NBA Garbage Time Player Stats from 82games.com

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Garbage Time Player Stats

We all know that there are times when an NBA game seems to be over even though there may be more than a few minutes left on the clock. Garbage Time is upon us, and for most coaches it's an opportunity to trot out the tail end of the twelve man roster and divvy up some minutes to the lesser players who battle hard during practice. It's also frequently a time for rookies to get an extended stretch of playing time.

Of course, when the outcome of a game is for all intents and purposes finalized, there's a good chance that the play becomes in some cases a matter of padding one's stats. Do players look to post a few extra numbers on the stat sheet when the defenses are relaxed and the opposition may be going through the motions?

We elected to use the following definition of "garbage time" moments: 4th quarter and overtime where either team has a lead of 10 points plus one point for each minute remaining. It's easier to see this in table form --

Minimum lead to qualify as "garbage time"

Min. Left 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Lead (Pts) 10+ 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21

It could be argued certainly that these thresholds are wrong, that teams have indeed clawed their way back from being 15 points down with six minutes to go. We're pretty comfortable thinking this is a reasonable definition when you consider that if the game tightens up it will no longer be judged as garbage time (and the starters are all rushed back into the game!)

The table below shows various accumulated stats for the current 2003-04 season, under our garbage time filter. We created a "Stats Padding" number that is Points + Rebounds + Assists + Blocks + Steals.

Most Prolific Garbage Time Players (as of 01/12)

Rk	Player	Tm	Min	Stat Pad	FG	FGA	FG%	Reb	Ast	Blk	Stl	Pts
1	Garnett	MIN	92	112	26	55	47%	30	11	3	3	65
2	Bell	UTA	87	95	16	37	43%	20	7	0	6	62
3	Jackson	SAC	107	89	22	52	42%	18	15	0	3	53
4	Odom	MIA	89	87	19	43	44%	20	8	1	5	53
5	Crawford	CHI	77	86	23	51	45%	13	13	0	3	57
6	Miller	SAC	78	84	16	24	67%	26	10	3	0	45
7	Hayes	WAS	100	82	25	42	60%	15	3	0	5	59
8	Harrington	IND	76	81	13	33	39%	31	6	2	3	39
9	Thomas	WAS	74	80	11	25	44%	30	7	3	0	40
10	Dixon	WAS	84	77	18	47	38%	5	9	0	9	54
11	Daniels	DAL	74	75	22	39	56%	6	11	2	4	52
12	Boykins	DEN	96	75	17	40	43%	13	17	0	3	42
13	Mohammed	ATL	80	72	15	25	60%	26	1	3	2	40
14	Fisher	LAL	103	71	15	38	39%	9	11	0	10	41
15	Jones	MIA	91	71	17	35	49%	17	3	1	2	48
16	Armstrong	NOH	85	71	14	34	41%	11	15	1	9	35
17	Johnson	PHO	79	71	16	38	42%	14	9	0	5	43
18	Murray	SEA	87	71	16	44	36%	8	9	2	5	47
19	Jamison	DAL	85	68	13	27	48%	25	4	2	1	36
20	Brown	SAS	79	68	15	26	58%	19	4	1	3	41

Now, we don't intend for these numbers to be used to denigrate players, after all there's nothing wrong with doing well in minutes that are "less than crucial" and we respect players who still play hard and give the fans their money's worth after the game is out of reach. So before you start trash talking about how Garnett is stockpiling numbers for his MVP claims, you would be wise to remember that he puts up similar levels of productivity throughout the full 48 minutes!

On the other hand, this may be a useful tool for evaluating some of the bench players -- break out their stats into "garbage time" and non-garbage time categories and then judge them by the performance in the minutes that really mattered.

Taking a similar troll through the garbage moments of the 2002-03 season comes in with the following top twenty "G-Men"

NBA 2002-03 Most Prolific Garbage Time Players

Rk	Player	Tm	Min	Stat Pad	FG	FGA	FG%	Reb	Ast	Blk	Stl	Pts
1	Kirilenko	UTA	271	258	45	80	56%	52	15	31	24	136
2	Jones	CLE	295	243	59	121	49%	57	17	5	10	154
3	Rose	CHI	209	211	53	118	45%	19	23	2	7	160
4	Davis	CLE	206	209	46	108	43%	26	31	3	11	138
5	Garnett	MIN	183	197	34	81	42%	71	26	7	6	87
6	Crawford	CHI	214	188	44	109	40%	22	31	4	12	119
7	Randolph	POR	203	183	40	77	52%	59	9	3	4	108
8	Padgett	UTA	253	181	40	83	48%	55	16	2	7	101
9	Turkoglu	SAC	207	176	42	86	49%	43	17	4	4	108
10	Hilario	DEN	196	174	31	53	58%	41	17	10	18	88
11	White	DEN	191	171	46	96	48%	24	17	2	11	117
12	Clark	SAC	247	170	27	49	55%	70	7	21	6	66
13	Boozer	CLE	200	166	31	67	46%	60	11	4	11	80
14	Jaric	LAC	181	166	28	61	46%	31	42	4	14	75
15	Bryant	LAL	134	161	36	90	40%	21	20	1	9	110
16	Redd	MIL	198	161	43	78	55%	37	9	1	7	107
17	Stoudemire	PHO	144	158	26	48	54%	52	7	8	6	85
18	Johnson	PHO	164	157	37	74	50%	24	28	0	9	96
19	Marion	PHO	130	156	39	71	55%	34	7	2	9	104
20	Okur	DET	176	154	29	59	49%	55	11	4	3	81

We have tons of respect for players numbered 1, 5, and 7 on this list for starters, so we don't take it as a slam on any of them that they show up as benefitting from some extra minutes that were far from crunch time. If anything, the guys padding their numbers a bit are the ones chasing the scoring title -- if you sort the numbers by field goals attempted per minute, the top three players are Bryant, McGrady, and Pierce!

Ah, but the heart of the question and the inspiration for this effort came from our friend Charlie B. who clearly has an ulterior motive in wanting to compare Garnett and Duncan's numbers since they were two of the main names in the MVP chase last year:

Rk Player Tm Min Stat Pad FG FGA FG% Reb Ast Blk Stl Pts

5 Garnett MIN 183 197 34 81 42% 71 26 7 6 87

179 Duncan SAS 90 79 9 27 33% 37 6 8 0 28

Go to school Charlie! At some point we'll take a pass through garbage time again, looking at things on a team by team basis.

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