Analysis: Defensive efficiency shifts teams towards top of the standings

Though it is still too early to assume that these teams will continue to find success defensively through the end of the season, these rankings are worth monitoring as defensive efficiency in points per possession allowed—a pure measure of how good of a job a team does of preventing its opponent from scoring regardless of pace—is a very good predictor of success in the ABA League.

Offensive strategies have shifted a lot over the last decade, but great defense has been a common characteristic of almost every ABA League champion over that period. Over the last 10 years, the club that has won the regional competition has ranked 1st in points per possession allowed 8 times.

Some teams have excelled at contesting shots on the perimeter while others have protected the rim at a high level, forced turnovers with relentless pressure, or played with great discipline to avoid unnecessary fouls to reach their potential defensively. Many of the league’s top defensive teams over the last decade have had very different profiles and the details above show how this year’s top defensive units compare in a few key areas.

Digging Deeper

Mega Bemax sits atop the defensive efficiency rankings at this point thanks to their top-ranked shot defense and turnover rate. They press full court on 32% of the possessions they face, ranking among the most aggressive defensive teams in professional basketball and making them a unique team for opponents to prepare for. For perspective, Mega Bemax has pressed full court on 50 possessions over 2 games, twice as many times as the team ranked 2nd in press frequency.

Crvena Zvezda mts and Petrol Olimpija have very similar numbers overall and in terms of details defensively but have posted them in very different ways. Crvena Zvezda mts ranks as the ABA League’s 2nd most efficient defense in the half court while they have done only an average job earning stops in transition. Petrol Olimpija ranks 2nd in the ABA League in transition defensive efficiency and has done an above average job getting stops in the half court. That pair is a prime example of how many different paths there are to achieve similar levels of defense performance.

Partizan NIS has not defended shots at an elite level compared to their peers in the top-4, but they have done an impressive job forcing turnovers in the half court without fouling. Avoiding foul trouble while staying aggressive is a delicate balance to achieve, but Partizan NIS has found it early on.

Insights and Statistics Provided by Synergy Sports Technology