15. Minnesota Timberwolves
2007-8 Record: 22-60
Projected Record: 21-61
Notes: Meh.
14. Memphis Grizzlies
2007-8 Record: 22-60
Projected Record: 22-60
Notes: Meh.
13. Oklahoma City Thunder
2007-8 Record: 20-62
Projected Record: 23-59
Notes: They should have won 15 games last season considering their scoring margin, but Kevin Durant's maturation should account for a few wins.
12. Denver Nuggets
2007-8 Record: 50-32
Projected Record: 24-58
Notes: Marcus Camby was the deodorant that covered up their otherwise stinky defense the past few seasons. This year, they are going to blow ass. Also, I think this will be the year Allen Iverson's age finally catches up to him. He's 33.
11. Sacramento Kings
2007-8 Record: 38-44
Projected Record: 26-56
Notes: A franchise that's going nowhere fast. Did you know that Kevin Martin led the league in free throws made per game last season? That he shot .456/.402/.869 and averaged 23.7 points?
10. Los Angeles Clippers
2007-8 Record: 23-59
Projected Record: 32-50
Notes: They won 23 games last season without Brand (who only played the last eight, when they were tanking anyway.) They added Baron Davis.
9. Golden State Warriors
2007-8 Record: 48-34
Projected Record: 35-47
Notes: They lost Baron Davis, around whom the team ran. Stephen Jackson is probably underrated, but Monta Ellis is equally overrated.
8. Dallas Mavericks
2007-8 Record: 51-31
Projected Record: 44-38
Notes: Their championship window officially closed some time last season. Dirk Nowitzki must be so deflated. After almost having a 3-0 lead in the 2006 Finals, winning 67 games in 2007 only to lose in the first round, and now his team looks like a 40's win team for the next few years. He'll be 30 this year. Supposedly, Jason Kidd bristled under Avery Johnson's micromanagement, but Rick Carlisle is in a similar mold as Avery.
7. Phoenix Suns
2007-8 Record: 55-27
Projected Record: 47-35
Notes: The Suns were 24-14 (58-24) before the Shaq trade, and 21-13 (51-31) after it. Most of the key players are really really old: Steve Nash, Raja Bell, Grant Hill, and Shaquille O'neal will be 35, 32, 36, and 37 years old, respectively, at the end of the season. Shaq is not motivated to turn a 47 win team into a 50+ win team. Amare Stoudemire is a bigger cancer than Suns fans will admit. Boris Diaw suffers from what Dr. Basketbawful calls vaginaitis. At least they have Rudy Fernandez, who looked pretty good in the Olympics and tore up the Spanish league last season. Oh, wait.
6. Portland Trailblazers
2007-8 Record: 41-41
Projected Record: 50-32
Notes: Last season, they were the youngest team in the NBA, the third youngest team ever, and yet they won 41 games. Granted, they won a disproportionate amount of close games last season, and they went on a 17-1 run (including a 13-0 run), mostly under the radar. This year, there's been a lot of hype, and teams will be prepared for them. They are a good chemistry team already, and Greg Oden will only help in that regard. I don't think they're quite ready to be serious contenders for the Finals, but next year, and the next 12 years after that, they will be.
5. San Antonio Spurs
2007-8 Record: 56-26
Projected Record: 52-30
Notes: They're old. They'll coast through the season. They'll be better in the playoffs than in the regular season, but there are too many good teams in the West and they're not quite a championship contender.
4. Utah Jazz
2007-8 Record: 54-28
Projected Record: 56-26
Notes: Pick and roll. Deron Williams. Carlos Boozer. Jerry Sloan.
3. Houston Rockets
2007-8 Record: 55-27
Projected Record: 57-25
Notes: They added Ron Artest, who is a great small forward defender and will be taking minutes from Shane Battier, a great small forward defender. While he should help the Rockets, he's not the missing piece that will push them into championship contention. They were already a very good defensive team last season, so they won't be getting a lot better. Fun fact: Tracy Mcgrady, despite being a very talented player, and despite having played in the NBA for many years, has not won a playoff series.
