Surprisingly Good NBA Offenses

Throughout this 2007-2008 NBA season, the casual fan knows who the league's top offenses are. Teams like the Phoenix Suns, Dallas Mavericks, and Boston Celtics are probably right at the top of any list in that discussion. And when you're talking about a team's offensive efficiency, those three teams all fall into the NBA's top nine.

So what is offensive efficiency? It is a very simple calculation that doesn't even require a calculator. It is the number of points a team scores per 100 possessions. It is a much better measure of a team's offensive prowess that stats like field goal percentage, average points, or even field goals made, because it takes everything into account, from turnovers and fast break points to free throws and three pointers. Most importantly, it puts every team on equal field, because a stat like "average points per game" (PPG) ignores the fact that teams play at different paces, and thus the number of possessions are varied, so naturally that variable makes PPG an incomparable stat.

But I digress. As I was saying, the Suns, Mavericks, and Celtics all remain atop the league when you measure their offensive efficiency, as opposed to their team PPG. However, a few teams out there would seriously surprise you, in terms of where they rank amongst the leaders in offensive efficiency.

#3. Utah Jazz (Offensive Efficiency Rating of 108.4) - As talented as this team is, they often are overlooked. As a result, very people would expect them to rank among the most efficient offenses in the NBA, but they do. Their interior presence is main contributor to their offensive efficiency. Obviously, Carlos Boozer shoots a very high percentage when he is in the paint, and Andrei Kirilenko and Mehmet Okur also go to the post whenever the conjure up a mismatch. And due to PG Deron Williams' size, he is very adept at getting to the rim. All of that adds up to the Jazz being the most proficient inside the paint scorer in the NBA, consequently giving them a True-Shooting-Percentage that ranks 5^th in the league.

#4. Los Angeles Lakers (Offensive Efficiency Rating of 108.4) - Sure the Lakers have been playing good, but you would think that with all of the shots Kobe chucks up, coupled with the inexperience of those around him, that this team wouldn't be so efficient on the offensive end. But due to Bynum's league leading field goal percentage, the Lakers are 4^th in True-Shooting-Percentage, because Bynum's efficiency down low has also opened up the outside shot for the boys on the perimeter.

#6. Orlando Magic (Offensive Efficiency Rating of 108.0) - For such a young team, they have great shot selection. They rank 3^rd in the True-Shooting-Percentage. That can be accredited to on Mr. Dwight Howard, the all-star center that is shooting 60% from the field, who also gets multiple put-backs on the offensive end where he averages 3.6 offensive rebounds per game.

#10. Toronto Raptors (Offensive Efficiency Rating of 107.3) Rounding out the top 10 most efficient teams are the Raptors. This is very surprising if you didn't watch them all season, because in all reality, the Raptors do not have a true inside presence. Their lone big man, Chris Bosh, is much more of high post player who shoots 10-15 foot jumpers most of the time. However, their highly efficient guard play is why their offense is running on all cylinders. Point guards Jose Calderon and T.J. Ford both rank amongst the top-10 point guards in Player Efficiency Rating. And when a team's point guards are playing good basketball, there is no better forecaster of how efficient the team's offense is running.