1. A Basketball Player’s Height vs their Shooting Average

2. Introduction
Topic: Basketball field goal scores (NBA (National Basketball Association) Game Scores)
Field Goal Average (FGA%): These are the scores that a player achieves while playing in a game. This means that the player shoots while following through a play or action with his/her team. This does not include their free throws or other types of shooting. These scores are put into an average for their entire season.
Question: Does the height of a basketball player effect the results of their field goal average?

3. Three Supporting Questions
What are the player’s positions on the game floor (point guard, shooting guard, center, power forward or small forward)?
How long has each player been playing?
How often is each player practicing their shooting skills/techniques?

4. Hypothesis
I predict that the taller the basketball player is, the higher that their field goal average will be
The use of height in a basketball game is much more appreciated that expected. The way that a player can use long arms to steal the ball or win a jump off can give them the advantage. At the same time long legs are useful for getting up and down the court in the least possible steps.
I believe that it will make a large difference for a player to have these extra advantages so that they can lead up to getting the opportunity of having the ball at the net to make the shot

5. Background information
I chose the topic because I have played basketball my entire life, I am not the tallest and was curious how it may effect the outcome of a big league game.
It is always assumed that basketball players are going to be much taller than other sports, when it is taken into consideration it is just known that they will be 6.0 ft or taller.
Records: Tallest Basketball player: Gheorghe Muresan, height 2.31m, FGA 57.3%
Highest FGA: Kareem Abdul Jabber, Height 2.19, FGA 93.8%
Most Known: Michael Jordan

6. Background Information: Article
Is Height Important in Basketball?
Last Updated: Feb 07, 2014 | By Rachel Nall
Basketball players tend to be tall, thin athletes because their height helps them to reach toward the basketball goal and defend the ball against opponents. Male professional basketball players tend to be about 9 inches taller than the average American male, according to NBA.com and Dr. Steven Halls on Halls.MD.com. Height tends to accompany other important features for a basketball player, including arm reach and hand span.
Average Heights: NBA
Professional basketball players must be tall to be competitive in the league. In a survey of the average heights of professional basketball players in to 2008, the average height of a basketball player was 6 feet, 6.98 inches tall, according to NBA.com. The tallest basketball player was Yao Ming, who is 7 feet, 6 inches tall while the shortest basketball player was Nate Robinson, who is 5 feet, 9 inches tall. Considering that the average height of an American 25-year-old male is 5 feet, 10 inches tall, height is important in playing basketball, according to Halls.MD.com.
Basketball Goal Height and Shooting
The closer a person is to the basketball goal in height, the more accurate the shot can be and the less force you must apply to propel the basketball into the basket. Regulation height for a professional basketball goal is 10 feet tall. This is one of the reasons why basketball players must be tall. When playing offensive positions, being taller helps your reach to the goal. If you are playing against taller defensive players, being taller can help you shoot the ball without risk of a player swatting the ball away from you.
Defensive Positions
In basketball positions, the center must play both defensive and offensive positions. The center also tends to be the tallest player because added height contributes to longer wingspan and reach. The two guard positions tend to be the next tallest while the two forwards are smaller because they must make fast breaks to shoot the ball. When playing defensive positions, added height and reach helps you to block shots and battle for rebounds. Taller basketball players with longer arms have to reach less further to grab the rebound.
Trade-Offs
What a basketball player gains in leverage thanks to his height, he may lose on other aspects including speed and agility. Shorter players are lightweight, which increases their speed when moving across the court. While taller players may have longer legs, they must put forth more effort to propel themselves forward. Also, those with longer legs can be clumsier and require more coordination than a shorter basketball player.

7. Teams Used Portland Trail Blazers Phoenix Suns Minnesota Timberwolves
Oklahoma City Thunder
Indiana Pacers
Milwaukee Bucks
Denver Nuggets
Detroit Pistons
Cleveland Cavaliers
Chicago Bulls
San Antonio Spurs
New Orleans Pelicans
Dallas Mavericks
Houston Rockets
Memphis Grizzlies
Phoenix Suns
Sacramento Kings
Los Angeles Clippers
Los Angeles Lakers
Golden State Warriors
Orlando Magic
Washington Wizards
Charlotte Hornets/Bobcats
Miami Heat
Atlanta Hawks
Utah Jazz

8. Studied
Height (m) vs FGA(%): Found the current FGA for every player in the NBA this year and compared it to their height in a scatter plot for each team.
Height (m) vs FGA (%): Top ten teams for the last ten years. I researched the top ten teams for the last ten years and averaged out their height and FGA to put into a pie graph
Height (m) vs FGA (%): Top five teams for the last five years. I researched the top five teams top one or two shooting guards and averaged out their height and FGA so that I could put them into a bar graph and compare the amounts.

9. Boston Celtics Mean 42.4667 Variance 46.4181 Standard Deviation
Interquartile Range
8.9
Correlation
Minimum
26.7 Q1
39.7
Median
43.5 Q3
48.6
Maximum
50.4
Range
Mode

10. New York Knicks Mean 46.7571 Variance 42.6103 Standard Deviation
Interquartile Range
9.6
Correlation
Minimum
37.8 Q1
42.1
Median
44.7 Q3
51.7
Maximum
59.3
Range
Mode
None

11. 2013-2014 Mean 2.112 Variance 0.081573 Standard Deviation 0.28561
Interquartile Range
0.03
Correlation
Minimum
1.94 Q1
1.99
Median
2.01 Q3
Maximum
2.89
Range
Mode
2.02

12. 2004-2005 Mean 1.982 Variance 0.000417 Standard Deviation 0.02044
Interquartile Range
0.03
Correlation
Minimum
1.95 Q1
1.97
Median
1.98 Q3
2.00
Maximum
2.01
Range
Mode
2.01,1.97,1.98

13. 2013-2014 Mean 41.27 Variance 5.882 Standard Deviation 2.42528
Interquartile Range
3.65
Correlation
Minimum
38.4 Q1
39.05
Median
42.2 Q3
42.7
Maximum
44.0
Range
Mode
None

14. 2009-2012 Mean 43.57 Variance 63.7233 Correlation 0.406871
Standard Deviation
Interquartile Range
9.05
Minimum
31.55 Q1
40.95
Median
43.9 Q3
50.0
Maximum
51.45
Range
Mode
None

15. Extraneous Variables Players in demand: Switching teams every year
More practice: Some teams are more strict that others for practicing
Shooting Types: Many other ways to looking at a shooting average
Injuries: Players get injuries half way through the season which skews the data
Wealth: Wealthier teams have bigger and better
WNBA: Results can change for the female league

16. Outliers
Few players that did not have a recording for their FGA value got a 0.0
Injuries made some of the FGA values a much smaller amount
Outliers exist in study #1 and study#2

17. Conclusion
Based on the data collected there was not a strong positive relationship however a slight cause and effect.
Due to only one variable of shooting being tested and the outliers, the data was not conclusive
For future improvements I would look into other forms of shooting. The Women's Basketball league would be studied and make sure the injured are taken into consideration for no outliers.

18. Citations
Nall, Rachell.  N.p., 7 Feb Web. 9 June 2014
N.p., n.d. Web. 9 June 2014.
N.p., n.d. Web. 9 June N.p., n.d. Web. 9 June 2014.
N.p., n.d. Web. 9 June 2014.
N.p., n.d. Web. 9 June 2014.
N.p., n.d. Web. 9 June 2014
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N.p., n.d. Web. 9 June 2014.
N.p., n.d. Web. 9 June 2014.