diminishing-returns-of-rebounds-and-other-stats/ Pomeroy: https://theathletic.com/789794/2019/01/29/kenpom-offensive-rebounding-is-at-an-all-time-low-what-are-teams-really-missing-out-on/ Support at www.patreon.com/thinkingbasketball and get a FREE week trial at the Athletic at http://www.theathletic.com/thinkingbasketballpod

An actual physicist joins to explain the stunning reality of out of bounds calls like the LeBron James one on Christmas. Also, diving into modern post ups and Rick Carlise's controversial comments on Kristaps Porzingis and some observations from the Christmas games. Follow Matt at @MrJCrossesRoads Support at www.patreon.com/thinkingbasketball and get a FREE week trial at the Athletic at http://www.theathletic.com/thinkingbasketballpod

Breaking down a number of proposed trades involving marquee players like Chris Paul, Ben Simmons, Jrue Holiday and more, with an emphasis on how these players fit on contending teams and what those top teams need to get over the hump. Also, is heliocentrism good for basketball? Support at www.patreon.com/thinkingbasketball and get a FREE week trial at the Athletic at http://www.theathletic.com/thinkingbasketballpod

In the 2nd episode of the Great Debates series, Nate and I size up Dirk Nowitzki, Charles Barkley, Karl Malone and the best portage systems in Eastern Canada. Who was better at his best? What are the important numbers and trends to know about each player? How do they succeed in the regular season versus the playoffs, and which of these players is best suited for playing next to high-level teammates? Follow Nate @NateDuncanNBA and support at www.patreon.com/thinkingbasketball

Former Nets assistant coach Steve Jones discusses the principles of the best offensive teams in the NBA in 2020, including the incredible Raptors, Kemba replacing Kyrie and the LeBron-Anthony Davis partnership. Also, stories of dislocated shoulders. Follow Steve @stevejones20 and support at www.patreon.com/thinkingbasketball

I went out to talk to real fans, both casual and hardcore, to research the things NBA consumers love and hate about the current state of the league. Is it load management? Tanking? In a special episode, we'll try to identify the real problems facing the league and use fan feedback to propose ideas for a more perfect NBA. Support at www.patreon.com/thinkingbasketball