Home Court Advantage in the NBA
May 11th 2008 19:16
Someone brought up this topic on a forum the other day and I thought it would be a good one to write about. It's evident that most teams are more successful when they are playing at home. The extreme example would be the Utah Jazz. They lost only four games at home all season. You'd think they would be the best team in the league, but their dismal road record prevented that from happening. What is it that makes a team so good at home and either much or slightly worse on the road?
People attribute this trend to the fans and their alliance with the home-town team. While I do acknowledge the fact that the fans do have an impact, I refuse to believe that the crowd can consistently affect the outcome of a game. Having the fans behind you while you're playing is great, but let's be real for a second here. You're not going to play a whole lot better just because a couple thousand people are screaming your name. It's much more than that. I think professional athletes are too damn good to be affected by opposing team's fans to the point where it would cause them to lose more road games than home games on a regular basis. The only time where I think the fans can directly affect the outcome of a game is when there are a lot of free throws and the game basically comes down to who capitalizes on their free throws. The home team gets silence while shooting FTs, but once an opposing player steps to the line, all they are hearing are noise makers and I can tell that it makes it harder. During the flow of the game, the players are too busy moving and playing to hear the fans. Many players say they can block out any noise while playing, and I believe them. But as I said before, shooting FTs is like being in a different zone. It's just you, the basket and thousands of fans. Whether or not they are on your side can make all the difference.
So if it's not the fans, what is it that causes this trend? I attribute it to a few things. Traveling via plane, train, bus, etc. for extended periods of time wears players out. It disrupts their sleeping patterns; instead of being awake and spending time with their family at 3pm, they would be dead asleep while on the bus. You might not be able to go to bed until 4am and then have to wake up for early practice and a 7pm game. Changing time zones during travel may even make this process worse. You could miss out on three hours of sleep while on the plane if you're traveling from the west coast to the east. All of this interferes with rest and also one's daily habits. If a player has to go to the gym and shoot around at noon everyday before a game, that might not be possible if they are stuck on a bus somewhere. Not being able to prepare the way you are used to preparing can easily lose you a game, which leads me to my next point. When on the road, you usually have to adhere to the practice schedule given to you by the arena/opposing team. The gym is only available at certain times, and if you're not at the top of your game when practice time comes, you're not getting a full practice. A less than solid practice usually leads to a less than solid performance on the court... unless of course you're a superstar and don't need practice (aka. Allen Iverson).
All of these factors lead to one thing, greater fatigue. Come game time, the road time will be more fatigued and/or less prepared than the home team because of the travel, timezone change, changes in rituals/ preparation. It might not be noticeable on the court while watching them, but those extra missed shots and that one or two times a player forgot to hustle back are most likely due to that extra effort they had to exert in order to get to the game location. Don't forget the fact that the road team has to sleep in hotel rooms, and as comfortable as the 5-star beds may be, they're probably not as welcoming as the million dollar cribs these players call home. The home team gets it easy; they wake up in their own bed, go down to the court (whether it be their built-in court or the one at the arena), shoot around, practice at their regular times and then head back home until game time. Rather easy for them... not much effort involved and their game day rituals remain intact. This is why the home team has such an advantage in the NBA and in most other sports.
I guess someone should break the news to the fans that they are not helping their team as much as they thought they were. I'm sure their sheer presence in the arena makes the home-team happy. I think the players would be heartbroken if they came to play one night and saw the stands empty. So, in that case, I guess the fans do help motivate their team...
So if it's not the fans, what is it that causes this trend? I attribute it to a few things. Traveling via plane, train, bus, etc. for extended periods of time wears players out. It disrupts their sleeping patterns; instead of being awake and spending time with their family at 3pm, they would be dead asleep while on the bus. You might not be able to go to bed until 4am and then have to wake up for early practice and a 7pm game. Changing time zones during travel may even make this process worse. You could miss out on three hours of sleep while on the plane if you're traveling from the west coast to the east. All of this interferes with rest and also one's daily habits. If a player has to go to the gym and shoot around at noon everyday before a game, that might not be possible if they are stuck on a bus somewhere. Not being able to prepare the way you are used to preparing can easily lose you a game, which leads me to my next point. When on the road, you usually have to adhere to the practice schedule given to you by the arena/opposing team. The gym is only available at certain times, and if you're not at the top of your game when practice time comes, you're not getting a full practice. A less than solid practice usually leads to a less than solid performance on the court... unless of course you're a superstar and don't need practice (aka. Allen Iverson).
All of these factors lead to one thing, greater fatigue. Come game time, the road time will be more fatigued and/or less prepared than the home team because of the travel, timezone change, changes in rituals/ preparation. It might not be noticeable on the court while watching them, but those extra missed shots and that one or two times a player forgot to hustle back are most likely due to that extra effort they had to exert in order to get to the game location. Don't forget the fact that the road team has to sleep in hotel rooms, and as comfortable as the 5-star beds may be, they're probably not as welcoming as the million dollar cribs these players call home. The home team gets it easy; they wake up in their own bed, go down to the court (whether it be their built-in court or the one at the arena), shoot around, practice at their regular times and then head back home until game time. Rather easy for them... not much effort involved and their game day rituals remain intact. This is why the home team has such an advantage in the NBA and in most other sports.
I guess someone should break the news to the fans that they are not helping their team as much as they thought they were. I'm sure their sheer presence in the arena makes the home-team happy. I think the players would be heartbroken if they came to play one night and saw the stands empty. So, in that case, I guess the fans do help motivate their team...
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