2. New Orleans Hornets
2007-8 Record: 56-26
Projected Record: 58-24
Notes: The big move for them was signing James Posey the archetype of the X-factor who can swing a championship from one team to another. He plays good defense, hits threes.
1. Los Angeles Lakers
2007-8 Record: 57-25
Projected Record: 62-20
Notes: They should have won last season, but they choked a little in the finals. If they do win, Kobe will become even more overrated. Andrew Bynum is really good and will be 21 years old all season. Bynum's per 40 min stats over his first three seasons, in points and rebounds: 8.8/9.5, 14.2/10.8, 18.2/14.1.
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Monday, October 27, 2008
NBA 2008-9 Preview: Eastern Conference
15. Milwaukee Bucks
2007-8 Record: 26-56
Projected Record: 24-58
Notes: Meh.
14. New Jersey Nets
2007-8 Record: 34-48
Projected Record: 27-55
Notes: Meh.
13. New York Knicks
2007-8 Record: 23-59
Projected Record: 28-54
Notes: Nowhere to go but up. Once upon a time, when Isaiah Thomas was still running the Knicks (into the ground), he described his actions with the Knicks: "When you move into your house, the guy who poured the concrete never really gets a chance to live in that beautiful house that he built, and our job right now is to make sure that we lay the concrete and we lay it correctly.” That's an interesting way to describe signing overpaid overrated cancers to long-term contracts. The roster is still really crappy, but I think new GM Donnie Walsh and new head coach Mike D'Antoni will go a different way and lay a foundation based on a culture of professionalism and teamwork. The win-loss record won't change much, but I think fans will sense a change in the culture of the team. They'll still suck, but they won't be as embarrassing to watch.
12. Indiana Pacers
2007-8 Record: 36-46
Projected Record: 32-50
Notes: Meh.
11. Charlotte Bobcats
2007-8 Record: 32-50
Projected Record: 34-48
Notes: Eventually, they will be a playoff team, and everyone will have underestimated them, but they're like the Clippers in that you can ignore the roster and just predict they'll suck and you'll be right 90% of the time. Oddly, I haven't heard anyone say Adam Morrison reminds them of Larry Bird recently.
10. Atlanta Hawks
2007-8 Record: 37-45
Projected Record: 36-46
Notes: They'll have Mike Bibby for the whole season instead of just part of it, which should help, but they lost Josh Childress to Olympiakos, which hurts. You may remember their close series with the Celtics in the playoffs last season, but you shouldn't forget that they only made the playoffs because of the weakness of the Eastern Conference.
9. Miami Heat
2007-8 Record: 15-67
Projected Record: 37-45
Notes: They'll probably have Dwyane Wade for more than 51 games this season. They'll have Shawn Marion the whole season. They tricked some stupid team into taking Shaq's fat ass and fatter salary and even fatter ass, and fatterer salary. Michael Beasley will begin his Good Numbers On A Bad Team Guy Hall Of Fame career.
8. Chicago Bulls
2007-8 Record: 33-49
Projected Record: 42-40
Notes: They Bulls went 49-33 in 2007, but won 16 fewer games the next season with pretty much the same roster. I don't know about Derrick Rose. I've seen him compared to Jason Kidd, but I don't know how apt that is. Rose averaged 14.9/4.5/4.7 as a freshman, whereas Kidd averaged 13/4.9/7.7. Besides the similarity in size and strength, they didn't look all that similar to me from what little I saw of him.
7. Washington Wizards
2007-8 Record: 43-39
Projected Record: 43-39
Notes: Caron Butler is their best and most important player. Gilbert Arenas is their best paid player. I see the Wizards staying a little above .500 for most of the season, not defending too well, and losing in the first round of the playoffs, much like the last three seasons. I'm just going to copy-and-paste this for every Wizards preview for the foreseeable future.
