Really smart people believe in basketball's Four Factors (magic numbers). The results of the numbers are pretty cool. Basically, they say that the Knicks have a pretty darn good offense and that the Celtics have a pretty darn good defense (that confirms what we knew). On top of that, they say that the Knicks offense is good enough to make up the defensive gap and give them a distinct overall advantage going into this series. For the first time in a long time, smart numbers are on New York's side going into a playoff series.
2012-13 Regular Season - Knicks and Celtics - Dean Oliver's Four Factors Comparison | |||||||||||
Offensive Four Factors | Defensive Four Factors | Importance | |||||||||
eFG% | TOV% | ORB% | FT% | eFG% | TOV% | DRB% | FT% | Factor | Weight | ||
Knicks | 51.5% | 11.7% | 25.6% | 19.6% | 50.8% | 14.8% | 74.7% | 21.6% | eFG% | 40% | |
Celtics | 50.3% | 14.1% | 20.1% | 20.4% | 48.2% | 14.2% | 73.3% | 21.6% | TOV% | 25% | |
RB% | 20% | ||||||||||
Knicks Margin | +1.2% | +2.4% | +5.5% | -0.8% | -2.6% | +0.6% | +1.4% | 0.0% | FT% | 15% | |
Four Factor Win-Loss-Tie | Weighted 4 Factor Advantage | ||||||||||
Off | Def | Overall | Off | Def | Overall | ||||||
Knicks Result | 3-1-0 | 2-1-1 | 5-2-1 | +2.1% | -0.6% | +0.7% |