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Jeff Sagarin'stm NBA Ratings


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[ Jeff's Sports Ratings - the only place to find my updated ratings]

my ratings are no longer updated on the USA Today website

Email: Jeff Sagarin

All Contents Copyright © 2024 Jeff Sagarintm. All Rights Reserved.


NBA 2024-2025 ratings through results of 2024 NOVEMBER 20 WEDNESDAY


this output has three parts: (1) teams listed by RATING top-to-bottom
                             (2) DIVISION AVERAGES
                                 (listed top-to-bottom & by conference)
                             (3) teams listed by DIVISION
                                 (listed in order within divisions)

The SCHEDULE ratings represent what the rating would have to be for a
hypothetical team to have a mathematical expectation of winning precisely 50%
of their games against the schedule played by the team in question in the games
that it has played so far.  The schedule difficulty of each given game takes
into account the rating of the opponent and the location of the game. This
is the same concept that is used in computing the WIN50% conference ratings.

To make predictions for upcoming games, simply compare the RATINGS of
the teams in question and allow an ADDITIONAL  3  points for the home
team.  Thus, for example, a HOME team with a rating of 97 would be
favored by  5  points over a VISITING team having a rating of 95.
Or a VISITING team with a rating of 94 would be favored by  7  points
over a HOME team having a rating of 84.

NOTE: Use whatever home advantage is listed in the output below.
      In the example just above, a home edge of 3 was shown for
      illustrative purposes. The home edge will vary during the season.
Several different home edges are shown, one for each of the several different type of ratings
directly over their respective columns.

The numbers to the right of a team's schedule strength are its rank of
schedule - (in parentheses) - and its record versus teams in these
rating's CURRENT top 10 and CURRENT top 16 respectively.

Teams that appear to be tied to two decimal places in a given column are actually
different when carried to more decimal places in the computer's internal arithmetic.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The PREDICTOR, is such that the score is the only thing that matters.
PREDICTOR is also known as PURE_POINTS, BALLANTINE, RHEINGOLD, WHITE OWL
and is a very good PREDICTOR of future games.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
GOLDEN_MEAN also utilizes the actual SCORES of the games in a different way but is also completely SCORE BASED
and thus should be a good match for the PURE POINTS in terms of predictive accuracy for upcoming games.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The RECENT, is score-based and weights RECENT play more heavily than earlier games. Its effect will become
more pronounced the longer a season goes if a given team happens to have an upward or downward trend.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The overall RATING is a synthesis of the three different SCORE-BASED methods, PREDICTOR(PURE_POINTS), GOLDEN_MEAN,
and RECENT and thus should be a good predictor in its own right.


