Statistic•Basketball
Basketball Ratings
Basketball ratings express offensive or defensive efficiency on a standard possessions basis.
efficiency ratings
Plain definition
Team ratings compare performance without being distorted by pace, usually by expressing points scored or allowed per 100 possessions. Player-level formulas can vary by provider, but they share the goal of evaluating efficiency on a comparable possessions basis.
Derived terms
Offensive Rating
Points scored per 100 possessions.
Defensive Rating
Points allowed per 100 possessions.
Net Rating
The difference between Offensive Rating and Defensive Rating.
Why it matters
Ratings separate volume from efficiency. A fast team may score heavily without being elite on each possession, while a slow team may defend extremely well without producing striking raw totals. Ratings become even more informative alongside pace, TS%, eFG% and PPP.
Practical example
A team scores 112 points per 100 estimated possessions, giving it an Offensive Rating of 112. If it allows 104 on the same basis, its Net Rating is +8.
Related terms
Statistic•Basketball
Points per Possession (PPP)
Points per Possession is the average number of points scored on each possession.
Statistic•Basketball
Pace
Pace estimates the number of possessions played, usually expressed over a standard game length.
Statistic•Basketball
True Shooting Percentage (TS%)
True Shooting Percentage measures scoring efficiency across field goals, three-pointers and free throws.