Wolves better than you think
http://ppt.cc/oPVg 兩手翻翻
http://ppt.cc/-6kJ 原文出處
"You are what your record says you are," legendary former NFL coach Bill
Parcells was fond of repeating, and for some fans that's an article of faith.
For those fans, this year'sMinnesota Timberwolves are one of the league's
biggest disappointments. More than two months into a season that was supposed
to snap a nine-year playoff drought, the Timberwolves stand .500, two games
behind the Dallas Mavericks for the eighth and final spot in the Western
Conference postseason.
前NFL傳奇教頭Bill Parcell 最愛講的一句話，「戰績即你，你即戰績」，某些球迷也把
這句話奉為圭臬，而對於這些粉絲來說，今年的灰狼可說是NBA裡的魯蛇。開季2個多月來
，應該要進入睽違9年季後賽的灰狼，戰績5成、落後第八名的小牛2場勝差。
Change the perspective, though, and Minnesota is suddenly a very different
team. The Timberwolves have outscored opponents by 4.8 points per game, which
puts them tied for fifth in the West and seventh in the NBA.
但，換個角度看，灰狼突然是一支截然不同的隊伍。灰狼的每場平均勝分差是4.8分，這
個成績西區第五，全聯盟第七。
As a result, advanced team metrics built on point differential consider
Minnesota a contender. That goes double for the Hollinger Power Rankings,
which put more weight on recent performance. Since the Timberwolves have
three wins by 20-plus points in their past 10 games, Minnesota has jumped to
fifth in the Hollinger Power Rankings, ahead of theMiami Heat and Portland
Trail Blazers.
根據這個數據，勝分差前段班的隊伍視灰狼為競爭對手。而在更能貼切隊伍表現的
Hollinger Power Rankings，這數據更有份量。過去10場比賽中，灰狼有3場大勝對手20
分以上，讓他在Hollinger Power Rankings上升至第五名，領先邁阿密熱火以及波特蘭拓
荒者。
So, are the Timberwolves what their record says they are? Or are they what
their point differential says they are?
所以，戰績真的代表灰狼嗎?又或是勝分差才代表他呢?