Predictions_with_Totals_and_Moneylines

just click on "Predictions_with_Totals_and_Moneylines" and it will take you to the daily predictions at the bottom of the file where you'll also see the additional set of EXPERIMENTAL predictions which are the basic predictions that are adjusted to take into account each team's tendencies of performance at home and away along with the extra picks column of STRONG RECENT
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
NBA 2024-2025 ratings through games of 2024 November 20 Wednesday
                                RATING    W   L  SCHEDL(RANK) VS top 10 | VS top 16 |  PREDICTOR   | GOLDEN_MEAN  |  RECENT      | STRONG RECENT
                HOME ADVANTAGE=[  2.51]                                               [  2.06]       [  2.86]       [  2.61]       [  2.61]
   1  Cleveland Cavaliers     =  97.17   16   1   88.17(  29)    3   1  |    6   1  |   96.18    3 |   99.13    1 |   97.90    1 |  101.16    1  CENTRAL
   2  Oklahoma City Thunder   =  96.97   12   4   89.61(  18)    3   3  |    5   3  |   97.62    1 |   97.39    2 |   96.97    2 |   98.89    3  northwest
   3  Boston Celtics          =  96.59   12   3   88.57(  27)    2   1  |    4   1  |   97.01    2 |   97.34    3 |   96.44    5 |   96.86    5  ATLANTIC
   4  Golden State Warriors   =  96.09   11   3   90.28(  14)    5   1  |    5   3  |   95.17    4 |   97.29    4 |   96.97    3 |  100.40    2  pacific
   5  Houston Rockets         =  95.28   11   5   90.04(  17)    3   2  |    5   3  |   94.58    7 |   95.48    5 |   96.74    4 |   98.86    4  southwest
   6  New York Knicks         =  94.33    9   6   89.14(  23)    0   3  |    2   3  |   94.96    5 |   93.61    6 |   95.15    7 |   95.17    7  ATLANTIC
   7  Dallas Mavericks        =  94.20    8   7   89.53(  20)    2   3  |    3   3  |   94.68    6 |   92.85    7 |   96.22    6 |   96.63    6  southwest
   8  Memphis Grizzlies       =  92.86    9   7   88.62(  26)    2   3  |    4   4  |   93.61    8 |   92.07   11 |   93.44    8 |   93.74    8  southwest
   9  Denver Nuggets          =  92.51    8   5   90.20(  16)    3   2  |    4   4  |   93.07    9 |   92.13   10 |   92.73   10 |   91.53   13  northwest
  10  Orlando Magic           =  92.47    9   7   89.55(  19)    0   4  |    1   5  |   92.68   11 |   91.95   12 |   93.26    9 |   93.53    9  SOUTHEAST
NBA 2024-2025 ratings through games of 2024 November 20 Wednesday
                                RATING    W   L  SCHEDL(RANK) VS top 10 | VS top 16 |  PREDICTOR   | GOLDEN_MEAN  |  RECENT      | STRONG RECENT
                HOME ADVANTAGE=[  2.51]                                               [  2.06]       [  2.86]       [  2.61]       [  2.61]
  11  Minnesota Timberwolves  =  91.85    8   6   88.80(  25)    1   1  |    3   3  |   92.90   10 |   90.99   13 |   92.02   12 |   90.99   14  northwest
  12  Los Angeles Clippers    =  91.55    9   7   90.96(  10)    4   4  |    5   4  |   90.59   17 |   92.26    9 |   92.17   11 |   93.01   10  pacific
  13  Los Angeles Lakers      =  91.52   10   4   89.07(  24)    1   2  |    3   2  |   90.81   14 |   92.37    8 |   91.69   15 |   92.25   11  pacific
  14  Sacramento Kings        =  90.82    8   7   88.07(  30)    0   0  |    1   4  |   91.49   12 |   90.68   14 |   90.42   16 |   90.03   16  pacific
  15  Miami Heat              =  90.60    6   7   89.50(  21)    0   3  |    1   4  |   90.76   15 |   89.57   17 |   91.76   14 |   91.83   12  SOUTHEAST
  16  Milwaukee Bucks         =  90.53    6   9   90.25(  15)    1   6  |    1   6  |   91.25   13 |   88.70   18 |   91.98   13 |   90.90   15  CENTRAL
  17  Phoenix Suns            =  89.84    9   7   91.19(   8)    2   3  |    6   7  |   90.73   16 |   90.53   15 |   88.09   19 |   86.83   21  pacific
  18  San Antonio Spurs       =  89.39    7   8   90.96(  11)    2   5  |    4   7  |   89.17   19 |   90.33   16 |   88.56   18 |   88.89   19  southwest
  19  Indiana Pacers          =  88.93    6   9   91.30(   5)    4   4  |    5   5  |   89.63   18 |   88.33   19 |   88.73   17 |   87.63   20  CENTRAL
  20  Detroit Pistons         =  87.04    7   9   89.40(  22)    0   4  |    2   6  |   85.81   22 |   87.65   20 |   87.27   20 |   89.49   17  CENTRAL
NBA 2024-2025 ratings through games of 2024 November 20 Wednesday
                                RATING    W   L  SCHEDL(RANK) VS top 10 | VS top 16 |  PREDICTOR   | GOLDEN_MEAN  |  RECENT      | STRONG RECENT
                HOME ADVANTAGE=[  2.51]                                               [  2.06]       [  2.86]       [  2.61]       [  2.61]
  21  Philadelphia 76ers      =  86.55    2  12   91.20(   7)    0   5  |    0   9  |   88.69   20 |   83.50   28 |   85.95   22 |   80.81   28  ATLANTIC
  22  Brooklyn Nets           =  86.15    6   9   91.44(   4)    2   7  |    3   7  |   84.49   27 |   87.31   21 |   85.87   23 |   89.11   18  ATLANTIC
  23  Charlotte Hornets       =  86.12    5   9   90.74(  12)    1   4  |    2   6  |   85.71   24 |   86.60   22 |   85.56   24 |   85.32   24  SOUTHEAST
  24  Atlanta Hawks           =  85.85    7   9   88.47(  28)    2   3  |    3   4  |   85.74   23 |   86.10   25 |   85.24   26 |   83.93   26  SOUTHEAST
  25  Toronto Raptors         =  85.61    3  12   91.23(   6)    0   4  |    1  10  |   85.23   25 |   84.59   26 |   86.40   21 |   86.78   22  ATLANTIC
  26  Portland Trail Blazers  =  85.43    6   9   90.60(  13)    0   4  |    3   6  |   83.31   29 |   86.58   23 |   85.31   25 |   86.50   23  northwest
  27  Chicago Bulls           =  85.28    6  10   91.91(   1)    3   5  |    4   7  |   84.54   26 |   86.38   24 |   84.09   28 |   83.95   25  CENTRAL
  28  New Orleans Pelicans    =  84.61    4  12   91.01(   9)    1   7  |    1   8  |   85.98   21 |   84.10   27 |   82.48   29 |   77.97   29  southwest
  29  Utah Jazz               =  83.99    3  11   91.68(   3)    1   4  |    1   9  |   83.64   28 |   83.36   29 |   84.19   27 |   83.34   27  northwest
  30  Washington Wizards      =  79.88    2  11   91.74(   2)    0   7  |    0   8  |   79.98   30 |   80.83   30 |   76.42   30 |   73.68   30  SOUTHEAST
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Divisional Rankings


