03.03.14
ANALYTICS 35 THE ANALYTICS ISSUE In our third annual celebration of the power of metrics, we go searching for the Dark Matter of sports, from momentum to potential. 36 THE SEARCH FOR INTELLIGENT LIFE Before we trumpet the arrival of Analytics 2.0, a quick reminder that metrics are only as good as the humans implementing them. By Nate Silver 42 THE GRAND UNIFIED THEORY OF PAUL GEORGE To those who wonder whether George will settle for superstardom, he says: “I want it all.” By Pablo S. Torre 52 WHAT'S THE BIG IDEA? Need proof that the analytics movement is here to stay? Take a look at this year’s sampling of MIT paper finalists. By Ross Marrinson 54 THE GUIDE TO SUSTAINABLE FARMING Buried under a bloated budget and a barren farm system, the Angels are ready to try just about anything. By Sam Miller 62 "YOU CAN'T OOPS YOUR WAY TO THE FRONT" What matters more, the car or the driver? Kurt Busch’s recent revival is making a strong case for the latter. By Ryan McGee 68 BUILT TO LAST To find the players who can deliver under peak pressure, Kansas basketball is studying, of all things, saliva. By Igor Guryashkin
INSIDE 6 THE TRUTH MLB’s selective justice. By Howard Bryant
12 ZOOM Jonny Gomes breaks out the beard trimmer.
17 NBA The reinvention of Monta Ellis.
8 THE NUMBERS The question of clutch. By Peter Keating
14 ZOOM Famous Jameis can’t escape the madness.
22 NBA Who’s got Klout? Andre Drummond.
10 ZOOM The making of champion sled dogs.
84 THE FIX One man’s bracket advice. By Chris Jones
24 NHL Why teams playing catch-up are doomed.
cover and this page photographs by DUSTIN SNIPES LOG O BY ALYCE JONES
DON’T MISS
PLAYBOOK 26 TECHNIQUE How Ronda Rousey’s rolling armbar crushes everything in its path.
28 COMFORT ZONE When Michael Sam told his Missouri teammates he was gay, support wasn’t unanimous, but it showed NFL teams that handling such a situation isn’t an impossible task. By Elizabeth Merrill
71 BORN TO RUN Momentum comes and goes in college hoops games, thanks in large part to the motivation of the leading team. By Ken Pomeroy 74 MENTAL BLOCKER Part math genius, part Penn State All-American guard, John Urschel runs the numbers on the combine’s significance for O-linemen. 78 CAN A METRIC SAVE THE OILERS? What one fan’s theorem taught the last-place Oilers—and the rest of the NHL—about coaching strategy. By Peter Keating
03/03/2014 ESPN The Magazine
3