Stat Chat: Round 5 (What's Hot & What's Not)

Statistics ... whether you love them or hate them, stats play a huge part in sport.

Whether it's when recruiting a player, how teams prepare, how a starting five is setup, or just about any facet of the game, numbers are crunched and relied upon as fact. 

This year, 2018 NBL Champion and expert commentator Pete Hooley will be our resident stats man on NBL.com.au, providing a rundown of all the key numbers from the weekend's games. 

Keep an eye out after every round for the latest edition of 'Stat Chat'. 

What’s hot – 24.5
With all the firepower in the starting lineup for the 36ers, they could walk away from a tough weekend with at least one positive, the bench production. In both games the 36ers averaged 24.5 points off the pine, thanks to efforts from Kai Sotto, Anthony Drmic and Sunday Dech. There was always going to be tough moments throughout the season where Adelaide would have to find their way through, but that will be made easier if the bench continues to take the load off the main group.

What’s not – 2/9
The 36ers played nine periods of basketball across Round 5 (including overtime) and managed to win just two. Their first game against the Breakers highlighted some areas where they’ll be seeking some major improvement. While they were in the game against the Phoenix for the majority, they could never capitalise on their runs and in the end will feel like they let one slip.

What’s hot – 22
It’s been a slow and steady build for Bullets star Nathan Sobey, with his return from injury, but his 22 first half points against the Hawks would do his confidence wonders. The Bullets have had back-to-back wins against Illawarra, and whilst that might not mean a whole lot, the fact they found some success in feeding Aron Baynes and then getting Sobey going, could be the turning point they’ve been searching for. 

What’s not – -2
The two wins were handy and much needed, but the Bullets might be a little disappointed in the way they closed out the final quarter of that game against the Hawks. After dominating every facet of the game for the first 30 minutes, they ended up losing the last quarter by two points. Yes rotations were mixed up a little, but it’s those minor drops in their game that James Duncan will want eradicated completely as they try to climb up the ladder.

What’s hot – 10
They’re on track to break numerous records in terms of three pointers in NBL23 and there’s a good reason for that. Everyone can shoot it. 10 made threes from the Taipans in the first half against the Kings. They play fast, free and with a lot of energy, which seemingly has them in with a chance to win every game because they can flick a switch at any point.

What’s not – 5
A bit of déjà vu in this column for Taipans fans. The last time they met Sydney, I highlighted how the five fouls for star big man Keanu Pinder is something they could not afford to have happen too often. Well, fast forward to the rematch on Saturday night and once again Pinder fouled out down the stretch. Only this time the Taipans were unable to claw out a victory. However you look at it, Pinder is just too important of a presence to not be on the floor in the clutch.

What’s hot – 44
I love a good PRA (points, rebounds, assists) breakdown, because it means that a certain player has dominated all over the floor. That man was Sam Froling in their double OT loss to United. 15 rebounds to go along with 27 points and a couple of assists. Froling is getting better and better each game and he needs to continue to find ways to put up solid numbers if the Hawks want to win games.

What’s not – 6
There’s probably no tougher way to sink to your sixth straight loss than losing in double overtime on your home floor. The positive is that the Hawks seemed to find some potential success they could build off, with Tyler Harvey finding some form, Froling dominating and Peyton Siva controlling things at the point. There’s no easy games in the NBL, so the Hawks know that they need to really knuckle down and put together 40 minutes of great basketball.

What’s hot – 12
Shea Ili's first game back and he was on limited minutes, 12 in fact. However it was clear to see how important he is to United in just that short period of time. He started, knocked down two threes, defended hard, was first on the floor and was getting everybody set up offensively. It could very well be the turning point of United’s season now that their glue guy is back.

What’s not – 5.2
They escaped with a big win at Illawarra and thankfully so. After Tyler Harvey’s prayer was answered to tie the scores in regulation, United failed to even get a game-winning shot attempt off, with 5.2 seconds left remaining on the clock. Initially it seemed as though Xavier Rathan-Mayes assumed they were still up one, so he dribbled to the corner to run out the clock, until he passed to a confused Dave Barlow who thought his teammate knew something he didn’t.

