Instat Basketball Glossary
INTRODUCTION
InStat provides its users with a wide range of statistical products in various types of sports. This glossary contains definitions of the “Parameters” InStat uses for their basketball products.
Parameters, in essence, are the Actions that InStat uses to define their statistical products. Actions include, but are not limited to, any player’s actions with the ball(except passes which do not result in a shot), defensive plays against different play types and several actions off ball offensively and defensively (like screens and cuts). Actions are subdivided into certain types, which allows InStat to group them by their typology (classification).
Parameters are divided in two groups:
- Parameters produced from direct actions being coded (registered) by InStat analysts;
- Parameters automatically generated based on directly coded ones.
The coding (registration) process occurs with the help of in-house software InStat developed called “Registrator”. In order for the coding (registration) to occur and to provide statistical breakdown, it is necessary for InStat to receive full game footage (excluding halftime break) with visible jersey numbers and a game sheet (at least for one team). If both conditions are met, breakdown is produced through the following principles:
- The match video is synchronized with the analysts breakdown. A player’s status is specified prior to the game (starting 5/bench). The first action is recorded on the 0:00 timestamp as a jump ball, thus putting the ball into play.
- Every player’s action, from the directly coded ones, is registered by an analyst who pauses the video to define the parameters of action.
- Every registered action comes with the characteristics of time (starting from the first registered action), type, x,y coordinates on the court, player committing the certain action and the player’s opponent’s action.
Analysis accuracy is provided by special training of each analyst and the three-step verification routine carried out by supervisors, inspectors and heads of the production department respectively. Once the breakdown process is completed, parameters are produced automatically from the ones coded directly. This is called “first recalculation”.
Parameters generated automatically and through manual coding are an integral part of InStat’s product line. These parameters are subdivided into the following groups below: Team, players, lineups, pairs and referees. From there, each group is then divided even further into various categories. All other parameters out of this list are coded manually unless stated differently in the description.