We post stats (updated daily) for every player on how they are performing in clutch moments which we define as the last five minutes of a game where neither team is ahead by more than five points. This allows for some reasonable sample size over the course of the season.

However a number of folks out there (you know who you are) keep insisting that clutch should really be even more restrictive in its definition. So, to that end in this study we will stress the ultra clutch timeframe by examining the last two minutes of the 4th quarter or overtime period, with neither team ahead by more than 3 points. In essence, games where a team can tie it up or take the lead within one possession.

(All stats reflect games played through March 17th of the 2003-04 season).

1) Top 20 Super Clutch Offensive Players
There are a number of statistics people are drawn to when assessing offensive skills. We see references to points scored, field goal percentage, assist/turnover ratios, and the like. The measure however that is most in favor with NBA sabermetricians is the concept of points per possession, or more commonly, points per 100 possessions. This is intended to take into account a multitude of factors, including shooting efficiencies, passing, foul drawing skills, offensive rebounding, and turnovers. You wind up with a rating that more precisely indicates a player's contributions than you would achieve by focusing on one small part of the picture.

However, one problem with such a rating on the player level is that "usage levels" vary considerably, especially in the waning moments of a close game. Players who very seldom see the ball in such situations are much more likely to have a wide open look on a shot then the go-to guy drawing the double team. Consequently we adjust the points per possession by the player's usage level to reward players who can create their own shot even when the other team knows what's coming.

Notes: The eFG number represents an "effective field goal percentage" when adjusted for the 3-point baskets made. Oreb is the number of offensive rebounds secured by the player, which is compared to the Dreb, or defensive rebounds allowed to the opposing counterpart.

Rank	Player	Team	Poss48	Rating	FGM	FGA	eFG	FTM	FTA	Ast	T/O	OReb	DReb
1	Redd	MIL	38	156.7	12	21	64%	14	18	2	1	3	7
2	Boozer	CLE	25	154.9	6	10	60%	17	20	0	2	6	12
3	Kirilenko	UTA	28	150.1	9	13	73%	9	15	0	3	6	8
4	Nash	DAL	36	149.9	7	14	57%	15	18	8	2	1	4
5	Posey	MEM	22	148.2	6	11	55%	14	17	1	0	2	4
6	Marbury	NYK	32	142.1	5	12	50%	8	11	3	0	1	0
7	Cassell	MIN	34	142.0	6	16	41%	22	22	4	1	0	4
8	Pierce	BOS	54	138.1	6	23	30%	24	33	12	2	3	8
9	Duncan	SAS	44	138.1	9	17	53%	10	18	2	0	3	8
10	Hughes	WAS	39	132.8	6	15	43%	7	8	1	1	2	1
11	Francis	HOU	36	132.2	7	20	38%	20	23	7	2	2	4
12	Maggette	LAC	34	132.1	7	17	44%	14	16	1	2	2	1
13	Sprewell	MIN	29	132.0	9	18	58%	9	14	3	1	2	4
14	Hamilton	DET	31	128.7	13	23	57%	11	13	3	3	1	3
15	Stojakovic	SAC	29	128.6	5	14	39%	17	17	0	1	1	5
16	Carter	TOR	54	127.7	18	41	45%	19	23	5	8	1	4
17	Allen	SEA	55	125.3	9	24	44%	3	6	1	2	2	0
18	Williams	TOR	32	121.7	6	14	43%	10	11	4	0	0	5
19	Bryant	LAL	51	121.5	10	25	44%	9	12	3	5	2	4
20	Arroyo	UTA	42	120.5	3	11	32%	10	12	2	1	0	2

The league shooting totals in this "extreme clutch" phase of games for the 2003-04 season shows a 36% Field Goal accuracy mark, and a 40% effective FG percentage. We required a player to have 15 calculated possession "credits" in this extreme crunch time view to qualify for inclusion in the above list. Obviously the sample sizes are tiny, and someone getting on a hot or cold run the next time in the super clutch game could dramatically alter that player's standing.

