Following on from the first installment of our NBA Advanced Stats Series (which explained PER), it’s time to look at something that sounds complex but is actually fairly straightforward – Win Shares.

What’s a Win Share?

In it’s most basic terms, a win share calculates a single player’s contribution to their team’s win total.

It’s formed using player, team and league-wide statistics. So, if you add up all the players’ win shares on a team, it will roughly equal the team’s win total for the season.

A player generates offensive and defensive win shares. An offensive win share is calculated through a player’s points produced and offensive possessions and dividing it by marginal points per win.

Defensive win shares are formed by taking a player’s defensive rating and dividing it by the marginal points per win.

Add offensive and defensive win shares together and voila: a player’s total win shares.

Why Win Shares Matter

Many analysts prefer win shares over PER because it measure’s a player’s value based on wins, and it values both the offensive and defensive output of a player equally.

Additionally, win shares values playing time – some players who barely play in the league might have a higher PER than superstars, but those stars could have double the win shares (thus proving their importance to the team).

For example: In 2013, Marc Gasol and Mike Conley of the Memphis Grizzlies ranked sixth and 11th among all players with 11.5 and 9.9 win shares respectively. These two weren’t the best players in the league, nor did they post monster numbers, but their high win share total does indicate they were vital to the Grizzlies winning games.

To find out more information on win shares throughout the season, check out Basketball-Reference.

New Orleans Pelicans fans – and fans of basketball the world over – had to be patient this season. When Zion Williamson was drafted 1st overall by the Pels in the 2018 Draft, and the former Blue Devil literally leaped off the scream with some jaw-dropping dunks in Summer League, the NBA community was understandably losing their mind over his potential.

There hadn’t been this much hype and excitement about a rookie since LeBron James – he already has a shoe deal with Jordan! But then, disaster struck, as news broke that Williamson would be sidelined for two to three months with a knee injury before he even suited up for his first regular-season game.

Thankfully, Williamson was able to return to the fold before the coronavirus forced the suspension of the NBA season. So, with some additional time on our hands, we wanted to look at some of the rookie’s most impressive statistical numbers.

45

Williamson’s vertical leap

Zion’s athleticism is a key component of his game, and turned him into a viral sensation when he was still in high school as video upon video of his jaw-dropping dunks hit the web.

When Williamson got to Duke, the Blue Devils conducted their seasonal vertical leap tests, and the freshman jumped off the page – literally. Williamson set a new Duke record with a 45-inch leap (a record that his since been broken by Cassius Stanley, who hit 46.5), which, when you combine with his 6’8” frame, goes a long way to explaining how Williamson seems to defy gravity whenever he gets airborne.

6’7’’ / 285 / 6’10”

Williamson’s height, weight and wingspan

Williamson’s wingspan – nor his height, for that matter – doesn’t leap off the page for the position(s) he’ll likely be playing (the 4 and 5), but that won’t matter since his 45 inch vertical will ensure he can block shots and catch alley-oops with ease.

His weight entering the league was, shall we say, a ‘hefty’ 285lbs, and was the point of contention and ridicule among many NBA analysts (many of whom could do with shedding a few pounds themselves). However, following his injury and subsequent rehab, the Pelicans’ training staff have been keeping a close eye on Zion whilst putting him through his paces, so don’t be surprised to see a slimmer – yet still with a manchild body – Williamson on the court soon.

20+

In Williamson’s debut with the Pelicans this season, he dropped 22 points on 8 of 11 shooting from the field (including four threes). In fact, in his first 10 career games, he had seven 20-point (or more) performances. In the last 30 seasons, only Grant Hill and Shaquille O’Neal were able to match such a feat.

Williamson would then embark on a ridiculous streak of 13 games with 20 or more points, setting a record in the process for the most consecutive games with 20+ points by a teenager (the previous record was nine, set by Carmelo Anthony in the 2003-04 season).

