Analytics has become the antagonist or protagonist in sports, depending on who you ask. Thus, it has provided endless fodder for sports media figures – arguably more so than the actual games themselves.
Jason Kelce and Travis Kelce debate the validity of the statistics new heights In 2024, while Troy Aikman criticized analytics and The Ringer’s Kirk Goldsberry took on the University of Texas’ new AI analytics initiative just last week.
Blake Griffin was watching all this, and he emptied his notes folder in the second episode Stepback with Blake Griffin.
Last week, I reviewed the premiere episode of Griffin’s late-night-style sports talk show. Excuse me while I hesitate to quote myself, but I praised Griffin for her refreshing approach and declared that she had “reset the bar for athletes to become media stars.” With his second episode, Griffin proved not only that his debut was no anomaly, but also that he is becoming one of the most fascinating figures in sports media.
To open the episode, tap Title “Analytics is winning. But what is the game?,” Griffin said, “Coming to the NBA, I discovered my strengths as a player. Passing, rebounding, and of course, charming the ref’s pants. But I kept working and developed a midrange shot that was respectable. And that’s exactly when analytics came in and decided that the midrange shot was the worst shot in basketball, which is a really cool thing to hear about the skill you’ve spent the last four years of your life developing.
While starring for the Los Angeles Clippers and Detroit Pistons (and later the Brooklyn Nets and Boston Celtics), Griffin was also evolving The one skill that automation can’t touch: comedy. And all these years later, he has demonstrated that skill in hosting a talk show like a seasoned professional.
on the back stepbackGriffin acknowledged that analysis is not inherently “a bad thing”, but it should also not take the place of human excellence. “[Analytics] It’s just knowledge,” he said. ”It is important to remember that knowledge is not a substitute for intelligence. Wisdom is knowing that a tomato is a fruit, and wisdom is knowing not to put it in a fruit salad.
From there, Griffin took the audience to the 1998 Oakland Athletics, “the origins of modern analytics.” Best documented by Michael Lewis In moneyballAnd made everyone aware of what had started as an innovative approach that had turned into a mind-numbing crutch – and “why we went from discovering neglected talents to creating complete uniformity.”
There have only been two episodes, but it’s probably the best sign that by the end of each episode, I’ve got my lists of Griffin’s best jokes and best points equal in length.
Best jokes?
- “They were just able to see the value that was overlooked, like in that ’90s teen movie, when a girl takes off her glasses and magically becomes hot.”
- “Sorry, that’s Brad Pitt as Billy Beane. And can I just say? Extremely generous casting. We don’t all get that luxury. For example, here’s the guy who played me on the FX series was cut“
- “If you don’t know about sabermetrics, congratulations! You’ve probably had sex before.”
- “There’s an optimal age between 26 and 27, and once you get past that, you’re not a veteran. You’re a depreciating asset traded to the Pistons. Maybe. It’s OK. I’m laughing about it. It’s OK. I enjoyed my time there.”
- “The entire sports film industry will completely disappear. Rudy? Rudy will be an analyst! And field of dreams? Kevin Costner may have been committed to a mental institution when he started harvesting high-yield corn stock.
Best marks?
- “What started as innovation became imitation.”
- “Look at the NFL. For decades, fourth down meant one thing. Punt the ball and play defense. It was safe. It was traditional. But suddenly, going for it on fourth-and-short was no longer a desperate gamble. It was the mathematically correct choice. Now that’s the standard. The thrill is gone.”
- “So they’re modeling the game after the stock market. It’s a great idea. Let’s make baseball even more boring. But the logic is basically the same: Find inefficiencies, exploit them, repeat. The only difference is you’re not shorting the housing market, you’re shorting careers.”
- “Sports are great because of what shouldn’t happen. The impossible catch, the miracle shot that goes in, the second-round pick that doesn’t fit the model and the pick made during a Taco Bell commercial but still changes the game. We don’t watch games because they’re predictable; we watch because they don’t.”
- “To be clear, no one is saying to get rid of analytics. We should use all the information we have. But we have to stop treating optimization as if it’s the entire point of the game. Take it from Art Howe, the A’s manager during the Moneyball era: ‘I believe in people more than numbers.'”
Initial ratings and viewership stepback are strong, but the show has to be believed because of its impeccable human creativity and unique tone.
Who wants to tell sports media executives that showmanship shouldn’t come at the expense of smart commentary?
As mentioned earlier, analytics is far from a fresh topic in sports, but Griffin’s authentic approach renewed the conversation. His jokes don’t diminish his expertise, but rather highlight that he is a reliable storyteller. In other words, it’s clear that Blake Griffin really cares about knowing what he’s talking about. While he is educating his audience on the topic, he is also incidentally highlighting how rare it is in mainstream sports media.