With that said, the list as it stands features a number of big name players, predominantly guards and small forwards. Boozer, Kirilenko, and Duncan can lay claim to spending time in power position roles, but otherwise the implication may be that the big post men don't see the ball as much in the final minutes as they do in the preceeding ones. In some cases that's an issue of poor free throw shooting, in others it reflects the difficulty in establishing position and receiving the pass when the refs may take a more liberal attitude towards the physical battles in the paint.

Shaquille O'Neal scores an outstanding 151.8 rating, but has too few possessions to make the cut (albeit in part due to some injury problems). The Lakers do indeed rely on Kobe in those late moments.

We digress though. Michael Redd has the top spot for the time being, through outstanding shooting, foul drawing and minimal turnovers. Boozer and Kirilenko meanwhile hit the offensive glass, and get to the line, while also hitting their shots.

Paul Pierce is a very interesting case in light of his poor shooting -- just 6 for 23 and a 30% eFG. Still his value to the Celtics is noticeable in that he draws fouls at a ridiculous rate (almost 1.5 free throws for each field goal attempt), passes well (12 assists to 2 turnovers), and draws so much coverage that his teammates have all kinds of open looks (Boston was the #1 rated super clutch offensive team in our previous article on the subject). This then seems to justify his gaudy placing in the table above.

Ultimately however we have really too little data to draw many conclusions from. Perhaps with similar stats accrued over several seasons and including playoff games, we could arrive at a more convincing hierarchy as to which players are, indeed, clutch.

2) Team Leaders
Looking at this performance area on a team by team level is interesting as you realize quickly what kind of distribution of the ball is going on in the clutch moments. We did require a minimum of 8 "possession credits" to be included in the table below.