What’s hot – 1
As it stands, New Zealand may just be the hottest team in the league. The Breakers sit in top spot on the ladder after some impressive team performances. Mody Maor has this group firing on all cylinders, especially on the defensive end. The lineup looks to be the perfect puzzle, which each piece so vital to their success. From McDowell-White controlling things, to Brantley’s strength, Pardon’s dominance inside and Brown Jr buckets, could this be the Breakers team to take them back to the top?

What’s not – -2
It's tough to find many negatives across round 5 for the Breakers, who simply tore apart the opposition in both games. This is more of a who is unlucky, rather than what’s not hot. In a 29-point win against Adelaide, somehow Rob Loe found himself with a -2 in his 10 minutes played. He was on the wrong end of substituting on during free throws and in the end, doesn’t deserve to be seen with a negative +-. After all, Loe has been terrific since the Blitz for New Zealand

What’s hot – 50
It wasn’t the best weekend for the Wildcats in terms of results, but they can take away some positives from the production out of TaShawn Thomas. Thomas’ 50 combined PRA across both weekends indicates that he is well and truly finding his feet in the NBL. The Wildcats need consistent contributors outside of Cotton and perhaps that is Thomas down low. He was scoring, rebounding and dishing out dimes in each game, to showcase that he can do a bit of everything. 

What’s not – 94
Defensively it just hasn’t been there for the Wildcats to start NBL23, capped off with giving up 94 points to a United team that has struggled to score the ball themselves. Their offense will come as they continue to grow and play with each other more, however it’s the defensive end which may be a growing concern for John Rillie.

What’s hot – 4
Four games with a full strength roster and four consecutive wins. Should we be surprised? I say yes, actually. Because this team missed so much time trying to sort out their roles and style of play, due to injuries to key guys, but the moment they are all back and it looks like they’ve played together for years. This was the team that Simon Mitchell and Tommy Greer recruited to be competitive in NBL23, and this might just be a team that’s only going to get even tougher to beat. 

What’s not – 33
It was a spectacular clutch round for the Phoenix who came away with two big wins to continue their form, however the 33 points they gave up to Perth in the second quarter is one concern they’ll hope to keep under control. The Phoenix have historically never had trouble scoring the ball, but rather finding defensive consistency, can they continue to build on that side of the floor and become one of the best in the league?

What’s hot – 57
The Kings avoided dropping three consecutive games on their home floor in dramatic fashion. What was super-impressive was the 57 points they got from their bench. Shaun Bruce was outstanding in swinging the game’s momentum in the second half. Jaylin Galloway showed poise and made plays, and then the birthday boy, Kouat Noi, put an end to proceedings with the dagger. How’s the depth of the Kings team when Chase Buford trusts three bench players to close out the last four minutes of a close game?

What’s not – 3
It was a forgettable game for starting big man Tim Soares on Saturday night. He managed just three points in five minutes of action. Unfortunately for him, he found himself against an opposition which is a tough matchup for himself. The speed, length and athleticism of Cairns' big men was too much for him and hence Buford going deeper into his bench. 

What’s hot – 13
While the result wasn’t ideal, the Jackjumpers should be thrilled with the fact they managed to pull down 13 rebounds considering their size in the frontcourt. That signifies their desire to continue to fight and grind things out until Will Magnay and co return. It might not be the prettiest basketball, but it’s shown to be incredible successive over the course of an entire season.

What’s not – 13/47
Outside of Milton Doyle’s individual efforts, the rest of the team shot just 13/47 from the field and in the end couldn’t find enough contributors to tick the scoreboard over. They aren’t a team to always put up a big score, despite their previous results. However, they still need to find regular contributors in the likes of McVeigh and Kelly.