Last week’s Advanced Stats 101 studied two key defensive APBRmetrics in hopes of understanding how advanced statistics can propel the way we collectively think of defense. This week’s piece aims to shed similar light on rebounding, an aspect of the game that seems very straightforward but which careful consideration shows to be anything but.

This afternoon I was sent this comical clip of New England Patriots tight end Ben Watson joking around with Yao Ming. Just two pro athletes joking around, right? Wrong.

A big thank you goes out to Kristen Wise for sending a bunch of pictures from the adidas Nations camp which recently wrapped up in Dallas.

After a riveting opening round which saw over 70,000 votes cast, the 32-man field has been cut in half. There were some mild surprises (Julian Wright), some convincing wins (Jason Maxiell) and some close calls (Thaddeus Young), but don’t lose interest after one round, things are only starting to heat up in Hoops Addict Floor Burn Tournament.

By the time the fourth quarter started, garbage time was in full effect, and the majority of the starters were out of the game.

Most recently in this continuing space, Advanced Stats 101 has looked at APBRmetrics for Player Shooting as well as exploring Team and Player Offensive Ratings. Given the old adage that defense wins championship, it seems only appropriate to follow with a look at two key defensive stats and their application.

The Toronto Raptors announced their 2008 preseason schedule which is highlighted by a game in Edmonton and hosting an international team (CSKA Moscow).

The Washington Wizards released their 2008-2009 NBA schedule today, and it appears as if they will finally be rewarded for being among the NBA’s elite for the past few years.

This afternoon the Toronto Raptors announced their 2008-09 schedule on their official website and I was sent an email from their media relations team with some additional schedule notes that I wanted to share. I couldn’t find these notes on their official site and I thought Raptors fans would enjoy a deeper look into the upcoming season. Enjoy!

Through the first three exhibition games of their pre-Olympic tour, the 2008 version of the United States basketball team, or the “Redeem Team” as they call themselves, very much resembled the 1992 Dream Team. They defeated Canada, Turkey and Lithuania by an average of 41 points, using dazzling dunks, stifling defense and excellent ball movement. There were brief lapses of uninspired play, but nothing that was cause for concern.