Team	Player	Poss48	Rating	FGM	FGA	eFG	FTM	FTA	Ast	T/O	OReb	DReb
ATL	Abdur-Rahim	30	111.6	7	14	54%	5	5	2	3	1	3
ATL	Terry	46	111.6	13	28	52%	7	8	6	7	0	10
ATL	Glover	23	90.6	2	5	50%	4	5	2	3	1	3
ATL	Jackson	21	83.9	4	10	50%	5	8	3	4	2	6
BOS	James	24	139.9	5	11	55%	8	10	0	0	1	1
BOS	Pierce	54	138.1	6	23	30%	24	33	12	2	3	8
BOS	Welsch	28	125.7	4	7	71%	3	3	0	3	1	1
BOS	McCarty	19	74.1	2	6	50%	2	3	1	1	0	5
CHI	Crawford	43	95.6	5	18	33%	5	8	3	2	0	1
CHI	Hinrich	20	34.8	0	5	0%	4	8	0	3	1	3
CLE	Boozer	25	154.9	6	10	60%	17	20	0	2	6	12
CLE	Williams	18	95.0	2	2	100%	6	10	0	3	0	3
CLE	James	45	82.0	7	28	27%	6	8	2	5	1	2
CLE	Ilgauskas	23	76.0	3	8	38%	2	2	0	2	1	2
DAL	Nash	36	149.9	7	14	57%	15	18	8	2	1	4
DAL	Nowitzki	39	104.6	6	18	39%	12	16	1	3	1	8
DAL	Finley	22	92.4	3	13	31%	8	10	1	1	3	5
DAL	Walker	30	57.3	4	22	23%	1	3	2	3	6	5
DEN	Anthony	40	99.6	5	18	28%	11	15	2	2	3	7
DEN	Boykins	58	81.8	3	13	27%	2	3	0	2	0	5
DEN	Miller	36	78.9	3	18	17%	7	7	4	2	2	3
DET	Wallace	8	143.4	3	10	30%	7	8	3	1	10	10
DET	Hamilton	31	128.7	13	23	57%	11	13	3	3	1	3
DET	Billups	46	107.4	7	32	28%	21	25	5	5	0	4
DET	Prince	11	47.7	2	14	14%	2	2	1	3	8	3
GSW	Dampier	12	145.4	5	8	63%	5	10	0	1	6	6
GSW	Van Exel	44	96.9	7	25	30%	7	12	7	0	0	7
GSW	Richardson	30	77.1	7	23	35%	4	8	2	1	2	10
GSW	Robinson	28	74.3	6	16	47%	1	2	0	2	1	10
HOU	Francis	36	132.2	7	20	38%	20	23	7	2	2	4
HOU	Ming	30	114.5	8	14	57%	11	17	3	5	2	4
HOU	Jackson	15	81.1	5	9	61%	1	1	2	1	0	7
HOU	Mobley	26	74.2	4	16	28%	7	10	2	3	1	3
IND	Johnson	24	161.3	4	7	79%	4	4	2	0	0	2
IND	Miller	26	113.9	5	14	50%	10	12	6	1	0	6
IND	Artest	29	92.3	7	18	42%	6	9	4	2	1	7
IND	Tinsley	18	79.8	1	4	38%	2	2	5	2	0	1
IND	O'Neal	30	77.5	8	24	33%	4	8	2	3	4	5
IND	Harrington	16	70.1	4	8	56%	1	4	1	1	2	9
LAC	Maggette	34	132.1	7	17	44%	14	16	1	2	2	1
LAC	Jaric	22	82.4	4	7	57%	0	0	8	5	1	1
LAL	O'Neal	15	151.8	5	10	55%	8	13	1	1	6	4
LAL	Rush	37	145.9	4	6	92%	1	4	0	0	0	3
LAL	Bryant	51	121.5	10	25	44%	9	12	3	5	2	4
LAL	Payton	29	100.7	6	18	44%	9	12	4	1	0	7
LAL	Fisher	34	63.4	2	12	17%	4	6	2	1	0	5
MEM	Posey	22	148.2	6	11	55%	14	17	1	0	2	4
MEM	Williams	17	122.9	3	6	75%	1	1	4	1	0	2
MEM	Gasol	38	120.2	9	19	47%	13	18	2	2	2	9
MEM	Battier	21	112.7	6	12	54%	3	3	2	1	1	2
MEM	Swift	32	103.6	2	4	50%	4	8	0	1	1	3
MEM	Miller	20	98.8	4	11	41%	2	3	4	0	2	3
MIA	Wade	23	88.0	2	7	29%	3	4	3	1	2	2
MIA	Odom	40	83.9	7	24	35%	3	7	3	2	1	8
MIA	Jones	33	80.6	2	15	17%	12	15	2	3	1	6
MIA	Haslem	17	44.4	1	6	17%	2	3	1	3	4	5
MIL	Redd	38	156.7	12	21	64%	14	18	2	1	3	7
MIL	Smith	24	77.1	1	9	11%	5	5	1	0	2	2
MIL	Kukoc	36	68.8	1	7	14%	5	6	1	3	0	2
