Steph averaged 32 pts/75 in 124 TS+ (Meaning his efficiency was 24% better than the league average that season), pretty bonkers numbers. And if I yelled from the mountain tops that it was the greatest scoring season of all time the echo from the valley below would say that it’s way easier to score now than it was in the 90’s. To that I would respond yes, but how much easier?
That’s where Adjusted Big Time Scoring comes in. Me and a friend made an app a while back that compares the top-scoring seasons going back to 1974. Its aim was to sort out the most impressive scoring seasons of all time.
The way it works is by finding the average pts/75 of the top 25 scorers in a season and then seeing how a player in that season’s pts/75 stacks up against that average. Then repeat that for every season going back to 1974. This helps adjust for era by comparing Michael Jordan’s scoring volume relative to his peers and not the raw higher scoring environment of 2016. Then we grab the player’s TS+ which looks at a player’s scoring efficiency relative to their season. We combine the two and place a slightly higher weighting on volume over efficiency and out pops Adjusted Big Time Scoring.
Here’s how Curry’s 2016 stacks up against other notable big time scoring seasons.
2016 Stephen Curry
Pts/75 - 31.9
Season Avg Top 25 Scoring Volume -24.9
Points Above Avg - 7.0
TS+ - 124
Adjusted Big Time Scoring Z score - 2.99
2019 James Harden
Pts/75 - 36.2
Season Avg Top 25 Scoring Volume - 26.6
Points Above Avg - 9.6
TS+ - 110
Adjusted Big Time Scoring Z score - 2.61
1987 Michael Jordan
Pts/75 - 34.8
Season Avg Top 25 Scoring Volume - 23.9
Points Above Avg - 10.9
TS+ - 104
Adjusted Big Time Scoring Z score - 2.43
2006 Kobe Bryant
Pts/75 - 34.2
Season Avg Top 25 Scoring Volume - 25.5
Points Above Avg - 8.7
TS+ - 104
Adjusted Big Time Scoring Z score - 1.94
Using pts per 75 in different years is not it. You do realize the league average pts per posession is at the highest its ever been now. In 1974, only 3 players cracked 24pts per 75 meanwhile around 25 players did it this 2023 season.
Shooting 45% from 3 on 11 attempts many of them crazy shots no one else would take, is absolutely insane. Almost a coin flip, I wish I witnessed that season live
It was amazing to watch as a basketball fan, but as a Cavs fan it was also incredibly stressful. Anytime he pulled up from 3 when the Cavs were playing him made my heart drop into my stomach.
wilt averaged 50 ppg
plumbers
Maybe 100 000 people played basketball at that time, today its 100 times that my man (numbers are obviously wrong and made up but needed to illustrate one of the points i bothered illustrating)
Not sure if the GOAT scoring season… but one thing I love about Steph is he doesn’t do much stat-padding. And he was never afraid to take end of quarter heaves. So frustrating seeing players “attempt” a heave a half second too late.