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The Pacers are Way Better with George Hill on the Floor

By Tim Donahue

Feb 20, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Indiana Pacers guard George Hill (3) shoots in front of Philadelphia 76ers center Nerlens Noel (4) during the second half at Wells Fargo Center. The Pacers defeated the 76ers 106-95. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 20, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Indiana Pacers guard George Hill (3) shoots in front of Philadelphia 76ers center Nerlens Noel (4) during the second half at Wells Fargo Center. The Pacers defeated the 76ers 106-95. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /
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One of the things that 8p9s has always watched closely is how the Pacers play when a certain player is on or off the floor.

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Such “on/off” metrics are not meant to be comprehensive, nor do we seek to make any ultimate judgments from them. Still, we find them one of many interesting places to start investigating what is happening on the floor.

These bubble charts are meant to plot information on three data points:

  1. Offensive efficiency (points scored per 100 possessions, the up-down axis),
  2. Defensive efficiency (points allowed per 100 possessions, the right-left axis)
  3. Minutes Played (bubble size)

The axes cross at the team averages for these efficiencies. Each bubble represents the player’s “on” performance year-to-date through a certain game, with the bubbles getting bigger as the season progresses.

The solid bubble is through the last game.

The number represents the Pacers’ net rating (offensive efficiency minus defensive efficiency) for the time the player is on the floor.

George Hill’s chart should come as no surprise to anyone closely following the Pacers this past month. Indiana has been a different team since Hill’s return, finally adding some offensive punch.

The Hometown Hero’s positive influence on the Indiana Pacers offense is demonstrate by the presence of all of his bubbles being well above the horizontal axis (team average). Even more encouraging is the movement of the bubbles to the right side of the graph as they have grown.

The Pacers are scoring over 8 more points per 100 possessions in the 474 minutes George Hill has played. That’s the best net rating among any Pacers player.

Since his return on January 23rd, the Pacers have won 9 of 14 ballgames and are +11.9 per 100 in his 343 minutes.

His bubble’s presence in the coveted upper right hand quadrant is just one indication of the value he’s brought to the team this season.

GHillon228
GHillon228 /

Statistical sources: NBA and Basketball-Reference

Next: Twitter Reacts to George Hill's Triple Double

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