And that statement "is just stupid". Barkley's a "if you don't understand it, tear it down" kind of guy. Barkley's right about "everybody going after the best players" not being analytics. That's common sense. Analytics is the mathematical method more & more GM's are using to be able to get the best players. That's what Barkley, and others, don't understand.
I don't think he would be a good GM, but he probably makes more than most if not all GMs in the NBA for working a few nights a week half the year.
Was everybody else offering Harden the max? Was everybody else in a position to make a trade for Harden/Howard? Most everyone will recognize the really good players, with or without advanced statistics. That said, the Rockets probably valued Harden and Howard's abilities more than most other teams. They certainly were much more aggressive and prepared in their pursuit of those players.
Lol, if Harden was such a coveted free agent that Morey was chasing after like everyone else, how did we get him for the poopoo platter? I wonder why the Thunder didn't take a better offer, maybe there weren't any? Hmmmm
OP you're the one who's stupid if you believe Barkley. Just on face value alone, who do you think is stupid? A guy who graduated from MIT or some jock who didn't even finish college and battled gambling addiction throughout his own life? The fact that analytics points to some "obvious" people like Dwight or Harden shows that it works, if it told you some random would be the next superstar then it will show that analytics doesn't work because then it wouldn't be in line with reality. Obviously analytics isn't just limited to that, Morey was able to identify Aaron Brooks, Shane Battier, Kyle Lowry, Chuck Hayes, Chase Budinger and Parsons as undervalued players through analytics. Analytics isn't exclusive to Morey like what other posters have said DM might be the poster boy but pretty much every FO employs analytics people now, obv. because owners aren't dumb and realize that a GM who has access to numbers is better than a GM who's too dumb to read numbers like Barkley.
I wouldn't be too sure of that. GMs get paid 2-5M per year, does Barkley make that amount of dough commentating? If being a GM paid less I'm sure guys like Mchale and Barkley and Kerr wouldn't give up their commentating jobs.
Morey is a very bright guy and a good gm but if analytics is making us run this offense and defense, then
3 teams declined a trade for him before us. Bobcats for the 2nd overall pick in 2012, Wizards for Beal, and Warriors for Klay. That trade was a complete steal.
It's obvious that you, like Barkley, don't understand what analytics are or how they are used. Analytics is the use of statistics to evaluate the value of players and player combinations. It's used to help find undervalued assets that can be attained at a price below their true value. Morey and all other analytics guys will tell you that the most undervalued asset in the NBA is a max level player. The reasoning is that the league maximum salary is preventing these players from being paid their true worth. Several years back Morey specifically cited Lebron actually being worth close to twice his max salary. Since max players are undervalued due to the max salary limits they are great values so that's why analytics guys pursue them. Do most other gm's also pursue them? Sure they do. There's lots of reason to pursue max players. Just because non-analytic GM's pursue a max player that doesn't somehow disprove analytics. Analytics isn't used just for decision making on max players and different GM's can go after the same player for different reasons. Let's say that I purchase a stock who's price goes way up shortly after my purchase. Let's also say that Warren Buffett had bought the same stock too. That doesn't mean that all of Warren Buffett's analysis is crap just because he did the same thing as an uneducated investor like me? Of course not. Max players are only one part of the equation. Morey's use of analytics allowed him to go from a broken down Yao and T-Mac and convert them into Harden and Howard through a series of trades. Not only was he able to do that, he was able to do that without having to tank. That's a very rare feat. Analytics have also allowed Morey to build a roster with great flexibility so despite having 2 stars, he always has the flexibility and assets to be able to make a run at other players of value when they come available. People need to stop thinking that analytics is some magic formula that is going to find a superstar that nobody else knows about. Morey has continually said that analytics is only part of the picture and that normal basketball analysis is also required. The Rockets aren't making all of their decisions by just plugging numbers into a formula. The Lakers have now added an analytics team, so I think that means that all NBA teams have an analytics group. San Antonio is big into analytics as are most of the other well run clubs. It's a tool to help make decisions. It's not magic, a non-analytic method may come to the same conclusion on a particular issue and it's not the only decision making resource for teams. It's just a tool for allowing teams to make better decisions.
http://awfulannouncing.blogspot.com/2008/02/tnt-to-resign-barkley-soon.html He was making mid 7 figures in 08. He is probably making 7-8 mil now. Kerr and Mchale don't have the star power of Barkley.
All of the players Barkley mentioned are allstars of course they have amazing stats across the board in analytics.
OKC offered harden a few million less than max. He was on the dream team which means he was one of the best 12 players in America. There were a bunch of teams that would have given Howard max including the mavs.
A couple of points. There's not a single way to build a team. If we could get a really good stretch 4 that fit our team that would be great. But we could also have a championship roster without a stretch 4. The simple example would be a Dennis Rodman clone. Great defense, off the charts rebounding and incredible energy/hustle. He's can't shoot from more that 2 feet but you can't double off of him because that will turn him loose to offensive rebound. Just because a team selects a player in the draft, it doesn't necessarily mean that they think that they are perfect for their team. When your pick comes in the 2nd round if there's a guy still available that you think should have gone way earlier then you take them. That strategy is called "best player available" and it's used by most all of the successful teams in every sport. If you can get a guy for much less than he's worth then you can later trade him for someone who fits better. That's how you improve your team.
