Inevitably, there are going to be playoff series each postseason that end sooner than expected, as was the case in the Mavericks’ sweep of the Lakers.
When the Mavericks take on Oklahoma City in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals on Tuesday night, they will have had eight days of rest, while the Thunder will have had one.
It is always a topic of discussion if extended rest helps or hurts a team going into their next series.
Here is a breakdown of Game 1 win percentage by days of rest between series, since the 1996 postseason:
1-2 days of rest: 46.2%
3-4 days of rest: 51.0%
5 plus days: 56.9%
So, according to these numbers, longer rest is correlated with a higher winning percentage.
When a team is coming off a big layoff, there is naturally some rust to shake off in Game 1 of the next series. In my estimation, the team usually is out of rhythm on the offensive end of the court for the first quarter and a half, before finding its sea legs.
Ultimately, I really don’t see the layoff hurting the Mavericks, keeping in mind they aren’t the youngest team in the league.
I am sure some of their aging stars (I am looking at you J-Kidd) greatly appreciated the extra rest.
Stats courtesy of ESPN’s NBA Tonight.
Joshua Sexton is a lifelong basketball fanatic, who watches as many games as possible. In addition, He has played and coached the game at the high school level. He has recently started writing about the game of basketball.
