How Hoop Corner works
Hoop Corner is a free, non-commercial basketball analytics project covering the NBA, WNBA, and NCAA men's and women's basketball. The interactive app at hoopcorner.com has team ratings, trend charts, shot charts, a trade simulator, playoff odds, matchup predictions, and a fan discussion board. Every team, player, and game also has a plain page you can read without the app.
Data coverage
| League | Seasons | Games | Game breakdowns | Players |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NBA | 2019-20 to 2026-27 | 8,417 | 9,057 | 1,225 |
| WNBA | 2020 to 2026 | 1,636 | 1,790 | 413 |
| NCAA Men's | 2020-21 to 2026-27 | 35,668 | 12,786 | 34,522 |
| NCAA Women's | 2020-21 to 2026-27 | 33,075 | 11,855 | 26,040 |
Where the data comes from
- NCAA men's and women's games, box scores, and play-by-play: the open SportsDataverse datasets (hoopR for men's, wehoop for women's).
- NBA and WNBA games and player stats: stats.nba.com, via the nba_api library.
- NBA contracts and past trades: Basketball-Reference.
- Player photos are loaded from official league and ESPN image servers. Hoop Corner does not host them.
Team ratings (Elo)
Teams are rated with an Elo system modelled on FiveThirtyEight's. Every team's rating moves after each game. The size of the move depends on how surprising the result was and on the margin of victory. Home teams get a home-court bonus, and ratings carry over between seasons with a partial regression toward the league average.
Game predictions
Win probabilities come from two models: the Elo ratings, and a logistic regression on the gap between the two teams' season-to-date efficiency. In a back-test on the most recent season, held out from fitting, the models picked the winner about 69% of the time in the NBA and 73–75% of the time in NCAA men's and women's basketball.
Game breakdowns
Each game breakdown is built from play-by-play data. It has a linescore, a win-probability timeline, the biggest scoring runs, the turning point (the play that swung win probability most), and a short automated list of reasons the losing team lost.
Shot charts and team style
Shot charts plot every field-goal attempt on a half court in feet, measured from the hoop, with clutch shots flagged. Team style profiles compare pace, three-point attempt rate, and ball movement.
Common questions
Is Hoop Corner affiliated with the NBA, WNBA, or NCAA?
No. It is an independent fan project and is not endorsed by any league or team.
Does it cost anything?
No. The site is free, with no sign-up needed to read it. An account is only needed to post on the fan board.
How fresh is the data?
Every page covers the latest season in the database. Games appear in game breakdowns shortly after the box score is published.