The 2019-20 NFL season is in the books, and general managers are already making preparations for the 2020 draft that is fast approaching.

The contracts that are handed out during this period could make or break a team’s fortune – the trick is in handing out the right money to the right player for the right amount of years. Essentially, finding a player who provides a higher production against their average salary.

So, who were the top five value players in the NFL last season?

Salary and total value rating provided by spotrac.com

5. Ronnie Stanley, LT, Baltimore Ravens

Average Salary: $5,121,083

True Value Rating: 97.33

Left Tackle is arguably the most important position in football, especially when your job as said LT is protecting generational talent Lamar Jackson’s blind side.

Thankfully, the Ravens can rely on Stanley, who was part of an offensive line unit that gave up just 1.9 sacks per game in 2019 – seventh-lowest in the league. He also only gave up five penalties, surrendered six total pressures in 16 games and recorded a 98.7 percent win rate in pass protection. He was named as the best pass blocker in 2019 by Pro Football Focus and was selected to his first Pro Bowl as a First-Team All-Pro. Not bad for a 25-year-old in just his fourth season in the league!

The fact that Stanley accomplished all of the above whilst still on his rookie contract – he’s slated to earn the fifth-year option salary of $12 million in 2020 – is reason enough to include him in the top 5.

4. George Kittle, TE, San Francisco 49ers

Average Salary: $674,752

True Value Rating: 99.75

George Kittle introduced himself to the league in 2018, receiving a Pro Bowl nod and being named to the All-Pro Second Team. But in 2019, he made a statement.

Kittle was second among all tight ends in receiving yards last season with 1,053, also chipping in with five touchdowns. But those stats don’t tell the whole picture, as anyone who saw him play last season can point to just how tough the 6’4”, 250lb Kittle was to bring down. He also served as an elite blocker for his position, and came up big in a number of games for the 49ers – including a dominant catch and run in the 48-46 win over the Saints that put San Francisco in position for the game-winning field goal.

Kittle was selected to the Pro Bowl and named to the All-Pro First Team, all while making well under $1m for the season. For the production he gave, it’s no wonder he’s rumoured to be in-line for a record-setting contract extension.

3. Chris Godwin, WR, Tampa Bay

Average Salary: $821,041

True Value Rating: 99.81

The Buccaneers have struggled for a number of years now, but they do have a few bright spots on their roster, including third-year wide receiver Chris Godwin.

Godwin posted 1,333 receiving yards in 2019 (third overall) and nine touchdowns (joint-fourth overall), as well as 15.5 yards per catch, which put him in the top 15 among all eligible receivers.

So while Godwin didn’t win any single category, he’s near the top in almost all of them, and costing just $875,041 against the cap in 2019, that’s incredible value for money.

2. Christian McCaffrey, RB, Carolina Panthers

Average Salary: $4,310,326

True Value Rating: 98.17

McCaffrey was a Fantasy Football owner’s wet dream in 2019, racking up 2,920 rushing yards and 2,523 yards (as well as 19 total touchdowns), becoming just the third player in history to join the 1,000 – 1,000 club. Here are some other mind-bending stats from his season:

• 116 receptions, beating his own record for most receptions by a running back
• Finished first in the NFL in scrimmage yards (2,392), third in rushing yards (1,361), first in receiving yards by a running back (1,005), and tied for first in total touchdowns (19)
• First-Team All-Pro, selected to Pro Bowl

That’s a whole lot of beefy numbers for a running back making just $4.3 million per year, especially when you consider his production versus some of the more, shall we say, ‘expensive’ players at his position (Todd Gurley at $14.3 million average annual salary springs to mind…).

1. Lamar Jackson, QB, Baltimore Ravens

Average Salary: $2,367,912

True Value Rating: 99.86

When you have a league MVP averaging close to $2 million per year in salary, it’s fairly obvious he will represent the best value of any player in the NFL.

