Presents
A
You Define It
October 2017
After the 2017 NBA finals, LeBron James said, “I don’t believe I’ve played for a superteam.” This comment raised some eyebrows, since the formation of the 2011 Miami Heat is often considered the definition of a modern-day superteam. But with the Big 3, The Decision, the 2017 Warriors, and the most recent off-season, does LeBron have an argument? What is a superteam, really? Let’s try to support or debunk LeBron’s belief by defining what a superteam is, with data.
Let’s agree that a superteam starts with a player acquisition (via sign or trade, not from the draft), and has at least three stars. Adjust the settings below to see how it affects the list.
What the experts think
“A superteam needs a no-doubter top-5 player.”
Andy Larsen, Jazz Beat Writer at KSL.com
Criteria
-
Under
34 34
Years Old
-
Using
WS/48 WS/48
-
In the top
15 15
-
Within
3 3
Seasons
-
Superstar?
yes yes
A superteam needs… at least three legitimate superstars, and the team needs to perform at a high level when actually put together. So the Howard/Nash/Kobe team doesn't qualify, even though it seemed like it might.
I played around with this tool for forever, and I thought this gave the best mix of having a reasonable number of teams while finding consistent success. Of these seven teams, six of them won a championship in that era. The Bucks probably lacked that really top-level superstar to make them great.
“Of the metrics there, I believe VORP is probably the most realistic estimate of a player's value.”
Ian Levy, Senior NBA Editor for Fansided
Criteria
-
Under
32 32
Years Old
-
Using
VORP VORP
-
In the top
20 20
-
Within
3 3
Seasons
-
Superstar?
yes yes
A superteam is… an elite team, with two or more elite players, at least one of whom was acquired after they had already become elite.
Of the metrics there, I believe VORP is probably the most realistic estimate of a player's value. Although the fact that it's a cumulative stat may exclude some top players who missed time with injury. Top-20, under-32 and within the last three years creates a broader definition because often combining players in new ways can help eliminate inefficient roles or help players rediscover past peak performance.
“It was harder for me to find a setting I liked that would include the 2008 Celtics as a Superteam.”
Todd Whitehead, Writer for The Nylon Calculus
Criteria
-
Under
40 40
Years Old
-
Using
WS/48 WS/48
-
In the top
15 15
-
Within
2 2
Seasons
-
Superstar?
yes yes
A superteam is… any team who adds an All-NBA level player via trade or free agency and — including the new player — has a roster with at least three All-Star players during the season or partial season following the acquisition.
I was fishing for five superteams from my list (GSW-17, MIA-11, BOS-08, HOU-97, PHI-83). I found that I couldn’t cast a net of stats around my quarry without collecting a lot of flotsam — in the form of the ’87 Bucks et al. So, I decided to use a smaller net. My settings yielded GSW-17, MIA-11, and PHI-83 — three of my five superteams, without any unintended superteams included. Philosophically, my settings lined up reasonably well with my initial superteam definition, because a player ranked Top-5 in WS/48 is likely to be All-NBA player and a player ranked Top-15 in WS/48 is likely to be an All-Star the following season.
“All-in-one stats, although a starting point for discussion and investigation, also have severe drawbacks.”
Nick Sciria, Contributor to BBall Breakdown, The Nylon Calculus
Criteria
-
Under
40 40
Years Old
-
Using
VORP VORP
-
In the top
20 20
-
Within
1 1
Seasons
-
Superstar?
yes yes
A superteam needs… a current top 5 player in the game along with two other current top 20-25 players alongside of them.
For this exercise, I elected not to focus as much on age but more so on the current production levels of the players. If a player was still one of the best players in the league in terms of impact (top 20 in VORP) then I didn’t feel the need to exclude them because they may have been a bit past their prime. All-in-one stats, although a starting point for discussion and investigation, also have severe drawbacks. For one, they don’t do a great job of taking into account defense (a calling card for a lot of possible superteams like the 2008 Celtics, LeBron’s Heat teams and the current Warriors). Of course, because we are trying to define all of the superteams in history, we are unable to use some of the more advanced measures we now have at our disposal.
