|
|
Post by jay0heavenly on Apr 28, 2008 14:08:33 GMT -5
Why does it have such a HUGE impact?
I know in baseball, there is a huge difference between pitching at Coors field (with the altitude) and Yankee Stadium with their short porch in Right Field or the Green Monster in Fenway.
And in the NFL there's a big difference between playing in the Frozen Tundra and playing indoors on turf.
BUT, the game is exactly the same... both teams have to deal with cold weather etc... and in the NBA, the court conditions are identical.
Obviously, with such glaring record differences in home and away, it DOES have an impact, but why? Does the home crowd really push athletes to excel?
Is it like a placebo or something, because we "say" people do better at home, its like a self-fulfilling prophecy that both sides buy into?
Your thoughts.
|
|
Bigs
OOA pledge
Posts: 236
|
Post by Bigs on Apr 28, 2008 14:18:56 GMT -5
Home - usually means the comforts of home. Your home, your locker room, your gym, your field, etc....
Its like in football, your crown may be different than other schools, or the wind may blow different,
Its a familiarity thing.
|
|
|
|
Post by Warner Fite on Apr 28, 2008 14:20:28 GMT -5
The last part of your post hit the nail on the head...
It's similar to the "placebo" effect, but in many ways, particularly the mental approach to home court advantage, it does and can make a difference...
I see it only in baseball as home field advantage making a difference. There are just waaaaay too many adjustments to make in baseball in opponents home field. You will often notice that (with the exceptions of the Yankee teams of the 90's, who would win if they were playing in Mars, lol!) most teams who won in the LDS, LCS and WS games were the ones with homefield advantage. The same cannot be said in Football and Basketball...
|
|
|
|
Post by jay0heavenly on Apr 28, 2008 14:37:00 GMT -5
yeah...thats my point exactly... I think we can all agree that all athletes live and die by their confidence, and its also safe to assume that generally players play better at home (with the exception of players that couldn't hit their way out of a wet paper bag at home...lol)
But...Epun... a splitter is a splitter whether its thrown in DC or San Diego, and either you can spot it or you can't.
Its just interesting what some cheers (or fear of boos) can do for you.
|
|
Bigs
OOA pledge
Posts: 236
|
Post by Bigs on Apr 28, 2008 14:47:47 GMT -5
yeah...thats my point exactly... I think we can all agree that all athletes live and die by their confidence, and its also safe to assume that generally players play better at home (with the exception of players that couldn't hit their way out of a wet paper bag at home...lol) But...Epun... a splitter is a splitter whether its thrown in DC or San Diego, and either you can spot it or you can't. Its just interesting what some cheers (or fear of boos) can do for you. But a splitter is not necessarily the same splitter when you're on the road. Its kind of hard to explain..... I noticed this when playing bball and baseball. In basketball, certain spots on the floor were money, through practice and repetition. But moreso the familiarity of the gym and backdrop behind the basket. Those same spots at away games were slightly different. Its the same thing in baseball....in my opinion.... |
|
|
|
Post by Warner Fite on Apr 28, 2008 14:57:51 GMT -5
yeah...thats my point exactly... I think we can all agree that all athletes live and die by their confidence, and its also safe to assume that generally players play better at home (with the exception of players that couldn't hit their way out of a wet paper bag at home...lol) But...Epun... a splitter is a splitter whether its thrown in DC or San Diego, and either you can spot it or you can't. Its just interesting what some cheers (or fear of boos) can do for you. Generally speaking, you're right, a splitter is a splitter in SD or DC, however.... and this is why I love baseball... That same splitter thrown in DC or Shea, can break differently in parks like Coors or Petco...especially Petco in the spring months of the season due to the fog and heavy cool air, while breaking sharper in Coors due to the thin altitude... To that same thought, as well as another reason why home field advantage plays a bigger part in baseball... If that slider gets hung up, in say, a park like Coors, then it's almost an automatic HR, but in Shea or DC, where the humidity is air thick, that same hit may go for a double or even a pop fly.... Furthermore, you have the field demensions....A HR in deep center in Yankee Stadium is a long ass double in Petco Park ( I betcha that '98 WS would've been slightly different had we moved into the new park, lol!), so now, hitting and pitching strategy becomes a real issue.... <---Giving the nod to baseball. |
|
|
|
Post by jay0heavenly on Apr 28, 2008 15:03:24 GMT -5
yeah... I give the nod to baseball...lol... BUT PLEASE EXPLAIN TO ME THE HOME COURT ADVANTAGE IN BASKETBALL  (NBA Specifically) It don't matter if I slept at home or in a twin size bed at motel 6...lol...when we get to the court...we all got to lace up and perform. Due to the billions of dollars floating through the NBA, I would venture to say that the rims, floor conditions etc. are identical. It ain't like High School or Colleges which may have dead spots, (un)favorable lighting conditions etc. As a matter of fact, I would venture to say that its a non-issue in a lot of stadiums. The trainer's/Doctors travel with the team so they're getting the same prep. Hence, the ONLY determining factor is the crowd. |
|
|
|
Post by coldfront06 on Apr 28, 2008 15:07:03 GMT -5
The crowd is a big factor. You can argue that it shouldn't be, but in all other aspects of life, people perform better when they are in a comfortable, familiar environment. If the players were all robots, I'd agree that it shouldn't matter where they play. But since they are humans, nerves and things like that come into play.
|
|
|
|
Post by jay0heavenly on Apr 28, 2008 15:12:47 GMT -5
yeah...but look at Utah's record at home 37-4...thats ridiculous... I call it placebo...it works for sure, but its still crazy to me.
|
|
|
|
Post by dappa on Apr 29, 2008 11:30:21 GMT -5
you do not have to travel, you get to relax at your house in your own bed. That is a big advantage.
|
|
|
|
Post by Alc 06 on Apr 29, 2008 11:56:55 GMT -5
in baseball, the nuances of the stadiums are a big deal (shadows, wall angles, weather, etc).
Basketball has to do mostly with the crowd, and as mentioned earlier, the "little things" (dead spots, depth perception, etc).
|
|
(NBA Specifically)