FanPost

On Blazers and Back-to-backs



Hi guys!

Blazer fans have felt for a long time that this team has been getting the short end of the stick on back-to-backs.

Well, I did a little research and found an amazing piece on back-to-backs on Basketbawful.

Links:

http://basketbawful.blogspot.com/2010/11/unnecessarily-comprehensive-and-overdue.html

http://basketbawful.blogspot.com/2010/11/obscenely-comprehensive-nba-schedule.html

Note: The second link contains data on back-to-backs all the way back to 2000.

Table:

https://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=0Ag4HONGh36KcdHRaelFqbldETWdfNXhhc2h2R2xQd0E#gid=1

Apparently, the same guy has been making the schedule for 25 years!

Link:http://espn.go.com/blog/truehoop/post/_/id/19219/how-to-build-the-nba-schedule

The stat to look for are Any B2Bs ( total no. of back-to-backs) and
B2B margin(difference bet. games where the team is on a B2B and games where the opponent is on a B2B).

The Skinny:
-Blazers have 22 B2Bs which is highest in the WC (Clips also have 22 B2Bs but I'm sure some of those are against the Lakers on the same basketball court) along with a -2 B2B margin.
-Blazers also have 4 4in5s(4th game in 5 nights) which is again highest in the WC but is offset with a 0 4in5 margin due to Blazers going against 4 opponents also in their 4in5.
-As suspected, Lakers only play 15 B2Bs (lowest in league) but have a -5 B2B margin which means most of their B2Bs are against rested opponents.

Now let's take a look at the other teams.

Division:

Por- 22 B2Bs, -2 B2B margin, 4 4in5s, 0 4in5 margin
Den- 19 B2Bs, +1 B2B margin, 3 4in5s, -1 4in5 margin
Uta- 19 B2Bs, +2 B2B margin, 2 4in5s, -1 4in5 margin
Min- 19 B2Bs, +5 B2B margin, 3 4in5s, 0 4in5 margin
Okc- 17 B2Bs, +7 B2B margin, 1 4in5s, +2 4in5 margin

Okc has the least number of B2Bs at 17 with an astounding +7 B2B margin along with only one 4in5 and a division-best +2 4in5 margin. The other extreme is Portland which have the most B2Bs & 4in5s and the only negative B2B margin in the division. Uta and Den sit at the middle with Uta having a bigger B2B margin and less 4in5s.

Other Western Conference Playoff Teams:

LAL- 15 B2Bs, -5 B2B margin, 1 4in5s, -1 4in5 margin
NO- 18 B2Bs, +4 B2B margin, 14in5s, +2 4in5 margin
SA- 18 B2Bs, +4 B2B margin, 3 4in5s, -1 4in5 margin
Dal- 20 B2Bs, 0 B2B margin, 3 4in5s, 0 4in5 margin

Again, Lakers have the least no. of B2Bs (also lowest in league) which is offset with a -5 B2B margin. SA & NO have the same no. of B2Bs and B2B margin with the difference only in SA having more 4in5s. Dal has the most B2Bs but have even B2B & 4in5 margins.

Notable Eastern Conference Playoff Teams:

Bos- 19 B2Bs, -1 B2B margin, 1 4in5s, +3 4in5 margin
Mia- 19 B2Bs, -2 B2B margin, 1 4in5s, 0 4in5 margin
Orl- 20 B2Bs, -3 B2B margin, 2 4in5s, +1 4in5 margin
Chi- 23 B2Bs, +3 B2B margin, 3 4in5s, +1 4in5 margin
NY- 21 B2Bs, -8 B2B margin, 3 4in5s, -2 4in5 margin
Atl- 23 B2Bs, -4 B2B margin, 2 4in5s, -1 4in5 margin

Bos, Mia & Orl have similar stats with Bos having better margins overall and Orl having one more B2B & 4in5 compared with the two.
OTOH, Chi, NY & Atl all have 20+ B2Bs with NY having the worst B2B margin (also worst in league) with -8. Chi & Atl both have 23 B2Bs but Chi has the better margins overall.

Other Meaningful Stats:
-Okc plays only 8 B2Bs against a rested opponent while playing 15 games against an opponent on a B2B with the team rested, contributing to a +7 B2B margin.

-Phx also plays only 13 B2Bs against a rested opponent while playing an astounding 20 games against an opponent on a B2B with the team rested, contributing to their +7 B2B margin.

-Meanwhile, Lakers play 14 B2Bs against a rested opponent compared to only 9 games against an opponent on a B2B with the team rested, giving them a -5 B2B margin.

-NY has the worst of it with them playing 14 B2Bs against a rested opponent while playing only 6 games against an opponent on a B2B with the team rested, giving them a dismal -8 B2B margin.

-Cle, Mil & MIn play 10+ games where both they and their opponent are on a B2B. Yikes!

-In contrast, Lakers play only one game where both they and their opponent are on a B2B.

-Chi may have 23 B2Bs but they also play 18 games against an opponent on a B2B with the team rested giving them a +3 B2B margin.


-Bos plays 4 games where the opponent is in a 4in5(4th game in 5 nights) while playing only one game in which they are in a 4in5 situation giving them a +3 4in5 margin.

-OTOH, Phi has it worst with them playing 4 games where they are in a 4in5 situation while having no games against an opponent in a 4in5 situation giving them a league-wors -4 4in5 margin.

-Dal, Por & LAC have 11 B2Bs where both games are on the road (highest in league).

Blazer B2Bs breakdown:
1 Home-Home B2B, 3 Away-Home B2B, 7 Home-Away B2B, 11 Away-Away B2B

Note: This data is only for the 2010-2011 season.

Of course, it's up to you on how you interpret this data. Personally, I think that the scheduling isn't fair but that the schedule doesn't factor much in the team's current record. Injuries and a lack of identity have been heavier factors of this team's struggles.