Updated throughout the day with quick takes from staff.
For the past few years, there's been an underground movement in the hoops world that has, quietly, created a whole new type of basketball knowledge. Using "advanced metrics" (read: new-ish stats), we have come to understand the game on a different level, and with statistical backing. This weekend, at the Sloan Sports Analytics Conference in Boston, the leaders in this new, nerdy field will convene to compare notes.
The conference had been held at MIT in past years, but as the popularity has boomed in recent years, the conference has actually outgrown MIT, and will be held in downtown Boston. Clearly, the rest of the sports world has taken an interest in what's happening here.
Over at Basketball Prospectus, Kevin Pelton hits on the biggest question mark in all of this:
What, if any, of this information will ever become public.
The new, complex statistical formulas have allowed us to measure performance like never before. And by "us," I mean the select few that can a. understand them, and b. the NBA teams that can pay for statisticians to join their front office. Otherwise, the juiciest information and most valuable statistical models are fiercely guarded. It's considered a competitive advantage for NBA teams, and they act accordingly. Every edge helps. But what about the rest of us?
For now, average fans remain in the basketball dark ages, with a select group hoarding the most valuable info. But with the summits like this weekend's conference spreading the gospel far and wide, it's only a matter of time before the enlightenment arrives for everyone.
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