6. Philadelphia 76ers
2007-8 Record: 40-42
Projected Record: 47-35
Notes: They added Elton Brand, a career 20-10 guy, who can score inside, and should move Andre Iguodala to a role as second option, closer to his natural role as third option.
5. Orlando Magic
2007-8 Record: 52-30
Projected Record: 51-31
Notes: I'm feeling a 23-14 from Howard. Turkoglu will not repeat his 19.5/5.7/5.0 season as defenses focus on him, and people will stop saying he's the real MVP of the Magic, thank God. Their point guards aren't good enough to get the Magic's wins into the high 50s.
4. Toronto Raptors
2007-8 Record: 41-41
Projected Record: 52-30
Notes: Last year, they outscored their opponents by 2.9 points per game, meaning they should have won 50 games. They lost T.J. Ford, who was only taking minutes from a better point guard Jose Calderon, and added Jermaine O'Neal, who's been called overrated (rightfully) for so long, he's actually a little underrated. Also, I see them flying under the radar and getting a few extra wins before other teams realize how seriously the Raptors should be taken.
3. Cleveland Cavaliers
2007-8 Record: 45-37
Projected Record: 53-29
Notes: They won 50 games in 2006 and 2007, and only won 45 last season after two contract holdouts, Lebron missing 7 games due to injury (Cavs went 0-7 during that span, of course), and having Larry Hughes on the roster, fruitlessly aiming jump shots at the hoop. The Cavs advanced to the finals in 2007, and lost in the conference semis in 2006 and 2008, both times in series they should have won. They are a team that's built for the playoffs. Mo Williams should improve their offense from "awful in spite of Lebron James" to "decent but only because of Lebron James." Their record won't improve much, but they'll probably be in the finals again.
2. Detroit Pistons
2007-8 Record: 59-23
Projected Record: 55-27
Notes: They really haven't slipped that much since they won a championship in 2004. They just went from a postseason team to a regular season team. I expect them to bore their way to 55 wins, then disappoint in the playoffs again.
1. Boston Celtics
2007-8 Record: 66-16
Projected Record: 60-22
Notes: They're a little older, and more importantly, a little less motivated to win every single game. They will not repeat as champions.
2007-8 Record: 26-56
Projected Record: 24-58
Notes: Meh.
14. New Jersey Nets
2007-8 Record: 34-48
Projected Record: 27-55
Notes: Meh.
13. New York Knicks
2007-8 Record: 23-59
Projected Record: 28-54
Notes: Nowhere to go but up. Once upon a time, when Isaiah Thomas was still running the Knicks (into the ground), he described his actions with the Knicks: "When you move into your house, the guy who poured the concrete never really gets a chance to live in that beautiful house that he built, and our job right now is to make sure that we lay the concrete and we lay it correctly.” That's an interesting way to describe signing overpaid overrated cancers to long-term contracts. The roster is still really crappy, but I think new GM Donnie Walsh and new head coach Mike D'Antoni will go a different way and lay a foundation based on a culture of professionalism and teamwork. The win-loss record won't change much, but I think fans will sense a change in the culture of the team. They'll still suck, but they won't be as embarrassing to watch.
12. Indiana Pacers
2007-8 Record: 36-46
Projected Record: 32-50
Notes: Meh.
11. Charlotte Bobcats
2007-8 Record: 32-50
Projected Record: 34-48
Notes: Eventually, they will be a playoff team, and everyone will have underestimated them, but they're like the Clippers in that you can ignore the roster and just predict they'll suck and you'll be right 90% of the time. Oddly, I haven't heard anyone say Adam Morrison reminds them of Larry Bird recently.
10. Atlanta Hawks
2007-8 Record: 37-45
Projected Record: 36-46
Notes: They'll have Mike Bibby for the whole season instead of just part of it, which should help, but they lost Josh Childress to Olympiakos, which hurts. You may remember their close series with the Celtics in the playoffs last season, but you shouldn't forget that they only made the playoffs because of the weakness of the Eastern Conference.
