Worried about your favorite NBA player’s performance after the Olympics? Scared over the famous wear-and-tear theory? Well, don’t be.
FiveThirtyEight has done the math and assure that “playing for Team USA doesn’t hurt NBA stars the next season.”
Contrary to popular belief, FiveThirtyEight’s numbers suggest that playing for Team USA at a big event like the Olympics could actually boost the performance of players in the following NBA season. In two separate analyses, Jim Pagels and Neil Paine came to the conclusion that Team USA members performed better in their home teams after playing major tournaments for the United States, especially after the Olympics.
However, the methods used in the calculations above do not account for playing time lost due to injuries suffered while playing for Team USA. So, Paine used an alternate method that takes into account both performance and playing time. Still, results showed Dream Teamers outperforming their own projections after playing for the national team.
While correlation does not imply causality, the evidence found “does provide decent proof that declines in production aren’t traditionally associated with the extra pounding of an event such as the Olympics. For most players, the international stage is a springboard to bigger and better things, not a career-hampering pitfall,” the article concluded.
Do you have ideas for articles/interviews you'd like to see more of on Benzinga? Please email feedback@benzinga.com with your best article ideas. One person will be randomly selected to win a $20 Amazon gift card!
Disclosure: Javier Hasse holds no interest in any of the securities or entities mentioned above.
© 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Comments
Trade confidently with insights and alerts from analyst ratings, free reports and breaking news that affects the stocks you care about.