Sunday, July 15, 2018

"Clutch shooters"

I have pondered much over this name. How is it that shooters become known as "clutch" shooters? Probably only because they took shots in late situations in game and happened to make them, became heroes, and got tagged as "clutch." However, that line of thought does not mean much to me because I know that no one remembers the times they missed those shots, so our memories are not a valid measuring stick. Neither does a shooter deserve the name "clutch" because he is a good shooter. If he makes a lot of shots, but makes the same percentage in late game situations as he does overall, then he is no better than usual in those situations.

The only way I can think of that a player really deserves the title "clutch" is if you tracked those late game situations and found that he shot a significantly better percentage at such times than he did at other times. If he shot 45% in the last ten seconds of close games, and only 38% for his career, then, yes, he is a clutch shooter. Aside from that, we are probably awarding him a bogus designation.

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