9. Miami Heat
2007-8 Record: 15-67
Projected Record: 37-45
Notes: They'll probably have Dwyane Wade for more than 51 games this season. They'll have Shawn Marion the whole season. They tricked some stupid team into taking Shaq's fat ass and fatter salary and even fatter ass, and fatterer salary. Michael Beasley will begin his Good Numbers On A Bad Team Guy Hall Of Fame career.
8. Chicago Bulls
2007-8 Record: 33-49
Projected Record: 42-40
Notes: They Bulls went 49-33 in 2007, but won 16 fewer games the next season with pretty much the same roster. I don't know about Derrick Rose. I've seen him compared to Jason Kidd, but I don't know how apt that is. Rose averaged 14.9/4.5/4.7 as a freshman, whereas Kidd averaged 13/4.9/7.7. Besides the similarity in size and strength, they didn't look all that similar to me from what little I saw of him.
7. Washington Wizards
2007-8 Record: 43-39
Projected Record: 43-39
Notes: Caron Butler is their best and most important player. Gilbert Arenas is their best paid player. I see the Wizards staying a little above .500 for most of the season, not defending too well, and losing in the first round of the playoffs, much like the last three seasons. I'm just going to copy-and-paste this for every Wizards preview for the foreseeable future.
6. Philadelphia 76ers
2007-8 Record: 40-42
Projected Record: 47-35
Notes: They added Elton Brand, a career 20-10 guy, who can score inside, and should move Andre Iguodala to a role as second option, closer to his natural role as third option.
5. Orlando Magic
2007-8 Record: 52-30
Projected Record: 51-31
Notes: I'm feeling a 23-14 from Howard. Turkoglu will not repeat his 19.5/5.7/5.0 season as defenses focus on him, and people will stop saying he's the real MVP of the Magic, thank God. Their point guards aren't good enough to get the Magic's wins into the high 50s.
4. Toronto Raptors
2007-8 Record: 41-41
Projected Record: 52-30
Notes: Last year, they outscored their opponents by 2.9 points per game, meaning they should have won 50 games. They lost T.J. Ford, who was only taking minutes from a better point guard Jose Calderon, and added Jermaine O'Neal, who's been called overrated (rightfully) for so long, he's actually a little underrated. Also, I see them flying under the radar and getting a few extra wins before other teams realize how seriously the Raptors should be taken.
3. Cleveland Cavaliers
2007-8 Record: 45-37
Projected Record: 53-29
Notes: They won 50 games in 2006 and 2007, and only won 45 last season after two contract holdouts, Lebron missing 7 games due to injury (Cavs went 0-7 during that span, of course), and having Larry Hughes on the roster, fruitlessly aiming jump shots at the hoop. The Cavs advanced to the finals in 2007, and lost in the conference semis in 2006 and 2008, both times in series they should have won. They are a team that's built for the playoffs. Mo Williams should improve their offense from "awful in spite of Lebron James" to "decent but only because of Lebron James." Their record won't improve much, but they'll probably be in the finals again.
2. Detroit Pistons
2007-8 Record: 59-23
Projected Record: 55-27
Notes: They really haven't slipped that much since they won a championship in 2004. They just went from a postseason team to a regular season team. I expect them to bore their way to 55 wins, then disappoint in the playoffs again.
1. Boston Celtics
2007-8 Record: 66-16
Projected Record: 60-22
Notes: They're a little older, and more importantly, a little less motivated to win every single game. They will not repeat as champions.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
NBA vs. Euroleague: An Analysis
Most people who follow basketball around the world would agree that the best basketball league is the NBA. They would also agree that the second best league is the Euroleague, which is made of the best teams from various domestic leagues in Europe, and which runs concurrently with the domestic leagues.
