Chemistry is something that is universally considered an important element of basketball, but it’s one that can be difficult to quantify. Due to that, for generations “chemistry” has been something evaluated by the eyes of coaches who gauge the aesthetics of what they see on the court to decide what groups of players look to be playing well off each other and which don’t.
In 2021, however, we have the power of lineup data to see how different combinations of players perform together on the court, and the information can be nothing short of fascinating.
For example, two years ago, lineup data gave a pretty good indication of why the Gators started SEC play so well, and why their subsequent nosedive was predicted based on the lineups they used (or in this case, didn’t use).