Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with NBA

Double agent

chmmr — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 16:30:09 -0800

There was a player in the NBA who played in the same game for both teams, I think due to the final minutes needing to be replayed on a different date and a trade happening in the meantime. I can't think of the name of the player or teams, and my Google-fu doesn't seem up to the task. Can anybody help?

Whither Conan's "Roundball Rock" Segment

Cogito — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 12:39:20 -0800

Where can I find video of Conan's sketch about John Tesh's NBA theme music? When NBC lost their NBA contract a number of years back, Conan O'Brien did a segment lamenting the loss of John Tesh's theme music "Roundball Rock". In the segment, they paired the music with various other pieces of video (e.g., It's a Wonderful Life) to humorous effect. I've always wanted to see this bit again, but have never been able to find it online. Is it available anywhere?

Music that helps drain that game winning three.

nudar — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 02:03:20 -0800

Can anyone tell me the name of this piece of music? (Warning: Splicd/Youtube link of teh oldskool basketball) It appears on 'Larry Bird: A basketball legend', an NBA home video production from the early nineties (hence the link), though I think this is not the only NBA video I have heard it on from that era. I used to watch these videos religiously, I always loved this composition and would love to track down a recording for posterity.

What is the song in the NBA playoff commerial with Chris Paul?

ajr — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 11:13:43 -0800

Anybody recognize the music in the NBA's most-recent playoff ad featuring Chris Paul? It's a piano instrumental that is very mellow, yet it builds tension well.

Why have the NBA's western teams been better than its eastern teams in recent years?

ORthey — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 12:06:52 -0800

Is there a geographical reason the NBA's Western Conference has been so much better than the East? What's the deal? It does seem in the past couple years the East is catching up and, who knows, maybe is better this year, but that said - the West has been dominating (at least during the regular season) for some time now. I wonder if anyone knows of any articles that specifically address WHY and HOW this happened, rather than what I see all the time, which is more about PROVING the west's superiority, using stats and such.

Given that there are no rule differences (as in MLB with the DH, for example, which leads to totally different strategy), it doesn't make any intuitive sense that teams in one half of the country would generally be better than the other - other than migration of better players to the better conference.

Ideas, theories, and resources welcome!

How do you share a couple of season tickets with a group of people?

ajr — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 13:44:15 -0800

Help me devise the best way for four people to split and manage a couple of NBA (Hornets) season tickets. It seems like there would be several online tools to manage this type of thing, but I can't find them. There are approximately 40 games to split among 4 people. Even if we are able to handle the initial distribution of games, experience tells me that plans change, etc. I want a good way to manage this. It seems like baseball and hockey would have similar problems. What's out there?

Any pointers to suggestions for group rules (e.g., right of first refusal to other group members, etc.), spreadsheets, etc. will be greatly appreciated.

This would be a bad year to miss the playoffs

lbergstr — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 05:31:41 -0800

Anyone know a place in Bangkok to watch the NBA playoffs?

How many points does the average NBA player score per game?

pablocham — Wed, 11 Jul 2007 16:22:45 -0800

How many points per game or per x minutes does the average NBA player score? I want to know this so that I can create a basic over-under guestimate of how an incoming player will fare in the NBA, and say, for conversation's sake, "he will probably do better/worse than the average." I am guessing that there are probably quite a few ways to calculate this, but I am lazy and know nothing about what would make a valid statistic or what method would best achieve my purpose. I have searched the web and failed at finding anything so far.

Is he really that tall?

aerotive — Mon, 01 Jan 2007 11:34:11 -0800

How accurate are player's listed heights in college football and pro basketball? And are they measured with shoes on? These are the sports I'm most interested in but I'd be interested to hear about other sports as well.

Regarding college football I go to games at a big football college frequently. The players generally seem to be listed an 1in, maybe a 1.5in above their actual height. If they're listed height includes shoes, that'd be more accurate. I'm 6ft 3in, and the guys listed at 6ft 4, even 6ft 5 often don't look any taller than me.

Never been to a pro basketball game but I watch a good amount on TV. Here, to me, there's a split. The shorter guys, say Steve Nash & Allen Iverson, don't look like they are as tall as listed. The taller players, say Dirk Nowitski & Amare Stoudemire, seem to be taller than listed. That might just be my own perception though.

Do any pro athletes blog?

greedo — Tue, 28 Nov 2006 18:11:44 -0800

Are there any professional athletes that maintain a blog during the sports season? I am looking for NFL, NHL, MLB or NBA athlete blogs specifically and not the training diaries of olympic athlete, boxers or golfers. Any tips?

Dribbbbbble

striker — Wed, 08 Nov 2006 15:08:28 -0800

NBA: Who do I go see? So I don't follow the NBA much, but we're going to a Hornets game in OKC. Which game would be the best to go to? The games coming up here are vs: Charlotte, Miami, Minnesota, Chicago, Cleveland, Memphis, San Antonio, Denver. I'm looking for most fun to watch, players that should be seen, etc. as opposed to the team where the home team is going to win or completely cream the other team. Perhaps you could give me a top 3 or 5 in some kind of ranked order. Thanks!

Best NBA playoffs ever?

gfroese — Mon, 01 May 2006 07:29:02 -0800

Best NBA playoffs ever? Last nights Lakers/Suns finish sure was exciting, no matter who you were cheering for. I read an article a few weeks ago saying why this year could have the most exciting playoffs in NBA history. Anybody know where that article can be found?

What is the difference in style of play between European and NBA basketball?

dammitjim — Fri, 21 Apr 2006 20:43:53 -0800

What is the difference in style of play between European and NBA basketball? I was under the impression that the European game tended to be more fundamental, team-style basketball, based probably simply on commentary that I read surrounding the poor performance of the last two US olympic basketball teams. It seemed to me like the US players had overemphasized attacking the basket, as personified by Allen Iverson's style.

But then I read this article in the New Jersey Record about Nenad Krstic's emergence as a talent on the Nets. A quote:

"He's 10 times better here than in Europe because those guys don't pass the ball a lot," said Nets guard Zoran Planinic, who is Croatian and played against Krstic abroad. "He's unbelievable here, especially with J. Kidd."

So what's the deal? If they don't pass a lot, what do they do?

Help me find a video of Shaq destroying a NBA backboard in 1993.

pwb503 — Sat, 27 Aug 2005 19:31:57 -0800

In 1993, during his rookie season in the NBA, Shaquille O'Neil's weight and strength managed to break and pull down two NBA backboards. The first on national television (NBC if I remember correctly...) on February 7th in Phoenix delaying the game for a half hour. The second time on April 23rd in New Jersey. The best video I can find online for either is an animated GIF from here. My Google-Fu has failed helping me find anything better than that. I ask of you MeFi users, please help.

NBA Courts

jazon — Mon, 01 Mar 2004 07:33:38 -0800

NBA Rule 1: Court Dimensions
Section Ii: A half-circle shall be created 4' from the center of the basket.

Why?