How Data Analytics Created the Best Shooter In the NBA
On Wednesday, June 26, 2024, Reed Sheppard from Kentucky University was drafted third overall by the Houston Rockets in the 2024 NBA Draft. In his lone year, Sheppard was the best shooter in college basketball. However, his use of technology and science makes his story unique. In one year, Sheppard transformed from 32% in his senior year of high school to a 52% 3-point percentage in his first year at Kentucky, the highest nationwide. As a result, Reed Sheppard has showcased that data and science are reimagining sports and how athletes train.
At Kentucky, Sheppard worked hard at the practice facility, utilizing a screen that displayed metrics to notify him of his latest shot. For example, he would shoot a 3-pointer, and the screen would tell him how close he was to the perfect shot. John Carter, the CEO of Noah Basketball, the company that makes the product, stated that “[Reed Sheppard] was dialed into” getting the best shot possible (O’Connell). Almost every NBA team uses the technology, which goes deeper than just tracking makes and misses. Instead, the product uses cameras above the court to track a shot’s angle, depth, and left-right aim. Shots in the ideal zone of each metric are “splashes.”
According to Sheppard, the instant feedback provided by the screen was helpful since intuition alone cannot determine whether a shot was great. However, Sheppard eventually needed to increase the difficulty of his shots by asking teammates and even their 7-foot team manager to help contest his attempts. Surprisingly, Sheppard had the best make- and splash percentages of any collegiate player whose team used Carter’s product. Consequently, his transformation caused many NBA teams to put him at the top of their draft boards.
The data also contradicts conventional wisdom about the “perfect shot” since the data suggests that shooting at a slightly lower angle than the satisfying high-arc swish is more successful. The situation parallels Moneyball when Billy Beane and the Oakland Athletics used data analytics to find undervalued players.
Overall, Reed Sheppard’s evolution from a below-average to the best shooter in college basketball reinforces the importance of data analytics and science in sports. The future of sports lies within technology, and teams taking advantage of the opportunity first will gain the upper hand. The traditional way of training and evaluating players is becoming outdated in many sports, such as basketball and baseball, so teams must use innovative technology and tools. Ultimately, teams who want sustainable success in the future will need the help of data and science to train their players effectively.
