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>This is an example of one reason (beyond the latent racism of >the pro-analytics dialogue) why overall I'm more sympathetic >to "anti-analytics" opinionators than "pro-analytics" ones. >Both sides, ingenuously or not, construct strawmen of each >other.
The difference is that people believe the one constructed by the pro-analytics people, and it costs people jobs.
And obviously getting better data on what's happening >on the floor can help coaches make better lineup decisions, >GMs make better player evaluations, and players get a better >understanding of their own and opponents' strengths and >weaknesses. But this stuff is really on the margins. When >we're talking about the things that matter most to their' >ultimate success, we have a lot of evidence by this point that >analytics is not helping teams make the correct decisions.
Here's my thing:
Building a business and a brand is best left in the hands of people who are familiar with all areas of that business and brand. That means people who had direct access to all areas, have people skills, can draw on experiences, understand clients and customers.
Failed companies and poorly run business don't fail because they lack DATA. They fail because they lack intelligent people who are smart, have good instincts, have their finger on the pulse of movements, and intentions and behaviors.
See, for example, the Sony leaked e-mails. Sony has more data on moviegoing than anyone can hope to have. They've hired the smartest people to analyze movie-going trends. They've disaggregated the data. They know who makes money, in which movies, when. They are DECADES ahead of sports in analyzing their market. It's Hollywood.
So why has Hollywood, save a few giant superhero movies, had a REALLY rough last five years? Why is Gods of Egypt tanking? Why will the Ghostbusters shit tank? Why did RIP Department tank? And Green Lantern tank? And Concussion tank? It's not just randomness.
What is the problem?
Read those leaked Sony e-mails.
The problem is that the people in charge are racist and sexist and are overall idiots who have no idea what entertainment or art is. That was CLEAR from the minute you read the e-mails. DATA doesn't do shit for that problem. You can't fix that with DATA. You can fix that with imagination, and experience and fairness.
So with regards to sports:
Hire a college kid to travel with the team, track the data, test new principles. They don't need FRONT OFFICE jobs, because they don't know anything about anything. They are good at what they do, and that is a PIECE of the pie. But a PIECE.
What the analytics crowd has done is taken advantage of everyone else's mathematical low self esteem and convinced us that they deserve jobs. It's mostly a job-getting scheme, not a "movement."
You have the 76ers being run by someone willing to throw away THREE SEASONS for ping pong balls odds. That is the great insight from analytics? How about a front office guy who can relate to Okafor and keep him from fighting in the street, almost ruining his LIFE? Got data for that? NO. Because in order to build a solid locker room, you have to understand how people act. Their GM does not.
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O_E: "Acts like an asshole and posts with imperial disdain"
"I ORBITs the solar system, listenin..."
(C)Keith Murray, "
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