Basketball Statistics Blog

Friday Press Clippings:
The Ultimate "Five Statistics Tool" Basketball Players

From 20 Second Timeout By David Friedman
Download source here: ' The Ultimate "Five Statistics Tool" Basketball Players '

"... Julius Erving put up the first--and most impressive--five-tool season. In 1975-76, he led the ABA in scoring (29.3 ppg) and ranked in the top seven or better in the league in each of the other four categories. He also placed eighth in two point field goal percentage and seventh in three point field goal percentage. ..."

"... Scottie Pippen’s five-tool season happened in 1994-95, year two of Michael Jordan’s first retirement. Pippen actually had slightly better numbers in 1993-94 but Horace Grant led the team in rebounding and blocked shots that year. Grant signed with the Orlando Magic prior to the 1994-95 season and his departure left a serious void in the paint, but Pippen’s all-around greatness helped to keep the Bulls afloat. ..."

"... Tracy McGrady became a five-tool player in 2002-03 by the narrowest of margins, averaging 1.653 spg (124 steals in 75 games), just eclipsing Darrell Armstrong’s 1.646 spg (135 steals in 82 games). McGrady, then playing for the Orlando Magic, led the NBA in scoring (32.1 ppg) and posted a healthy apg average (5.5).

His team leadership in rebounding (6.5 rpg) and blocked shots (.79) reflected the Magic’s weakness in the paint more than anything else, although his numbers were quite good for a guard, particularly one who carried such a heavy scoring load. ..."

"... Playing alongside Yao Ming in Houston, McGrady is unlikely to have another five-tool season. Few current players have the skills to even think of accomplishing this and those who do play alongside a teammate who specializes in one or two of the five categories; for instance, LeBron James will not lead Cleveland in rebounding or blocked shots as long as Zydrunas Ilgauskas is on the team. ..."

"... "Five-Tool" Players led their teams in PPG, RPG, APG, SPG and BPG in the same season.

"Multiple-Tool" Players led their teams in PPG, RPG and APG before the NBA and ABA officially began recording steals and blocked shots ..."

Read more articles in 20 Second Timeout.

To read Today's 'Press Clippings' in Spanish, click this week above on the 'Español' tab or afterwards click here: ' Los Interrogantes de la Filosofía y Saber del Baloncesto ' por Cesar Canales.

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