But how much better is the NBA? We can use subjective criteria, like how we feel a given Euroleague team would do in NBA competition, and vice versa. Unfortunately, this can lead to people choosing information to fit preconceived notions about the levels of the respective leagues. For example, it's a common belief in some quarters that NBA players are selfish, have no fundamentals, only play one-on-one, etc. On the other hand, we could look at the results of previous Euroleague vs. NBA games, factoring in things like location, scoring margin, and the strength of the teams in their respective leagues.
Since the 2003-04 preseason, there have been 30 games between NBA and Euroleague teams. The NBA teams have won all five scheduled for this preaseason, all of which were home games for the NBA teams. Since we don't know how the involved teams will fare in their respective leagues this season, I will discard them, and only consider the previous 25 games.(1,2)
For those of my reader who don't follow the Euroleague, it consists of several different stages, but I'm only going to consider the Regular Season, which consists of 24 teams divided into three groups of eight (four groups of six, starting this season), who play a home-and-away round robin, with the top five teams from each group and the best sixth place team among the three groups, advancing to the Top 16 (or the top four from each group, starting this year).
Of the 25 games I'm considering, 14 have been on the NBA team's home court, eight on the Euroleague's home court, and three on a neutral court (in Europe).
Neutral Games: NBA 3, Euroleague 0.
Combined NBA regular season winning percentage: .626
Combined EL regular season winning percentage: .690
Scoring Margin: NBA +14.7
Conclusion: It's hard to make a strong conclusion given the sample size, however, the scoring margin is pretty comfortable.
Euroleague Home Court Games: NBA 4, Euroleague 4.
Combined NBA regular season winning percentage: .476
Combined EL regular season winning percentage: .670
Scoring Margin: Euroleague +.1
Conclusion: By looking at just the head-to-head record and scoring margin, it would appear that the Euroleague and the NBA are at a similar level. However, taking into account the quality of the teams within their respective leagues, and home-court advantage (more on that later), it again appears that the NBA is better.
NBA Home Court Games: NBA 13, Euroleague 1.
Combined NBA regular season winning percentage: .504
Combined EL regular season winning percentage: .633
Scoring Margin: NBA +21.4
Conclusion: The Euroleague's only win on an NBA court was the two-time defending champions and eventual EL runners-up Maccabi Tel Aviv's last-second 105-103 win over a 27-55 Toronto Raptors team. Some of the more embarrassing Euroleague losses include: 2006-7 Efes Pilsen (8-6) losing 120-66 to 42-40 pre-Stephen Jackson Golden State Warriors, Maccabi Tel Aviv losing their last three away games by a combined 87 points to NBA teams with a combined 120-126 record, all in seasons either coming after or leading to a match in the Euroleague Final, 2007 EL champions Panathinaikos losing to Houston and San Antonio by 37 and 22 points, respectively. Outside of Maccabi's fluke win, and two other close games (six- and three-point wins), the NBA is 11-0 with a scoring margin of +26.5 points.
Conclusion: The NBA's 20-5 record is skewed by the disproportionate number of home games for NBA teams. The Euroleague's relatively impressive record on their home courts is also skewed. While teams usually win a higher percentage of games on their home court, the percentage doesn't go from 7% on the road to 50% at home, nor is there usually a 20-point swing between home and away games. How do we account for such a large disparity? I would hypothesize that Euroleague home-court advantage is magnified in a once-a-few-seasons situation where the fans get to see their team take on an NBA team, and that therefore, the record in NBA arenas is more indicative of the true disparity between NBA and Euroleague teams.
What does the record look like when home and away games are weighed equally? The Euroleague winning percentage against NBA teams would be 28.6% (2/7). The combined winning percentage of the NBA and Euroleague teams would be 65% and 49%, respectively. In other words, a team with a 65% record in the Euroleague regular season would win about 23 games in an NBA season. But how would a team with a 50% record (in other words, an average team) do in 82 games against teams with an average winning percentage of 50% (in other words, an NBA schedule)? Well, if a .500 team would win 76.9% as many games as .650 teams, which I'm assuming it would, or at least somewhere close to that, then the average Euroleague team would win 18 games, which is roughly the average record for the worst team in the NBA.
