Stats

As much as I love finding patterns, I should be into statistics, but I am not. I think a lot of sports commentary love to back up with stats- percentages, likely outcomes, past performances, but in the end there is a person making these decisions and people don't make consistent choices and every situation is unique.

 There was a MASN commercial earlier this year with Ian Desmond where Jim "Love Me or Lose Me" Riggleman said "Sometimes you believe in the stats. Sometimes you believe in the player." That's my philosophy. Stats are not going to take into account the so-dear-to-my-heart Tyler Clippard blanking out and forgetting to cover first for Michael Morse in the Nat's Sunday game in Colorado or  Niklas Backstrom being secretly injured. There are superstitions and back stories and choices made in the moment that can't be given numerical value.

 So, I am more interested in why Bruce Boudreau thinks we don't notice he's doing the same things under a different name every season than seeing a line of numbers telling me there's no productive power play. I'm curious as to why the Mystics fall apart in the 4th quarter under every coach with different players rather than just seeing a poor record.