The NBA 2022-23 regular season recently ended, and while it’s been an easier ride for some fans, it’s been quite a stressful time for others.
So, to find out who were likely the most stressed NBA fans this year, we at BetTexas.com researched into which Lone Star-based teams went through a real rollercoaster of emotions. To do this, we’ve ranked the NBA’s most stressed fanbases over the regular season to find out which supporters really felt the brunt of their teams’ wins and losses.
Simply read on to find out more and see where your team’s fanbase sits on the stress scale!
Keep tabs on BetTexas for items like this as we patiently wait for the launch of legal Texas sports betting.
The Top 5 Most Stressed NBA Supporters
The results are in and the most stressed NBA fanbases can be revealed – and it’s fans of the Dallas Mavericks that suffered the most, with a stress index score of 60.1 out of 100, coming in first place overall.
Next up were Atlanta Hawks supporters, in second place, with an index score of 55.5. Compared to the most stressed fanbase, the Mavericks, there’s still quite a difference in scores (4.6).
In third place were Utah Jazz devotees, who weren’t too far behind Hawks fans, with a stressed score of 54.2. Then came Minnesota Timberwolves supporters, stealing fourth place, with an index score of 53.8. And last but not least were Miami Heat fans - in fifth place; with a score of 53.5.
What Went Wrong In Dallas?
According to the index, its supporters of the Dallas Mavericks that were the most stressed as a whole, with a whopping index score of 60.1. The Mavericks experienced 20 close wins/losses over the course of the regular season, the second most behind the Miami Heat (22), and also had to deal with the third most games going into overtime (9).
But maybe we're ignoring the elephant in the room. The Mavericks were trying to get back to the Western Conference Finals this season, and may have sold their soul in desperation. After letting emerging star Jalen Brunson walk in free agency (Brunson has since led the Knicks to the Eastern Conference Semifinals), the Mavericks desperately traded for embattled Nets guard Kyrie Irving.
Irving is as talented as they come across the NBA, but his track record is also full of controversy and disfunction. Unfortunately for Mavericks fans, Irving did little to help the team on the court. Despite at one point being 5 games over .500 and sitting in fifth place in the Western Conference, the Mavs cratered at the end of the season with a 7-18 stretch to miss the playoffs entirely. Stressful, to say the least.
Fans of San Antonio Spurs Came 16th
In 16th place on the stressed fan scale were fans of the San Antonio Spurs, with an index score of 44.9. Just after Spurs supporters came Pelicans fans in 17th place (44.8), Portland Trail Blazers supporters (44.5) in 18th, and Golden State Warriors (44.0) in 19th place overall on the most stressed scale.
Losing when favorited to win was quite low for the San Antonio Spurs at just 25%, which is likely why they feature so low down on the most stressed scale. However, it was the Milwaukee Bucks who performed best as the favorite, losing only 18.2% of their games they were expected to win. And this is probably why their team is the least stressed on our leaderboard, in 30th place.
Interestingly, the Spurs had six games that went into overtime, which was higher than some of the top five most stressed fanbases, like the Miami Heat and Minnesota Timberwolves, both seeing their team face five games in overtime.
Houston Rockets Fans Were 20th Most Stressed
Scoring quite low down on the stress scale was the Houston Rockets fanbase, with an index score of 42.7. Perhaps this was because they had just nine close wins/losses, which was one of the lowest scores overall, matching the fanbases of the Memphis Grizzlies
It was Rockets supporters who still saw a fairly high percentage of negative social media comments (14.21%) – which was higher than any of the top five most stressed fanbases. So, as much as beloved supporters are only 20th on the stress scale, there are a lot of negative comments online about the team. Their 22-60 mark in fairness didn't give fans much to look forward to.
Methodology
This ranking shows the NBA’s most stressful teams of the 2022-23 regular season.
To create this, BetTexas.com considered several different metrics.
These included:
Weight = 20
- Close wins/losses - Games won or lost with a margin of 3 or less.
- Number of games in overtime - The number of games which went into overtime.
- Losses as favorites - Games lost when tipped as the betting favorite.
Weight = 15
- Losses - Total losses during the regular season.
Weight = 10
- Negative comment percentage – The percentage of negative comments on Twitter and Reddit about the team between the 18th of October 2022 and the 9th of April 2023.
Weight = 5
- Opponent steals per game - The average number of steals from the opposition team.
- Opponent turnovers per game - The average number of turnovers from the opposition team.
- Games missed through injuries - Total games missed by players through injury during the season.
To create the index, the above metrics were considered - some of which were weighted higher than others. For example, losing a game closely was deemed more stressful than turnovers per game.
The final score was then given out of 100. And the higher the number, the more stressed the fanbase was over the regular season.
Sources:
TeamRankings.com
BasketballReference.com