How would the best Euroleague teams do? No team has won the Euroleague after playing NBA teams in the preseason, but there have been five runners-up who have done that. These teams have a combined 2-3 record (1-0 home, 0-1 neutral, 1-2 away), which is fortunate considering the -6.8 scoring margin, and the NBA teams averaged 31.2 wins. Also, there have been seven games between defending Euroleague champions and NBA teams. Defending EL champion teams have a combined 2-5 record (1-1 home, 0-1 neutral, 1-3 away), also fortunate considering a -11 scoring margin. The NBA teams averaged 42.7 wins. Four games have been contested between the defending EL runners-up and NBA teams. All of them were played by the 2006-7 Maccabi Tel Aviv. They went 0-4 (0-2 neutral, 0-2 away), losing by an average of 22.5, although their NBA opponents averaged 54 wins. In games in which a Euroleague team either reached the Final the previous season, or would go on to reach the Final, the Euroleague teams were a combined 2-10 (1-1 home, 0-3 neutral, 1-6 away), which is fortunate considering the -16.2 scoring margin in such games. The NBA teams averaged 44.8 wins. It's hard to reach a conclusion with such a small sample of games. However, it would appear that even the best Euroleague teams would make below average NBA teams.
(1) ASVEL Lyon-Villeurbanne, BC Khimki, Estudiantes, and of course, the Chinese national team, were not Euroleague teams when they played these games.
(2) I am only going to consider the exhibition games from the 2000's because I can't know for sure which European teams were in the Euroleague or what their records were before 2001, and because most would agree that the landscape of international basketball has changed between 1999 and 2003, with non-American players and leagues improving and closing the gap between themselves and American players and the NBA.
But how much better is the NBA? We can use subjective criteria, like how we feel a given Euroleague team would do in NBA competition, and vice versa. Unfortunately, this can lead to people choosing information to fit preconceived notions about the levels of the respective leagues. For example, it's a common belief in some quarters that NBA players are selfish, have no fundamentals, only play one-on-one, etc. On the other hand, we could look at the results of previous Euroleague vs. NBA games, factoring in things like location, scoring margin, and the strength of the teams in their respective leagues.
Since the 2003-04 preseason, there have been 30 games between NBA and Euroleague teams. The NBA teams have won all five scheduled for this preaseason, all of which were home games for the NBA teams. Since we don't know how the involved teams will fare in their respective leagues this season, I will discard them, and only consider the previous 25 games.(1,2)
For those of my reader who don't follow the Euroleague, it consists of several different stages, but I'm only going to consider the Regular Season, which consists of 24 teams divided into three groups of eight (four groups of six, starting this season), who play a home-and-away round robin, with the top five teams from each group and the best sixth place team among the three groups, advancing to the Top 16 (or the top four from each group, starting this year).
Of the 25 games I'm considering, 14 have been on the NBA team's home court, eight on the Euroleague's home court, and three on a neutral court (in Europe).
Neutral Games: NBA 3, Euroleague 0.
Combined NBA regular season winning percentage: .626
Combined EL regular season winning percentage: .690
Scoring Margin: NBA +14.7
Conclusion: It's hard to make a strong conclusion given the sample size, however, the scoring margin is pretty comfortable.
Euroleague Home Court Games: NBA 4, Euroleague 4.
Combined NBA regular season winning percentage: .476
Combined EL regular season winning percentage: .670
Scoring Margin: Euroleague +.1
Conclusion: By looking at just the head-to-head record and scoring margin, it would appear that the Euroleague and the NBA are at a similar level. However, taking into account the quality of the teams within their respective leagues, and home-court advantage (more on that later), it again appears that the NBA is better.
