tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-595059113916595813.post6061676889352317674..comments2023-09-16T11:23:43.776-04:00Comments on Pleasant Dreams - An Atlanta Dream Blog: Age vs. Ability in the WNBAUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-595059113916595813.post-34275918247729969162009-03-25T12:35:00.000-04:002009-03-25T12:35:00.000-04:00Rebecca, pilight:Check the new post above. :DRebecca, pilight:<BR/><BR/>Check the new post above. :DAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-595059113916595813.post-17621574066312576782009-03-25T12:26:00.000-04:002009-03-25T12:26:00.000-04:00I think there's also a bias because of the way the...I think there's also a bias because of the way the league started. If you look at those great Houston teams, for example, Cynthia Cooper was 34 years old before she played her first WNBA game, Tammy Jackson was Arcain was 28, and Swoopes was 27 (Thompson was the oddball, a pure rookie). For the Liberty, T-Spoon and Sue Wicks were 30, Sophia Witherspoon was 27, Kym Hampton was 34, even VJ was 25. Pettis, Gillom, and Timms for the Merc; Mapp, Stinson, and Bullett for the Sting; Braxton, Edwards, even Jones for the Rockers. And so on and so on. And then you had the teams that built on the ABL players, like the Sparks and the Monarchs.<BR/><BR/>I don't think this metric can be accurate yet, in other words.Rebeccahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00419482533163075635noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-595059113916595813.post-9565706762642725902009-03-25T10:19:00.000-04:002009-03-25T10:19:00.000-04:00pilight, I'm going to give this some more thought....pilight, I'm going to give this some more thought. I found somewhere else another way to approach this problem, and using the approach we might get our expected answers after all. It involves, say, comparing the 23 year old cohort to their performance at age 24. I'll post something when I have some time to work things out.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-595059113916595813.post-92022227060430105592009-03-25T06:37:00.000-04:002009-03-25T06:37:00.000-04:00It does happen in other leagues. Hollinger and th...It does happen in other leagues. Hollinger and the other stat heads have ways to adjust for it. Bill James discovered the same effect 30 years ago.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-595059113916595813.post-31682209087343402962009-03-24T21:23:00.000-04:002009-03-24T21:23:00.000-04:00Oh, definitely, but it seems to me that this doesn...Oh, definitely, but it seems to me that this doesn't seem to be what happens in non-WNBA leagues. Underperforming players manage to remain in MLB, as least as far as I can tell, due to financial or other considerations. <BR/><BR/>It might be useful to post an "attrition table", which indicates how many 33 year old, 34 year old, 35 year old seasons there are. Those numbers definitely rise to age 23 and then fall every successive year after 23 (i. e. there are fewer 24 year old seasons than 23, fewer 25 than 24, etc.) I'll post the table when I get a chance.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-595059113916595813.post-39576953744531174072009-03-24T18:24:00.000-04:002009-03-24T18:24:00.000-04:00The problem is that you're only considering player...The problem is that you're only considering players who are still in the league at each given age. The only players who make rosters at 35 are those who are above average. Most players are long since out of the league. 37 people who have played in the WNBA turn 35 in 2009. No more than six (Milton, K Smith, Dydek, S Johnson, Sam, Penicheiro) will make rosters. Unless you factor in the non-production of Texlin Quinney, et al, your numbers will be skewed.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com