We're Going Streaking!

I’m a big believer that whenever there is a chance to work the movie Old School into a blog post, you need to capitalize on the opportunity.  I’m pretty sure that is Blogging 101.  Plus, Frank the Tank has brought so much joy to the world that failing to sing his praises here would be completely disrespectful to my hero. 

Frank had many epic moments in the film, but the most widely known was when he went streaking at the Mitch Martin Freedom Festival.  “We’re going streaking!…up the quad and to the gymnasium,” a naked Frank declared.

Unfortunately, his phenomenal idea never materialized.  Frank’s vision never came to fruition.  Snoop and others never followed.  Frank’s wife was never amused.

Frank never made it to the gymnasium…

Today, Frank's embarrassment becomes my motivation.
Today, I've decided to honor Frank with my own streaking…

The only issue is nudity is frowned upon at my gym.  Have we no freedom?  That sort of throws a wrinkle in my plans…I’m not sure the arrest for public nudity is worth it. 

I’ve got it!  Maybe I can try streaking of another kind…I can try streaking related to 2 of my Schmeis35for35 goals:

1    - Make a streak of 10 consecutive 3 pointers

      - Make a streak of 20 consecutive free throws

That’s right, Frank, I'm finishing what you started…I'm going streaking in the gymnasium!

First up is my attempt at 10 straight 3s.  Check it out.

Not bad!  A streak of 11 in a row!  That’s some serious gymnasium streaking and my 18^th goal accomplished!

Sue sort of steals the show from me with her cheerleading moves 2 months post baby though. 

Anyway, how difficult was the streak?  Let’s bring some statistics into the conversation and think about the odds of making 11 3 pointers in a row. 

A quick check at www.basketball-reference.com tells me that the career 3-point percentage leader in the NBA is Steve Kerr at 45.4%. 

Assuming that percentage, the chance he would make 2 in a row would be .454 * .454 = .206 (20.6% of the time).  For this to be mathematically correct, I have to assume that each shot is independent (meaning that making 1 shot doesn’t make you more or less likely to make the next).  This is debatable but a reasonable assumption.

Continuing on…

3 in a row = .454*.454*.454= 9.4%

5 in a row = .454^5 = 1.9%

11 in a row = .454^11 = .02%

.02%!  That means there is a 1 in 5000 chance the NBA’s all-time best 3 point shooter would hit 11 in a row at any given time and I got it done on video!

Now, before all you nerds flip out, there are some obvious caveats to this.  First, the NBA 3 point line is further back than the college line I was shooting from.  2nd, Steve’s stats are from actual game situations where there is pressure.  3rd, there is actually defense trying to stop him from scoring while I’m free to shoot with nobody around.

Ok, so basically all the caveats make the numbers meaningless.  Technically though, meaningless and interesting are not mutually exclusive so maybe you’re still reading and at least mildly impressed?

Moving right along…

Could I handle even more gymnasium streaking?  Let’s check out the next video of me attempting a streak of 20 free throws in a row.

 

Ok, that one was probably a bit boring so I’ll summarize for those who didn’t watch.  I made 7 in a row, then missed 1, and then ripped off a streak of 40 in a row! 

“Fill it up again!  Fill it up again!”

Sorry, I can’t get Frank the Tank out of my mind.

I’m pretty pumped and shocked about my 40.  I thought making 20 in a row would be a stretch but never thought I’d get to 40.  I’m now the self proclaimed best shooter in North Carolina who only touches a ball twice per year. 

Let’s do some quick math on this one as well.

This exercise will be more meaningful since all free throw lines (high school, college, and NBA)   are the same distance from the rim.  Also, there is no defense when you’re shooting a free throw so that variable is out.  Pressure is really the only difference, but given I only had a few days left in the year to get it done, pressure was on me too.

Once again, a look at basketball-reference.com tells me that the all-time free throw percentage leader in the NBA is Mark Price at 90.39%.

Assuming the 90.39%, the chance of making 40 in a row is 1.76%. 

That’s actually a lot higher than the percent we calculated for the 3 pointers, but I would argue is much harder to do once all the previously mentioned caveats are accounted for.

Anyway, on the way out of the gym, Sue told me how proud she was of me making my goals.  I glazed into her beautiful eyes and once again took inspiration from Frank the Tank for my romantic response:

“I was thinking maybe tonight we could get together back at home and I don’t know, maybe put on the Sisqo CD.”

Frank, I hope my streaking in the gymnasium made you proud.
19 down and 16 to go with only a few weeks left in the year...

Keep on Truckin',

Schmeis