[GATER Alert] Daryl Morey's Sports Business Conference at MIT

Carl Herrera · Feb 11, 2008

Interesting stuff, my favorite is Rick Carlisle's suggestion to increase scoring by... making the hoop bigger.

http://myespn.go.com/blogs/truehoop/0-30-40/Lots-of-Smart-People-in-Boston.html

Just got home from the second annual MIT Sloan Sports Business Conference in Boston.

It is a multi-faceted one-day conference with a heavy NBA (and especially Celtics) presence -- because one of the founders of the conference is former Celtics executive, and current Houston GM, Daryl Morey.

Getting to know Morey a little -- let me be the latest of many to say he's a great guy to meet -- was one of the highlights. I would point out that while Morey is in love with qualatative analysis, the man is more swashbuckler than "nerd" in demeanor.

Spurs GM RC Buford, Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace, ESPN's Rick Carlisle, stats legend Bill James, Celtic CEO Wyc Grousbeck -- those are some of the people who were speaking or attending this small conference. I especially enjoyed hearing from very smart people like Dean Oliver -- the dean of modern basketball statistics -- and Michael Zarren who is the statisical mind of much of what the Boston Celtics do. And remember the 2007 TrueHoop Stat Geek Smackdown? John Hollinger, Justin Kutbatko, and Jeff Ma were all in Boston too.

Lots of interesting stuff. A random sampling of what I recall:

This is kind of the conference on basketball statistics, and Wyc Grousbeck -- bless him -- opened it with a keynote address saying, essentially, statistics ain't all that, and a lot of what's great about sports defies measurement.
R.C. Buford talked about a generation of players enmeshed in a "culture of entitlement," and suggested that one antidote to that was having players like Tim Duncan and David Robinson, who created a work setting that attracted players who were interested in being good teammates. Buford also said that before taking over their own D-League team, the Spurs spent some time with the Cleveland Indians, studying their farm system.
Bill Polian, the president of the Colts, trotted out a quote that he did not invent, but is nonetheless magnificent. Regarding injuries: "The most important ability is availability."
Rick Carlisle tossed around some ideas to make the game more exciting, including a slightly bigger basket. Other things that were at least mentioned, but not necessarily advocated, were a bigger court, four on four, and an idea that has been used in the CBA: to base the standings on a system where seven standing points are awarded for each game -- one for each quarter, and three for the game. Makes it so there is something to fight for at all times in the game. Carlisle played with those rules during a bries stint in the CBA, and said it was excting. He also pointed out that a rim that was just a half-inch bigger would likely increase current NBA scoring averages to 105 points per game.
Former NFL player, and current investment banker and consultant to the sports industry Randy Vataha had a fascinating bit of news. Some research he had seen showed that the key to the NFL's popularity is third down. Here's the rationale -- good TV has something to make you stop talking, sit down, and really focus on the screen at least every couple of minutes. TV writers know this to be fact. But while baseball and basketball have long stretches where you can get distracted, football has the magic of third down every so often, when everybody really tunes in.
Many speaking here suggested a shorter season may have benefits, but nobody thinks the NBA will go for it because it will mess with reveues
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bbjai · Feb 11, 2008

The hoops already bigger then regulation

does he want USA to suck further in the International competitions?

ABtheTerrorist · Feb 11, 2008

How fun would it be to just sit in on one of these conferences.I would just love sitting there and listen to different ideas about how we can make the game of basketball and the NBA better. And the people talking are not my friends, but people w/ intelligence and have a certain authority on the manner.

I think that the idea of awarding points for winning a quarter seems interesting but I just do not see that happening for the foreseeable future.

A bigger basket..?Not for me.Not for us.And it would hurt us in international play.

Call me a traditionalist,but i want to see more defence.I want to see people be able to play defence again. I want to see a game similiar to any game in the 90's in the Eastern Conference.Those early Pistons bad boys, the Knicks w/ Oakley and Starks and later w/ Spreewell and Larry Johnson, and the HEat w/ Zo and Tim Hardaway.
The NBA will never go for this becuase thats boring for a lot of people. People love the fast pace Mavericks and Warriors teams and up until last week, the Suns.

I wonder if the NFL will start letting DB's play again or if it will continue working on scoring more points.

Ziggy · Feb 11, 2008

Why the hell do we need more points?

WE DONT

professorjay · Feb 11, 2008

I have a great idea. Change 2 point shots to 20 point shots. Three point shots to 30 point shots. Records will be shattered in no time.

xiki · Feb 11, 2008

Ziggy said:

Why the hell do we need more points?

WE DONT
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WE need more points, THEY don't!

meh · Feb 11, 2008

I've always liked the "bigger court" idea for the NBA ever since I heard it a while back. NBA players today are just so quick these days. Bigger court means better spacing which is more conducive to passing systems, which I like.

Drexlerfan22 · Feb 11, 2008

ABtheTerrorist said:

Call me a traditionalist,but i want to see more defence.I want to see people be able to play defence again. I want to see a game similiar to any game in the 90's in the Eastern Conference.Those early Pistons bad boys, the Knicks w/ Oakley and Starks and later w/ Spreewell and Larry Johnson, and the HEat w/ Zo and Tim Hardaway.
The NBA will never go for this becuase thats boring for a lot of people. People love the fast pace Mavericks and Warriors teams and up until last week, the Suns.
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I've always said the same thing.

There was no basketball I ever enjoyed watching more than a Knicks/Heat series in the days of Ewing/Spree/LJ/Houston and Mourning/Hardaway/Mashburn/Brown etc. Those games were wars.

I'll always remember Houston's running up-and-under shot to beat the Heat. How could anyone not love a final score like 73-71?

meh said:

I've always liked the "bigger court" idea for the NBA ever since I heard it a while back. NBA players today are just so quick these days. Bigger court means better spacing which is more conducive to passing systems, which I like.
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That would be pretty interesting. I wonder if they could test this stuff out in the NBDL beforehand or something.

Carl Herrera · Feb 11, 2008

meh said:

I've always liked the "bigger court" idea for the NBA ever since I heard it a while back. NBA players today are just so quick these days. Bigger court means better spacing which is more conducive to passing systems, which I like.
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Typical converation during Rockets game with bigger court:

Brooks: Yao, pass me the ball.

Yao: Who's talking?

Brooks: It's me, AB.

Yao: Where you at? I can't see you.

Brooks: Over here.

Yao: I see a red speck at the top of the key. That you?

uchlha · Feb 11, 2008

we need the 4 pt line for antoine walker!

JoeBarelyCares · Feb 11, 2008

I think they should go the other way, and put in the amusement park rims. Then they'll quit jacking up 3s and instead will try to dunk everything.

abc2007 · Feb 11, 2008

Carl Herrera said:

Typical converation during Rockets game with bigger court:

Brooks: Yao, pass me the ball.

Yao: Who's talking?

Brooks: It's me, AB.

Yao: Where you at? I can't see you.

Brooks: Over here.

Yao: I see a red speck at the top of the key. That you?
Click to expand...

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