The Ringer NBA Show - Ep. 34: Basketball Analytics and the Revamped Rockets With Daryl Morey

Episode Date: October 18, 2016

The Ringer's Chris Vernon is joined by Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey to discuss the growth of analytics in sports (6:00), handling criticism of team chemistry (14:00), his beef with Charles Barkley (18:00), the additions of Eric Gordon and Ryan Anderson (26:00), and potential NBA rule changes to increase pace of play (30:00). Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Welcome to the NBA pod, and today our guest is the general manager of the Houston Rocketeers, Darryl Morey. Hey, Darrell. Hey, thanks for coming on. All right, so before we get into everything about this season and your thoughts on the NBA, I want to ask you how it all started for you because you have an interesting trek to becoming a general manager of an NBA team. I guess my knowledge of it starts where you get hired in Boston. But if you can, just explain to me how did Darrell Morey become an NBA general team? manager. What was the firm? So what were you doing? What was your job? How old were you?

Did you think that was going to be your career? What was your pitch to the Celtics? What's it like working with Bill James? What did you think was your like breakthrough? Like at Stats Inc. or even like when I were talking about, you know, using statistical analysis that you're going to help the Celtics? Was there something that you thought this can change things? This will really help things if they believe in this. What did all the basketball guys think when you walked in with all of your binders and you're explaining this to them? You feel like in many cases, whatever your ideas are basketball-wise, that, like you

were just explaining, like the difference is, it seems like, and I'm watching the baseball playoffs now, right, anytime somebody makes a bad move in baseball, there's a million an analyst out there ready to criticize it because they're also very well versed in all the numbers that deal with everything. Yet it seems like what you're saying is it basketball. It was more like a confirmation of what guys said. So maybe they weren't as reluctant to agree with it. What's the hardest part about dealing with coaches?

Because it's one thing to talk to them and like, you know, say, hey, this three-man unit, this four-man unit, this five-man unit is successful or specific players and the numbers that support them. But in terms of like style of play, that's where I would think that guys might be reluctant to listen, right? When you're going to them and you're actually talking about what is the most productive way to play, because you have these thoughts, right, about obviously with the way the rockets shoot three-pointers, shoot early in possessions, you know, abstain and not completely from the mid-range jumper, but just explaining like the philosophy of style of play and being that you are not your,

quintessential basketball guy. What kind of brushback have you gotten from that? Yeah, I wouldn't. You host this Sloan conference, the MIT conference every year, and it's gotten bigger and bigger and bigger. Where do you think basketball is in terms of analytics in sports? I mean, I read these articles about soccer teams using it and hockey teams, but where are we right now in terms of using advanced numbers in sports, in basketball specifically, like what you have seen growth-wise over the last 10 years?

Why do you think football is so behind, seemingly and more analytics-based decisions being made? In terms of basketball-wise, do you think it is now a lot harder to find an edge in, let's say, the draft or in free agency? Or when you talk about undervalued type players, do you find it much harder than it used to be because everybody now, for the most part, employs people in their front office that have a background in this? But, you know, each year What happened to the Rockets last year? You know, over time, there's been a Daryl-Morre type plan, I think, for people that step back like me, a basketball fans, you say, all right, once upon a time you got Tracy McGrady and you got Yao Ming, and you caught bad breaks in terms of injuries on that.

And then you redid it, you reloaded, and you got an amazing offensive player on the perimeter in Hardin and an outstanding post player in Dwight Howard. and the Harden Howard thing, I mean, you got to the West Finals with that, and then last year there was all of this, like, what is going on with them? What did, what, because it seemed like there were chemistry problems, right? So what happened with that? And what is your take there? That's, you know, under 15 years now.

You know the criticisms, right, last year that you, how, did it drive you crazy to hear people saying, yeah, Darry just thinks these guys are. or names on a piece of paper. Like, this proves this isn't just, you can't just put it into your computer and spit it out. Chemistry matters. Yeah, we've lost 10 years.

Do you really not care? Because it seems you care. It seems like you were really mad when people were, like when they were floating out the players, nobody wants to play with Hardin. Like, that made you, like, because, I mean, you're quoted. Yeah, I can't. A big way and to defend the team and to because.

Do you think that we could ever get Daryl more, and Charles Barkley to bury the hatchet, or is this going to be an every year occurrence? Yeah, you know. You've got a lot of new faces there at the Rockets, not the least of which is your head coach, Mike D. Antony. Why Mike D. Antony? One of the things I read that I thought was rather persuasive. It was a defense of Mike Dantone in some way, saying, you know, because when you coach in the biggest markets like New York and L.A., and you don't have crazy success, even though he did have some level of success at those places,

But the idea was he had superstars at those places and Kobe and Carmelo that are just ill-suited for what his brand of basketball is, and Hardin is absolutely perfect for it. What say you? Is that fair in terms of when we're talking about DeAnonie and the stops since Phoenix that didn't end all so well for him? No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, Darrell. I'm talking about New York and L.A. Come on. We know Phoenix. Oh, okay. I thought you were interesting. You said Phoenix, unless I heard you. I might have. No, no, no. I was talking about New York and L.A. So since Phoenix, New York and L.A. have not ended great.

Okay, so the idea that Hardin is perfect for that style of play. Oh. Do you also point to chemistry issues or whatever else with last year with Hardin? Because two years ago, I mean, many would argue, I know you did argue that he was the best player in the NBA. and then last year was a step backwards. Okay, well, if it wasn't chemistry, let's just take a step back. Why do you think there was a regression on Hardin last year? I think that.

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Go to Dollar Shaveclub.com slash NBA show. That's Dollar Shaveclub.com slash NBA show. You have been lighting it up in the preseason. I want to ask you about two of your free agent acquisitions and what you liked about them and why you thought they were good fits for what you've got going in Eric Gordon and Ryan Anderson. And Decker's been playing for you in the preseason. preseason. That's almost like an acquisition.

Yeah. Do you think you'll look like those old Phoenix teams? Yes, as well. Do you write down a win number at the beginning of the season? Your thoughts on why there is so much parity in the West. Obviously, there's an overwhelming favorite that everybody in the free world is going to pick. But then it seems like after them that everything's, you know, I mean, it's a crapshoot in terms of, it's just your personal preference.

And it seems like there are a bunch of teams all in a. mix together. There's a lot more peers than there used to be. And there's some young up-and-coming teams. Your thoughts on the parody, especially at the Western Conference. I meant after them. What rules would you change basketball play-wise? He is Darrell Mory. All right, Darrell, you travel all over. I want three restaurants that you like have to go to during the NBA season that are on the road. Is there a favorite city that you travel to? opposing NBA season. Darryor Mora, thanks for coming on the podcast today.

Hey, good luck this season. I'm excited to watch James Harden, average, like, 37 points a game. My man, thank you, Daryl. Appreciate that. All right. Thanks, Chris. Thanks. Daryl Morae, and thanks for listening to another edition of the NBA show.