MIL	Mason	19	55.5	2	6	33%	3	4	0	0	0	9
MIN	Cassell	34	142.0	6	16	41%	22	22	4	1	0	4
MIN	Sprewell	29	132.0	9	18	58%	9	14	3	1	2	4
MIN	Garnett	31	107.6	10	22	48%	5	7	3	2	3	6
NJN	Kittles	26	134.4	4	8	63%	6	7	1	1	0	1
NJN	Martin	24	99.0	4	8	50%	3	4	0	1	2	6
NJN	Kidd	48	98.4	1	9	11%	9	10	3	3	0	1
NJN	Jefferson	21	90.3	3	7	43%	2	4	4	0	0	2
NOH	Mashburn	62	120.2	4	13	38%	4	7	0	2	1	1
NOH	Armstrong	28	118.7	6	9	83%	6	8	3	5	1	6
NOH	Lynch	34	109.1	5	8	63%	1	3	1	2	1	1
NOH	Davis	32	44.7	2	22	11%	2	4	5	0	0	5
NOH	Brown	14	26.6	2	9	22%	0	0	3	2	3	12
NYK	ThomasT	57	219.2	2	2	100%	11	12	1	1	0	1
NYK	Marbury	32	142.1	5	12	50%	8	11	3	0	1	0
NYK	Hardaway	28	116.9	3	8	44%	6	6	2	0	0	4
NYK	Houston	38	107.5	9	21	48%	8	9	1	4	0	4
NYK	Ward	35	85.7	2	8	25%	2	3	2	0	0	0
NYK	Thomas	21	36.3	2	12	17%	3	5	1	1	1	12
ORL	McGrady	41	107.5	9	28	34%	11	13	6	3	2	4
ORL	Strickland	27	106.6	4	9	50%	1	1	0	1	1	0
ORL	Gooden	23	93.7	3	7	50%	4	7	0	3	3	5
ORL	Lue	24	80.3	2	7	36%	5	9	2	1	1	6
ORL	Howard	16	62.1	3	9	39%	4	6	0	2	1	8
PHI	Snow	37	73.2	4	22	20%	7	12	3	3	2	4
PHI	Iverson	42	70.9	3	18	17%	5	6	4	2	0	4
PHI	McKie	30	69.7	5	12	42%	3	3	0	3	1	12
PHO	Johnson	29	89.6	6	17	41%	4	10	3	1	2	6
PHO	Marbury	36	82.8	1	10	10%	8	9	1	1	1	4
PHO	Marion	37	77.4	6	24	27%	6	8	0	2	4	10
PHO	Jacobsen	16	39.2	0	3	0%	3	6	2	0	0	7
POR	Randolph	22	120.2	7	13	54%	11	15	0	2	2	4
POR	Anderson	33	115.2	5	13	38%	8	10	1	0	0	1
POR	Stoudamire	32	106.6	10	23	48%	4	5	7	2	2	7
POR	Wallace	32	84.6	4	17	24%	5	6	4	2	4	3
POR	McInnis	26	35.1	1	5	20%	1	2	0	3	0	1
SAC	Stojakovic	29	128.6	5	14	39%	17	17	0	1	1	5
SAC	Bibby	35	118.9	7	20	48%	10	12	4	1	0	4
SAC	Divac	27	105.6	4	9	44%	4	6	8	2	1	2
SAC	Jackson	28	99.2	2	8	31%	6	7	0	1	0	0
SAS	Duncan	44	138.1	9	17	53%	10	18	2	0	3	8
SAS	Ginobili	28	111.9	5	14	36%	9	12	4	3	3	0
SAS	Rose	22	103.9	0	3	0%	9	10	0	3	2	2
SAS	Parker	21	78.7	2	6	33%	3	6	2	1	1	3
SEA	Murray	43	168.8	3	5	60%	8	9	1	1	0	0
SEA	Allen	55	125.3	9	24	44%	3	6	1	2	2	0
SEA	Lewis	34	99.9	6	16	38%	10	12	1	3	1	5
SEA	Radmanovic	19	90.8	5	10	60%	1	2	0	0	1	8
TOR	Bosh	10	185.9	6	12	54%	6	6	2	1	10	10
TOR	Carter	54	127.7	18	41	45%	19	23	5	8	1	4
TOR	Williams	32	121.7	6	14	43%	10	11	4	0	0	5
TOR	Marshall	12	102.8	5	11	59%	0	0	1	0	1	3
TOR	Rose	21	74.5	3	6	50%	2	4	2	1	0	7
TOR	Peterson	12	70.5	2	7	36%	2	4	2	1	2	3
UTA	Kirilenko	28	150.1	9	13	73%	9	15	0	3	6	8
UTA	Arroyo	42	120.5	3	11	32%	10	12	2	1	0	2
UTA	Bell	21	84.9	4	11	41%	3	6	2	1	1	2
WAS	Hughes	39	132.8	6	15	43%	7	8	1	1	2	1
WAS	Arenas	34	31.4	0	8	0%	2	4	1	3	0	3
WAS	Dixon	41	25.4	0	7	0%	0	0	1	1	0	1