To do it in just your second year in the league is pretty ridiculous, but that’s just how good a season Lamar Jackson had. He wasn’t able to get it done in the playoffs, but in the regular season, he threw for 3,127 yards and 36 touchdowns, and churned up 1,206 yards and seven touchdowns on the ground. As a reminder, that’s coming from a quarterback – in fact, he became the only player in history with at least 3,000 passing yards and 1,000 rushing yards in a single season. Oh, and he also led the league with most total touchdowns (44), and still has two years remaining on his four-year, $9 million contract with the Ravens.

Outrageous.Lamar J

Toyota and Mazda Motor announced on Wednesday that they have chosen a site in northern Alabama, near Huntsville, automaker 1.6 billion, which Japanese manufacturers plan to build together, according to a person that is familiar to them. Business plans.

Details of the assembly plant, which employs about 4,000 employees are expected to be open by 2021, with representatives of state and local authorities in Montgomery, said at a press conference announced the person.

A spokeswoman for Toyota, Amanda Roark, declined to comment.

Toyota already operates four automotive plants in the USA, Indiana, Kentucky, Texas, and Mississippi. It also has 2 in Ontario as well as a small truck factory in Mexico. In Salamanca, Mexico, Mazda has also a single North American plant.

The location of the facility was first reported by Reuters.

The new plant in Alabama to assemble a new version of the Toyota Corolla compact car after completion. Mazda has not yet told which car will produce the joint plant. The plant, which will have the capacity to manufacture up-to 300,000 cars yearly, is part of Toyota’s initiative to invest $10 billion over the next five years.

When companies revealed in August that they would work together in a new plant in the United States, the news was welcomed by President Trump, who urged automakers to produce more vehicles here, hoping to create jobs. The president also criticized Ford Motor, General Motor and others for the construction or expansion of factories in Mexico.

Toyota and Mazda are moving ahead with the system at a time when new car sales in the US are declining. Total revenue declined by 1.8% to $ 17.2 million in 2017, ending a growth period of seven years. Analysts expect further declines in 2018 and 2019.

Following on from the first installment of our NBA Advanced Stats Series (which explained PER), it’s time to look at something that sounds complex but is actually fairly straightforward – Win Shares.

What’s a Win Share?

In it’s most basic terms, a win share calculates a single player’s contribution to their team’s win total.

It’s formed using player, team and league-wide statistics. So, if you add up all the players’ win shares on a team, it will roughly equal the team’s win total for the season.

A player generates offensive and defensive win shares. An offensive win share is calculated through a player’s points produced and offensive possessions and dividing it by marginal points per win.

Defensive win shares are formed by taking a player’s defensive rating and dividing it by the marginal points per win.

Add offensive and defensive win shares together and voila: a player’s total win shares.

Why Win Shares Matter

Many analysts prefer win shares over PER because it measure’s a player’s value based on wins, and it values both the offensive and defensive output of a player equally.

Additionally, win shares values playing time – some players who barely play in the league might have a higher PER than superstars, but those stars could have double the win shares (thus proving their importance to the team).

For example: In 2013, Marc Gasol and Mike Conley of the Memphis Grizzlies ranked sixth and 11th among all players with 11.5 and 9.9 win shares respectively. These two weren’t the best players in the league, nor did they post monster numbers, but their high win share total does indicate they were vital to the Grizzlies winning games.

To find out more information on win shares throughout the season, check out Basketball-Reference.

New Orleans Pelicans fans – and fans of basketball the world over – had to be patient this season. When Zion Williamson was drafted 1st overall by the Pels in the 2018 Draft, and the former Blue Devil literally leaped off the scream with some jaw-dropping dunks in Summer League, the NBA community was understandably losing their mind over his potential.

There hadn’t been this much hype and excitement about a rookie since LeBron James – he already has a shoe deal with Jordan! But then, disaster struck, as news broke that Williamson would be sidelined for two to three months with a knee injury before he even suited up for his first regular-season game.