There are three group ratings, the "central mean", the
"simple average" (also known as the "arithmetic mean",)
and the WIN50%.
The "central mean" gives the most weight to the middle team(s)
in the group and progressively less weight to teams as you go
away from the middle in either direction, up or down.
This tends to smooth out the effect of anomalous teams that are rated
much higher and lower than the middle team(s) in the group.  The
"simple average" ("arithmetic mean") weights each team equally
no matter where they are relative to the middle.
Here are a few examples of how the "central mean" is computed.
  4-team group ___ the weights are   1-2-2-1
  5-team group ___ the weights are   1-2-3-2-1
  6-team group ___ the weights are   1-2-3-3-2-1
  7-team group ___ the weights are   1-2-3-4-3-2-1
  8-team group ___ the weights are   1-2-3-4-4-3-2-1
  9-team group ___ the weights are   1-2-3-4-5-4-3-2-1
 10-team group ___ the weights are   1-2-3-4-5-5-4-3-2-1
 11-team group ___ the weights are   1-2-3-4-5-6-5-4-3-2-1
 12-team group ___ the weights are   1-2-3-4-5-6-6-5-4-3-2-1
 13-team group ___ the weights are   1-2-3-4-5-6-7-6-5-4-3-2-1
This is an expanded version of the "tri-mean".

