Some people (like me) are really into stats, others aren't. For those that are, 82games.com is running an article on the adjusted +/- for every player in the NBA last season. I've always liked the +/- stat, and the adjusted +/- is even more promising as a tool because it attempts to correct for the caliber of teammate that you have on the floor with you (in this case by looking at 5-years worth of data, where available).
Anyway, according to this stat Pierce ranked 6th overall in the NBA by having the best offensive effect on the Celtics (5th best in the league) and a solid if unspectacular defense effect.
KG ranked by far #1 overall in the NBA by having a good offensive effect (7th best in the league, just behind Pierce) but turning in an off-the-charts defensive performance (#1 in the NBA by a mile).
The only duo in the league that was comparable last season was Duncan (3rd) and Ginobili (4th), but KG and Pierce had the larger positive effect according to the stat. LeBron (2nd) and Kobe (5th) rounded out the top-5. Chris Paul and Steve Nash were both among the top offensive players in the league, but their overall ranking was hurt by poor defensive numbers.
Ray Allen was a distant third among Cs according to this stat, with a slight net positive due to solid offense and slightly below average defense. Rondo was also on the list, though he was pretty far down as a net negative due to reasonable defense but poor offensive effect (ironically, he was just behind Big Al who was the exact opposite, with reasonable offense but poor defense).
Anyway, just some food for thought on a non-game day.
http://82games.com/ilardi2.htm
Topic: Another measure indicating KG and Pierce among the elite (Read 974 times)