Thankfully, Williamson was able to return to the fold before the coronavirus forced the suspension of the NBA season. So, with some additional time on our hands, we wanted to look at some of the rookie’s most impressive statistical numbers.

45

Williamson’s vertical leap

Zion’s athleticism is a key component of his game, and turned him into a viral sensation when he was still in high school as video upon video of his jaw-dropping dunks hit the web.

When Williamson got to Duke, the Blue Devils conducted their seasonal vertical leap tests, and the freshman jumped off the page – literally. Williamson set a new Duke record with a 45-inch leap (a record that his since been broken by Cassius Stanley, who hit 46.5), which, when you combine with his 6’8” frame, goes a long way to explaining how Williamson seems to defy gravity whenever he gets airborne.

6’7’’ / 285 / 6’10”

Williamson’s height, weight and wingspan

Williamson’s wingspan – nor his height, for that matter – doesn’t leap off the page for the position(s) he’ll likely be playing (the 4 and 5), but that won’t matter since his 45 inch vertical will ensure he can block shots and catch alley-oops with ease.

His weight entering the league was, shall we say, a ‘hefty’ 285lbs, and was the point of contention and ridicule among many NBA analysts (many of whom could do with shedding a few pounds themselves). However, following his injury and subsequent rehab, the Pelicans’ training staff have been keeping a close eye on Zion whilst putting him through his paces, so don’t be surprised to see a slimmer – yet still with a manchild body – Williamson on the court soon.

20+

In Williamson’s debut with the Pelicans this season, he dropped 22 points on 8 of 11 shooting from the field (including four threes). In fact, in his first 10 career games, he had seven 20-point (or more) performances. In the last 30 seasons, only Grant Hill and Shaquille O’Neal were able to match such a feat.

Williamson would then embark on a ridiculous streak of 13 games with 20 or more points, setting a record in the process for the most consecutive games with 20+ points by a teenager (the previous record was nine, set by Carmelo Anthony in the 2003-04 season).

The 2019-20 NFL season is in the books, and general managers are already making preparations for the 2020 draft that is fast approaching.

The contracts that are handed out during this period could make or break a team’s fortune – the trick is in handing out the right money to the right player for the right amount of years. Essentially, finding a player who provides a higher production against their average salary.

So, who were the top five value players in the NFL last season?

Salary and total value rating provided by spotrac.com

5. Ronnie Stanley, LT, Baltimore Ravens

Average Salary: $5,121,083

True Value Rating: 97.33

Left Tackle is arguably the most important position in football, especially when your job as said LT is protecting generational talent Lamar Jackson’s blind side.

Thankfully, the Ravens can rely on Stanley, who was part of an offensive line unit that gave up just 1.9 sacks per game in 2019 – seventh-lowest in the league. He also only gave up five penalties, surrendered six total pressures in 16 games and recorded a 98.7 percent win rate in pass protection. He was named as the best pass blocker in 2019 by Pro Football Focus and was selected to his first Pro Bowl as a First-Team All-Pro. Not bad for a 25-year-old in just his fourth season in the league!

The fact that Stanley accomplished all of the above whilst still on his rookie contract – he’s slated to earn the fifth-year option salary of $12 million in 2020 – is reason enough to include him in the top 5.

4. George Kittle, TE, San Francisco 49ers

Average Salary: $674,752

True Value Rating: 99.75

George Kittle introduced himself to the league in 2018, receiving a Pro Bowl nod and being named to the All-Pro Second Team. But in 2019, he made a statement.

Kittle was second among all tight ends in receiving yards last season with 1,053, also chipping in with five touchdowns. But those stats don’t tell the whole picture, as anyone who saw him play last season can point to just how tough the 6’4”, 250lb Kittle was to bring down. He also served as an elite blocker for his position, and came up big in a number of games for the 49ers – including a dominant catch and run in the 48-46 win over the Saints that put San Francisco in position for the game-winning field goal.