The WIN50% is the rating required to win 50% of the games if playing an
infinite number of round-robins in the given group at a neutral location.
      DIVISION            CENTRAL MEAN    SIMPLE AVERAGE  TEAMS      WIN50%

   1  southwest               =  91.74      91.27  (  2)      5      91.27  (  2)
   2  pacific                 =  91.69      91.96  (  1)      5      91.96  (  1)
   3  northwest               =  90.26      90.15  (  3)      5      90.15  (  3)
   4  CENTRAL                 =  89.38      89.79  (  5)      5      89.79  (  5)
   5  ATLANTIC                =  89.20      89.84  (  4)      5      89.84  (  4)
   6  SOUTHEAST               =  87.07      86.98  (  6)      5      86.98  (  6)


      DIVISION            CENTRAL MEAN    SIMPLE AVERAGE  TEAMS      WIN50%

   5  ATLANTIC                =  89.20      89.84  (  4)      5      89.84  (  4)
   4  CENTRAL                 =  89.38      89.79  (  5)      5      89.79  (  5)
   6  SOUTHEAST               =  87.07      86.98  (  6)      5      86.98  (  6)
   1  southwest               =  91.74      91.27  (  2)      5      91.27  (  2)
   3  northwest               =  90.26      90.15  (  3)      5      90.15  (  3)
   2  pacific                 =  91.69      91.96  (  1)      5      91.96  (  1)
__________________________________________________________________________________________________