NBA Home Court Games: NBA 13, Euroleague 1.
Combined NBA regular season winning percentage: .504
Combined EL regular season winning percentage: .633
Scoring Margin: NBA +21.4
Conclusion: The Euroleague's only win on an NBA court was the two-time defending champions and eventual EL runners-up Maccabi Tel Aviv's last-second 105-103 win over a 27-55 Toronto Raptors team. Some of the more embarrassing Euroleague losses include: 2006-7 Efes Pilsen (8-6) losing 120-66 to 42-40 pre-Stephen Jackson Golden State Warriors, Maccabi Tel Aviv losing their last three away games by a combined 87 points to NBA teams with a combined 120-126 record, all in seasons either coming after or leading to a match in the Euroleague Final, 2007 EL champions Panathinaikos losing to Houston and San Antonio by 37 and 22 points, respectively. Outside of Maccabi's fluke win, and two other close games (six- and three-point wins), the NBA is 11-0 with a scoring margin of +26.5 points.
Conclusion: The NBA's 20-5 record is skewed by the disproportionate number of home games for NBA teams. The Euroleague's relatively impressive record on their home courts is also skewed. While teams usually win a higher percentage of games on their home court, the percentage doesn't go from 7% on the road to 50% at home, nor is there usually a 20-point swing between home and away games. How do we account for such a large disparity? I would hypothesize that Euroleague home-court advantage is magnified in a once-a-few-seasons situation where the fans get to see their team take on an NBA team, and that therefore, the record in NBA arenas is more indicative of the true disparity between NBA and Euroleague teams.
What does the record look like when home and away games are weighed equally? The Euroleague winning percentage against NBA teams would be 28.6% (2/7). The combined winning percentage of the NBA and Euroleague teams would be 65% and 49%, respectively. In other words, a team with a 65% record in the Euroleague regular season would win about 23 games in an NBA season. But how would a team with a 50% record (in other words, an average team) do in 82 games against teams with an average winning percentage of 50% (in other words, an NBA schedule)? Well, if a .500 team would win 76.9% as many games as .650 teams, which I'm assuming it would, or at least somewhere close to that, then the average Euroleague team would win 18 games, which is roughly the average record for the worst team in the NBA.
How would the best Euroleague teams do? No team has won the Euroleague after playing NBA teams in the preseason, but there have been five runners-up who have done that. These teams have a combined 2-3 record (1-0 home, 0-1 neutral, 1-2 away), which is fortunate considering the -6.8 scoring margin, and the NBA teams averaged 31.2 wins. Also, there have been seven games between defending Euroleague champions and NBA teams. Defending EL champion teams have a combined 2-5 record (1-1 home, 0-1 neutral, 1-3 away), also fortunate considering a -11 scoring margin. The NBA teams averaged 42.7 wins. Four games have been contested between the defending EL runners-up and NBA teams. All of them were played by the 2006-7 Maccabi Tel Aviv. They went 0-4 (0-2 neutral, 0-2 away), losing by an average of 22.5, although their NBA opponents averaged 54 wins. In games in which a Euroleague team either reached the Final the previous season, or would go on to reach the Final, the Euroleague teams were a combined 2-10 (1-1 home, 0-3 neutral, 1-6 away), which is fortunate considering the -16.2 scoring margin in such games. The NBA teams averaged 44.8 wins. It's hard to reach a conclusion with such a small sample of games. However, it would appear that even the best Euroleague teams would make below average NBA teams.
(1) ASVEL Lyon-Villeurbanne, BC Khimki, Estudiantes, and of course, the Chinese national team, were not Euroleague teams when they played these games.
(2) I am only going to consider the exhibition games from the 2000's because I can't know for sure which European teams were in the Euroleague or what their records were before 2001, and because most would agree that the landscape of international basketball has changed between 1999 and 2003, with non-American players and leagues improving and closing the gap between themselves and American players and the NBA.
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