Kittle was selected to the Pro Bowl and named to the All-Pro First Team, all while making well under $1m for the season. For the production he gave, it’s no wonder he’s rumoured to be in-line for a record-setting contract extension.

3. Chris Godwin, WR, Tampa Bay

Average Salary: $821,041

True Value Rating: 99.81

The Buccaneers have struggled for a number of years now, but they do have a few bright spots on their roster, including third-year wide receiver Chris Godwin.

Godwin posted 1,333 receiving yards in 2019 (third overall) and nine touchdowns (joint-fourth overall), as well as 15.5 yards per catch, which put him in the top 15 among all eligible receivers.

So while Godwin didn’t win any single category, he’s near the top in almost all of them, and costing just $875,041 against the cap in 2019, that’s incredible value for money.

2. Christian McCaffrey, RB, Carolina Panthers

Average Salary: $4,310,326

True Value Rating: 98.17

McCaffrey was a Fantasy Football owner’s wet dream in 2019, racking up 2,920 rushing yards and 2,523 yards (as well as 19 total touchdowns), becoming just the third player in history to join the 1,000 – 1,000 club. Here are some other mind-bending stats from his season:

• 116 receptions, beating his own record for most receptions by a running back
• Finished first in the NFL in scrimmage yards (2,392), third in rushing yards (1,361), first in receiving yards by a running back (1,005), and tied for first in total touchdowns (19)
• First-Team All-Pro, selected to Pro Bowl

That’s a whole lot of beefy numbers for a running back making just $4.3 million per year, especially when you consider his production versus some of the more, shall we say, ‘expensive’ players at his position (Todd Gurley at $14.3 million average annual salary springs to mind…).

1. Lamar Jackson, QB, Baltimore Ravens

Average Salary: $2,367,912

True Value Rating: 99.86

When you have a league MVP averaging close to $2 million per year in salary, it’s fairly obvious he will represent the best value of any player in the NFL.

To do it in just your second year in the league is pretty ridiculous, but that’s just how good a season Lamar Jackson had. He wasn’t able to get it done in the playoffs, but in the regular season, he threw for 3,127 yards and 36 touchdowns, and churned up 1,206 yards and seven touchdowns on the ground. As a reminder, that’s coming from a quarterback – in fact, he became the only player in history with at least 3,000 passing yards and 1,000 rushing yards in a single season. Oh, and he also led the league with most total touchdowns (44), and still has two years remaining on his four-year, $9 million contract with the Ravens.

Outrageous.Lamar J

Toyota and Mazda Motor announced on Wednesday that they have chosen a site in northern Alabama, near Huntsville, automaker 1.6 billion, which Japanese manufacturers plan to build together, according to a person that is familiar to them. Business plans.

Details of the assembly plant, which employs about 4,000 employees are expected to be open by 2021, with representatives of state and local authorities in Montgomery, said at a press conference announced the person.

A spokeswoman for Toyota, Amanda Roark, declined to comment.

Toyota already operates four automotive plants in the USA, Indiana, Kentucky, Texas, and Mississippi. It also has 2 in Ontario as well as a small truck factory in Mexico. In Salamanca, Mexico, Mazda has also a single North American plant.

The location of the facility was first reported by Reuters.

The new plant in Alabama to assemble a new version of the Toyota Corolla compact car after completion. Mazda has not yet told which car will produce the joint plant. The plant, which will have the capacity to manufacture up-to 300,000 cars yearly, is part of Toyota’s initiative to invest $10 billion over the next five years.

When companies revealed in August that they would work together in a new plant in the United States, the news was welcomed by President Trump, who urged automakers to produce more vehicles here, hoping to create jobs. The president also criticized Ford Motor, General Motor and others for the construction or expansion of factories in Mexico.

Toyota and Mazda are moving ahead with the system at a time when new car sales in the US are declining. Total revenue declined by 1.8% to $ 17.2 million in 2017, ending a growth period of seven years. Analysts expect further declines in 2018 and 2019.