By Division

_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 5 ATLANTIC = 89.20 NBA 2024-2025 ratings through games of 2024 November 20 Wednesday RATING W L SCHEDL(RANK) VS top 10 | VS top 16 | PREDICTOR | GOLDEN_MEAN | RECENT | STRONG RECENT HOME ADVANTAGE=[ 2.51] [ 2.06] [ 2.86] [ 2.61] [ 2.61] 3 Boston Celtics = 96.59 12 3 88.57( 27) 2 1 | 4 1 | 97.01 2 | 97.34 3 | 96.44 5 | 96.86 5 ATLANTIC 6 New York Knicks = 94.33 9 6 89.14( 23) 0 3 | 2 3 | 94.96 5 | 93.61 6 | 95.15 7 | 95.17 7 ATLANTIC 21 Philadelphia 76ers = 86.55 2 12 91.20( 7) 0 5 | 0 9 | 88.69 20 | 83.50 28 | 85.95 22 | 80.81 28 ATLANTIC 22 Brooklyn Nets = 86.15 6 9 91.44( 4) 2 7 | 3 7 | 84.49 27 | 87.31 21 | 85.87 23 | 89.11 18 ATLANTIC 25 Toronto Raptors = 85.61 3 12 91.23( 6) 0 4 | 1 10 | 85.23 25 | 84.59 26 | 86.40 21 | 86.78 22 ATLANTIC _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 4 CENTRAL = 89.38 NBA 2024-2025 ratings through games of 2024 November 20 Wednesday RATING W L SCHEDL(RANK) VS top 10 | VS top 16 | PREDICTOR | GOLDEN_MEAN | RECENT | STRONG RECENT HOME ADVANTAGE=[ 2.51] [ 2.06] [ 2.86] [ 2.61] [ 2.61] 1 Cleveland Cavaliers = 97.17 16 1 88.17( 29) 3 1 | 6 1 | 96.18 3 | 99.13 1 | 97.90 1 | 101.16 1 CENTRAL 16 Milwaukee Bucks = 90.53 6 9 90.25( 15) 1 6 | 1 6 | 91.25 13 | 88.70 18 | 91.98 13 | 90.90 15 CENTRAL 19 Indiana Pacers = 88.93 6 9 91.30( 5) 4 4 | 5 5 | 89.63 18 | 88.33 19 | 88.73 17 | 87.63 20 CENTRAL 20 Detroit Pistons = 87.04 7 9 89.40( 22) 0 4 | 2 6 | 85.81 22 | 87.65 20 | 87.27 20 | 89.49 17 CENTRAL 27 Chicago Bulls = 85.28 6 10 91.91( 1) 3 5 | 4 7 | 84.54 26 | 86.38 24 | 84.09 28 | 83.95 25 CENTRAL _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 6 SOUTHEAST = 87.07 NBA 2024-2025 ratings through games of 2024 November 20 Wednesday RATING W L SCHEDL(RANK) VS top 10 | VS top 16 | PREDICTOR | GOLDEN_MEAN | RECENT | STRONG RECENT HOME ADVANTAGE=[ 2.51] [ 2.06] [ 2.86] [ 2.61] [ 2.61] 10 Orlando Magic = 92.47 9 7 89.55( 19) 0 4 | 1 5 | 92.68 11 | 91.95 12 | 93.26 9 | 93.53 9 SOUTHEAST 15 Miami Heat = 90.60 6 7 89.50( 21) 0 3 | 1 4 | 90.76 15 | 89.57 17 | 91.76 14 | 91.83 12 SOUTHEAST 23 Charlotte Hornets = 86.12 5 9 90.74( 12) 1 4 | 2 6 | 85.71 24 | 86.60 22 | 85.56 24 | 85.32 24 SOUTHEAST 24 Atlanta Hawks = 85.85 7 9 88.47( 28) 2 3 | 3 4 | 85.74 23 | 86.10 25 | 85.24 26 | 83.93 26 SOUTHEAST 30 Washington Wizards = 79.88 2 11 91.74( 2) 0 7 | 0 8 | 79.98 30 | 80.83 30 | 76.42 30 | 73.68 30 SOUTHEAST _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 1 southwest = 91.74 NBA 2024-2025 ratings through games of 2024 November 20 Wednesday RATING W L SCHEDL(RANK) VS top 10 | VS top 16 | PREDICTOR | GOLDEN_MEAN | RECENT | STRONG RECENT HOME ADVANTAGE=[ 2.51] [ 2.06] [ 2.86] [ 2.61] [ 2.61] 5 Houston Rockets = 95.28 11 5 90.04( 17) 3 2 | 5 3 | 94.58 7 | 95.48 5 | 96.74 4 | 98.86 4 southwest 7 Dallas Mavericks = 94.20 8 7 89.53( 20) 2 3 | 3 3 | 94.68 6 | 92.85 7 | 96.22 6 | 96.63 6 southwest 8 Memphis Grizzlies = 92.86 9 7 88.62( 26) 2 3 | 4 4 | 93.61 8 | 92.07 11 | 93.44 8 | 93.74 8 southwest 18 San Antonio Spurs = 89.39 7 8 90.96( 11) 2 5 | 4 7 | 89.17 19 | 90.33 16 | 88.56 18 | 88.89 19 southwest 28 New Orleans Pelicans = 84.61 4 12 91.01( 9) 1 7 | 1 8 | 85.98 21 | 84.10 27 | 82.48 29 | 77.97 29 southwest _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 3 northwest = 90.26 NBA 2024-2025 ratings through games of 2024 November 20 Wednesday RATING W L SCHEDL(RANK) VS top 10 | VS top 16 | PREDICTOR | GOLDEN_MEAN | RECENT | STRONG RECENT HOME ADVANTAGE=[ 2.51] [ 2.06] [ 2.86] [ 2.61] [ 2.61] 2 Oklahoma City Thunder = 96.97 12 4 89.61( 18) 3 3 | 5 3 | 97.62 1 | 97.39 2 | 96.97 2 | 98.89 3 northwest 9 Denver Nuggets = 92.51 8 5 90.20( 16) 3 2 | 4 4 | 93.07 9 | 92.13 10 | 92.73 10 | 91.53 13 northwest 11 Minnesota Timberwolves = 91.85 8 6 88.80( 25) 1 1 | 3 3 | 92.90 10 | 90.99 13 | 92.02 12 | 90.99 14 northwest 26 Portland Trail Blazers = 85.43 6 9 90.60( 13) 0 4 | 3 6 | 83.31 29 | 86.58 23 | 85.31 25 | 86.50 23 northwest 29 Utah Jazz = 83.99 3 11 91.68( 3) 1 4 | 1 9 | 83.64 28 | 83.36 29 | 84.19 27 | 83.34 27 northwest _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ 2 pacific = 91.69 NBA 2024-2025 ratings through games of 2024 November 20 Wednesday RATING W L SCHEDL(RANK) VS top 10 | VS top 16 | PREDICTOR | GOLDEN_MEAN | RECENT | STRONG RECENT HOME ADVANTAGE=[ 2.51] [ 2.06] [ 2.86] [ 2.61] [ 2.61] 4 Golden State Warriors = 96.09 11 3 90.28( 14) 5 1 | 5 3 | 95.17 4 | 97.29 4 | 96.97 3 | 100.40 2 pacific 12 Los Angeles Clippers = 91.55 9 7 90.96( 10) 4 4 | 5 4 | 90.59 17 | 92.26 9 | 92.17 11 | 93.01 10 pacific 13 Los Angeles Lakers = 91.52 10 4 89.07( 24) 1 2 | 3 2 | 90.81 14 | 92.37 8 | 91.69 15 | 92.25 11 pacific 14 Sacramento Kings = 90.82 8 7 88.07( 30) 0 0 | 1 4 | 91.49 12 | 90.68 14 | 90.42 16 | 90.03 16 pacific 17 Phoenix Suns = 89.84 9 7 91.19( 8) 2 3 | 6 7 | 90.73 16 | 90.53 15 | 88.09 19 | 86.83 21 pacific _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
endfile