What the experts think
“A superteam needs a no-doubter top-5 player.”
Andy Larsen, Jazz Beat Writer at KSL.com
Criteria
-
Under
34 34
Years Old
-
Using
WS/48 WS/48
-
In the top
15 15
-
Within
3 3
Seasons
-
Superstar?
yes yes
Superteams
A superteam needs… at least three legitimate superstars, and the team needs to perform at a high level when actually put together. So the Howard/Nash/Kobe team doesn't qualify, even though it seemed like it might.
I played around with this tool for forever, and I thought this gave the best mix of having a reasonable number of teams while finding consistent success. Of these seven teams, six of them won a championship in that era. The Bucks probably lacked that really top-level superstar to make them great.
“Of the metrics there, I believe VORP is probably the most realistic estimate of a player's value.”
Ian Levy, Senior NBA Editor for Fansided
Criteria
-
Under
32 32
Years Old
-
Using
VORP VORP
-
In the top
20 20
-
Within
3 3
Seasons
-
Superstar?
yes yes
Superteams
A superteam is… an elite team, with two or more elite players, at least one of whom was acquired after they had already become elite.
Of the metrics there, I believe VORP is probably the most realistic estimate of a player's value. Although the fact that it's a cumulative stat may exclude some top players who missed time with injury. Top-20, under-32 and within the last three years creates a broader definition because often combining players in new ways can help eliminate inefficient roles or help players rediscover past peak performance.
“It was harder for me to find a setting I liked that would include the 2008 Celtics as a Superteam.”
Todd Whitehead, Writer for The Nylon Calculus
Criteria
-
Under
40 40
Years Old
-
Using
WS/48 WS/48
-
In the top
15 15
-
Within
2 2
Seasons
-
Superstar?
yes yes
Superteams
A superteam is… any team who adds an All-NBA level player via trade or free agency and — including the new player — has a roster with at least three All-Star players during the season or partial season following the acquisition.
I was fishing for five superteams from my list (GSW-17, MIA-11, BOS-08, HOU-97, PHI-83). I found that I couldn’t cast a net of stats around my quarry without collecting a lot of flotsam — in the form of the ’87 Bucks et al. So, I decided to use a smaller net. My settings yielded GSW-17, MIA-11, and PHI-83 — three of my five superteams, without any unintended superteams included. Philosophically, my settings lined up reasonably well with my initial superteam definition, because a player ranked Top-5 in WS/48 is likely to be All-NBA player and a player ranked Top-15 in WS/48 is likely to be an All-Star the following season.
“All-in-one stats, although a starting point for discussion and investigation, also have severe drawbacks.”
Nick Sciria, Contributor to BBall Breakdown, The Nylon Calculus
Criteria
-
Under
40 40
Years Old
-
Using
VORP VORP
-
In the top
20 20
-
Within
1 1
Seasons
-
Superstar?
yes yes
Superteams
A superteam needs… a current top 5 player in the game along with two other current top 20-25 players alongside of them.
For this exercise, I elected not to focus as much on age but more so on the current production levels of the players. If a player was still one of the best players in the league in terms of impact (top 20 in VORP) then I didn’t feel the need to exclude them because they may have been a bit past their prime. All-in-one stats, although a starting point for discussion and investigation, also have severe drawbacks. For one, they don’t do a great job of taking into account defense (a calling card for a lot of possible superteams like the 2008 Celtics, LeBron’s Heat teams and the current Warriors). Of course, because we are trying to define all of the superteams in history, we are unable to use some of the more advanced measures we now have at our disposal.
In conclusion, LeBron James has most definitely maybe played for a superteam at some point in his career.
Methodology
H/T to Felix for posing the initial question. Data was collected from Basketball Reference and NBA Stats. Seasons where a player did not exceed the minimum required minutes played (1,500 with two exceptions for shortened seasons) were not included. Player Impact Estimate (PIE) was only available starting in the 1996 season. The NBA added a third All-NBA team for the 1989 season, when the league expanded to 30 teams.