The Business Journal’s On Numbers website recently ranked NBA teams and listed them to find out the toughest teams to root for.
Of all 30 NBA teams, the San Antonio Spurs were listed 29th with a fan difficulty index of -11.583.
On Numbers ranked teams based on a formula called the 50-50 formula. Half of the score came from the team’s performance the last 10 years.
A team was awarded 10 points for each overall championship over that span, as well as six points for each losing appearance in the title game, three points for being eliminated in the semifinals of the playoffs, and one point for being eliminated in the quarterfinals.
The other half of the 50-50 formula came from the number of years elapsed it took for a team to reach three landmarks, including most recent championship, most recent title game and most recent appearance in playoff quarterfinals.
The Spurs’ -11.583 rating is second best only to the Los Angeles Lakers and is quite a ways away from the Sacramento Kings 6.790 fan difficulty index, making them the toughest team in the league to root for.
The Spurs’ titles, NBA Finals appearances, four semifinals appearances and eight quarterfinals appearances played into the Spurs’ rating.
While the ranking may still not be enough to convince NBA fans to become Spurs fans, the team’s success speaks for itself.
