Glossary
Definitions and formulas for common data points and abbreviated terms
Recorded
Data points which come directly from the box score
- MIN
- Time on the floorBasic
- FGM
- Field goals madeBasic
- FGA
- Field goals attemptedBasic
- 3PM
- Three-pointers madeBasic
- 3PA
- Three-pointers attemptedBasic
- FTM
- Free throws madeBasic
- FTA
- Free throws attemptedBasic
- OREB
- Offensive reboundsBasic
- DREB
- Defensive reboundsBasic
- AST
- AssistsBasic
- STL
- StealsBasic
- BLK
- BlocksBasic
- TOV
- TurnoversBasic
- PF
- Personal fouls committedBasic
- PTS
- Points scoredBasic
- Q1
- AU points for the player's team winning the first quarterAU points
- Q2
- AU points for the player's team winning the second quarterAU points
- Q3
- AU points for the player's team winning the third quarterAU points
- Q4
- AU points for the player's team winning the fourth quarterAU points
- QTR
- AU points for quarters wonAU points
- WIN
- AU points for the player's team winning the gameAU points
- STAT+MVP
- AU points for the player's stats and the MVP votes they receivedAU points
- AU PTS
- AU points: the player's total for the gameAU points
Calculated
Data points which are calculated exactly from other game data
- FG%
- Field goal percentageFGM / FGABasic
- 3P%
- Three-point percentage3PM / 3PABasic
- 2PM
- Two-pointers madeFGM − 3PMBasic
- 2PA
- Two-pointers attemptedFGA − 3PABasic
- 2P%
- Two-point percentage2PM / 2PABasic
- FT%
- Free throw percentageFTM / FTABasic
- REB
- Total reboundsOREB + DREBBasic
- STK
- Stocks: steals and blocksSTL + BLKBasic
- eFG%
- Effective field goal percentage: shooting accuracy with a three counted for what it is worth(FGM + 0.5 × 3PM) / FGAAdvanced
- 3PAr
- Three-point attempt rate3PA / FGAAdvanced
- FTAr
- Free throw attempt rateFTA / FGAAdvanced
- AST/TOV
- Assists per turnoverAST / TOVAdvanced
Estimated
Data points which are estimated from other game data
- TS%
- Scoring efficiency across all three levels of scoring, leveled to one efficiency statPTS / (2 × (FGA + 0.44 × FTA))Advanced
- PPSA
- Points scored for each shot taken, counting the free throws a shot earnsPTS / (FGA + 0.44 × FTA)Advanced
- PPP
- Points scored for each playPTS / PlaysAdvanced
- OREB%
- Estimate of the percentage of offensive rebounds recorded while this player was on the floorOREB / (On × (TmOREB + OppDREB))Advanced
- DREB%
- Estimate of the percentage of defensive rebounds recorded while this player was on the floorDREB / (On × (TmDREB + OppOREB))Advanced
- REB%
- Estimate of the percentage of total rebounds recorded while this player was on the floorREB / (On × (TmREB + OppREB))Advanced
- AST%
- Estimate of the percentage of shots made the player assisted onAST / ((On × TmFGM) − FGM)Advanced
- AST RAT
- Assist ratio: the share of their plays and assists that were assistsAST / (FGA + 0.44 × FTA + AST + TOV)Advanced
- STL%
- Estimate of the percentage of opponent possessions the player ended with a stealSTL / (On × Poss), Poss as Basketball-Reference estimates it: ½ × each team's (FGA + 0.4 × FTA − 1.07 × OREB / (OREB + OppDREB) × (FGA − FGM) + TOV)Advanced
- BLK%
- Estimate of the percentage of opponent two-point attempts the player blockedBLK / (On × Opp2PA)Advanced
- TOV%
- Estimate of the percentage of the player's own plays that ended in a turnoverTOV / PlaysAdvanced
- TOV RAT
- Turnover ratio: the share of their plays and assists that were turnoversTOV / (FGA + 0.44 × FTA + AST + TOV)Advanced
- USG%
- Estimate of the share of the team's plays this player used while on the floorPlays / (On × TmPlays), TmPlays without team turnoversAdvanced
- GmSc
- Game score: a single production value weighted on box score statsPTS + 0.4 × FGM − 0.7 × FGA − 0.4 × FTA + 0.4 × FTM + 0.7 × OREB + 0.3 × DREB + STL + 0.7 × AST + 0.7 × BLK − 0.4 × PF − TOVAdvanced
- On
- Estimate of the share of the game's minutes the player was on the floorMIN / (TmMIN / 5)
Conventions
- ST
- Indicates the player started the game
- Start
- In a game log, the position a player started at, as the box score lists it (G, F or C)
- Did not play
- On the roster for the game and did not appear
- Per 36
- A player's count scaled to 36 minutes on the floorTotal × 36 / MIN
- Std Dev
- Standard deviation: how far a player's figure spreads around their average from game to game√(Σ(game − Average)² / G)
- CV
- Coefficient of variation: how variable a stat's values are, relative to their averageSD / Average, where SD = √(Σ(game − Average)² / G)
- Plays
- Estimate of plays, accounting for field goal attempts, free throw trips, and turnoversFGA + 0.44 × FTA + TOV
- Total
- Sum over every game the player was on the roster for, including games they did not play: the win points of a game not played are theirs
- Average
- Total divided by games played, not by games on the rosterTotal / G