Earlier this week, PointAfter unveiled Player Value Index (PVI) to determine the most valuable players in the NBA. Now, it's time to examine the other, darker side of the spectrum: the least useful players. The guys who commit bone-headed turnovers, chuck up ill-advised shots from all over the court and exhibit a painful lack of understanding on the defensive end.
To review, PVI incorporates the following statistics into its formula: Player Efficiency Rating (PER), Value Over Replacement Player (VORP), box plus-minus (BPM), win shares and usage rate. These statistics are all at the forefront of the NBA sabermetrics movement, and are widely used in measuring a player's efficiency and/or value to his team.
The players highlighted here aren't the benchwarmers who rarely saw court time — the 323 players who qualified for consideration all played at least 41 games. Because when a losing squad reviews its season and wonders what could have been, the finger of blame isn't pointed at the roster filler who barely got to play. It's aimed toward the guys who had the chance to prove themselves but couldn't seize the moment. The 25 players deemed least valuable by PVI ultimately should have seen a hefty portion of their minutes allocated to more efficient contributors.
Not too many surprises there.
