Fansided

NBA to install new stat-tracking cameras in every arena

By Brian Spaen

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Apr 14, 2013; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Hornets mascot Hugo grabs a television camera during the second half of a game against the Dallas Mavericks at the New Orleans Arena. The Mavericks defeated the Hornets 107-89. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 14, 2013; New Orleans, LA, USA; New Orleans Hornets mascot Hugo grabs a television camera during the second half of a game against the Dallas Mavericks at the New Orleans Arena. The Mavericks defeated the Hornets 107-89. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports /

Beginning next year, every NBA arena will have new stat-tracking cameras after half of the league tested them out last season.

From Zach Lowe of Grantland:

"Exactly half the league’s teams used the STATS LLC SportVU cameras last season after a trend-setting half-dozen had them installed for the 2011-12 season — or even earlier. The cameras record every movement on the court — of players, officials, and the ball — several times per second, so that subscribing teams have been able to track the positioning of players in new ways."

This new data will be incredibly beneficial to both teams and analysts, and digs in further than just the standard box scores.

Smarter analysis is proving what you know beyond the box score. Lowe explains in his article what STATS was able to do with the new technology.

"Reports released by STATS include information on how fast players run, how often they dribble, how far they run during games, which players touch the ball at the elbow most often, and which players drive from the perimeter to the basket most often."

Since the cameras can also track officials, maybe it can track how often they botch calls and we can finally get some consistency in the game.

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