NBA Stats

1. Question

I would like to understand what statistics are most important for NBA players to be successful such as percentages, amount of points, blocks, steals, etc. The question is: what stats are the most important for player’s position? I am doing my final project on NBA data.

2. How to answer the question

I intend on answering the question by scraping the NBA’s statistics on nbastuffer.com. This data is suitable because it is updated often and is accurate. I can accomplish this by using the rankings compared to the stats to learn insights about what makes a player better than another in the ranks. I will collect it by scraping the NBA stats all players site.

3. Data wrangling

The NBA stats categories include: RANK, NAME, TEAM, POS, AGE, GP, MPG, USG%, TO%, FTA, FT%, 2PA, 2P%, 3PA, 3P%, eFG%, TS%, PPG, RPG, APG, SPG, BPG, TPG, P+R, P+A, P+R+A, VI, ORtg, DRtg

I will be focusing on RANK, NAME, TEAM, POS, AGE, GP, MPG, FT%, 2P%, 3P%, eFG%, PPG

4. Results

Free throw percentage by position in bar graph

The position with the highest free throw percentage is combination forwards and centers. The position with the lowest free throw percentage is the combination guard and forward position.

Three Point Percentage by Position in a bar graph

The position with the highest three point percentage is the forward and guard combination position. The position with the lowest three point percentage is the centers.

Two Point Percentage by Position in a bar graph

The position with the highest two point percentage is the combination forward and center position and the lowest is the guards.

Effective Field Goal Percentage by Position in a bar graph

The position withe the highest effective field goal percentage is the forward and center combination position and the lowest is the forwards.

Average Points Per Game by Position in a bar graph

The position with the highest average points per game is the guards and the lowest is the combination guard and forward position.

Final results for the most important statistics:

Centers: Effective Field Goal Percentage, Points Per Game

Forwards: Points Per Game

Forward-Centers: Free Throw Percentage, Two Point Percentage, Effective Field Goal Percentage

Forwards-Guards: Three Point Percentage

Guards: Free Throw Percentage, Three Point Percentage, Points Per Game

Scraping NBA data has taught me that free throw percentage is one of the most important stats for a player to have.