Predictions_with_Totals_and_Moneylines

These are the "regular method". _ HOME or CLOSEBY (c) is denoted _ by an "@" next to the HOME or CLOSER team _ An "n" for NEUTRAL location will appear if a neutral game Rating Favorite _ Strong MONEYLINE=odds to 100 _ FAVORITE Rating Predict Golden Recent Recent UNDERDOG ODDS PCT% TOTAL _ ================================================================================================================== Minnesota_Timberwolv 3.73 5.61 3.54 3.01 1.60 @ Toronto_Raptors 169 63% 227.94 233.19 average= 230.565 @ Charlotte_Hornets 1.59 1.96 1.82 0.90 -1.56 Detroit_Pistons 126 56% 217.15 217.35 average= 217.25 @ San_Antonio_Spurs 7.91 7.59 9.83 6.98 8.16 Utah_Jazz 294 75% 219.83 219.61 average= 219.72 @ Los_Angeles_Lakers 1.56 0.19 3.29 1.05 1.34 Orlando_Magic 125 56% 216.08 215.91 average= 215.995 EXPERIMENTAL NUMBERS based on HOME-AWAY ADJUSTMENTS for EACH TEAM @ Toronto_Raptors 1.54 -0.35 1.72 2.25 3.67 Minnesota_Timberwolv 125 55% 227.94 HOME-AWAY_ADJUSTMENT_..._EXPERIMENTAL_NUMBERS 233.19 average= 230.565 Detroit_Pistons 5.62 5.25 5.39 6.31 8.77 @ Charlotte_Hornets 219 69% 217.15 HOME-AWAY_ADJUSTMENT_..._EXPERIMENTAL_NUMBERS 217.35 average= 217.25 @ San_Antonio_Spurs 10.15 9.83 12.07 9.22 10.40 Utah_Jazz 388 80% 219.83 HOME-AWAY_ADJUSTMENT_..._EXPERIMENTAL_NUMBERS 219.61 average= 219.72 @ Los_Angeles_Lakers 9.69 8.32 11.42 9.18 9.47 Orlando_Magic 367 79% 216.08 HOME-AWAY_ADJUSTMENT_..._EXPERIMENTAL_NUMBERS 215.91 average= 215.995 EIGENVECTOR Analysis eigen MONEY=odds to 100 EPCT%=confidence EFAVORITE ESPREAD EODDS EPCT% EUNDERDOG 1 Minnesota Timberwolv 3.37 161 62% @ Toronto Raptors 2 @ Charlotte Hornets 0.32 105 51% Detroit Pistons 3 @ San Antonio Spurs 9.90 377 79% Utah Jazz 4 @ Los Angeles Lakers 2.09 135 57% Orlando Magic endfile

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