Calculate John Hollinger's official Game Score (GmSc) to evaluate single-game basketball player performance with the free Game Score Calculator. Computes True Shooting Percentage (TS%), Effective Field Goal Percentage (eFG%), NBA Efficiency (EFF), Assist-to-Turnover Ratio, and per-36 minute rates with performance tier diagnostics.
All-Time Legendary Masterclass • +74.4 Positive Points vs -9.8 Penalties
Elite efficiency (NBA avg ~58%)
Includes 3P bonus weight
Traditional NBA efficiency
Normalized per 36 minutes
Playmaking security
Scoring pace
In modern basketball analytics, traditional box score points can often be misleading. A player who scores 30 points on 35 shot attempts with 6 turnovers may actually harm their team's offensive efficiency, while a player who records 22 points on 12 shots with 8 rebounds, 7 assists, 3 steals, and zero turnovers provides monumental winning value.
To solve this dilemma, renowned basketball statistician and former Memphis Grizzlies VP of Basketball Operations John Hollinger created Game Score (GmSc). Game Score unifies every major positive and negative statistical contribution into a single, intuitive metric scaled similarly to points scored:
How to interpret any basketball player's single-game Game Score across professional and amateur competition:
| Game Score Range | Performance Tier | Statistical Impact Profile | Historic NBA Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| 40.0+ | All-Time Legendary | Historic masterclass (top 0.01% in NBA history). Complete offensive & defensive dominance. | Michael Jordan: 69 Pts, 18 Reb, 6 Ast (64.6 GmSc) |
| 30.0 – 39.9 | Superstar Domination | Unstoppable MVP-caliber performance carrying the team to victory with elite shooting efficiency. | Giannis Antetokounmpo: 50 Pts, 14 Reb, 5 Blk (38.7 GmSc) |
| 20.0 – 29.9 | All-Star Game | Outstanding high-impact performance typical of a primary option or elite two-way star. | Jayson Tatum: 34 Pts, 8 Reb, 5 Ast (24.2 GmSc) |
| 10.0 – 19.9 | Solid Starter Contribution | League-average NBA starter game (league benchmark is ~10.0). Positive net contribution. | Marcus Smart: 15 Pts, 4 Reb, 7 Ast, 2 Stl (12.4 GmSc) |
| 0.0 – 9.9 | Sub-Par / Bench Role | Quiet or limited reserve outing. Low volume or moderate shooting inefficiency. | Bench Reserve: 6 Pts, 2 Reb, 1 Ast (3.8 GmSc) |
| < 0.0 | Net Negative Impact | Severe shooting slump, excessive turnovers, and early foul trouble harming team possessions. | Struggling Guard: 4 Pts, 1/11 FG, 5 TOV, 5 PF (-5.2 GmSc) |
Enter Points (PTS), Field Goals Made (FGM), Field Goals Attempted (FGA), 3PM, Free Throws Made (FTM), and FTA from the official box score.
Input Offensive Rebounds (ORB), Defensive Rebounds (DRB), and Assists (AST) to quantify possession creation and playmaking.
Add Steals (STL), Blocks (BLK), Turnovers (TOV), Personal Fouls (PF), and total Minutes Played (MIN) to compute defensive impact and discipline.
Instantly inspect your net Game Score, True Shooting Percentage (TS%), Effective FG% (eFG%), NBA Efficiency (EFF), and per-36 minute rates.
Hollinger's formula assigns precise linear weights based on the expected point value of basketball possessions:
Creates a brand-new second-chance offensive possession against active contest.
Ends opponent possession; easier due to natural inside box-out position.
Live-ball missed shot yields defensive rebound to opponent, ending possession.
Deadly possession giveaway directly preventing any scoring opportunity.
Understanding where Game Score fits within modern basketball analytics:
PER (Player Efficiency Rating) is a season-long, pace-adjusted rate statistic centered around a league average of 15.0. Game Score (GmSc) is its direct single-game counterpart, providing a raw point-scale box score rating without requiring league-wide pace calculations.
Plus-Minus (+/-) measures the team point differential while a player is on the floor, which can be heavily skewed by teammate quality and bench lineups. Game Score isolates the player's individual statistical production and ball security independent of team score variance.
The all-time greatest individual performances since box score tracking began in 1983:
Implements the validated mathematical weights designed by former Grizzlies executive John Hollinger.
Computes true shooting efficiency across 2-pointers, 3-pointers, and free throws together.
Generates traditional NBA official efficiency rating alongside Game Score for side-by-side comparison.
Normalizes production for minutes played, allowing fair comparison between bench reserves and starters.
Visualizes exact positive stat production points versus negative penalties (misses, turnovers, fouls).
One-click presets for Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant, Luka Dončić, LeBron James, and Steph Curry.
Raw Game Score naturally favors starters who log 36 minutes over bench sparks who play 14 minutes:
A Sixth Man who enters the game and puts up 12 Points, 4 Rebounds, 3 Assists, and 2 Steals on 5/7 shooting in just 15 minutes earns a Game Score of 12.60. While that looks like an average starter game in raw terms, their Game Score per 36 Minutes is a massive 30.24—signaling elite per-minute superstar production during their time on the floor!
Why scoring 25 points does not guarantee a good performance:
Consider a player who scores 25 Points on 7-of-25 shooting (\(28\%\) FG), 8-of-13 Free Throws, with 6 Turnovers and 5 Personal Fouls. Despite scoring 25 points, their missed shots (\(18\times -0.7 = -12.6\)), missed free throws (\(5\times -0.4 = -2.0\)), turnovers (\(-6.0\)), and fouls (\(-2.0\)) accumulate \(-22.6\text{ points in penalties}\). Their final Game Score is a mediocre 6.80—proving that inefficient volume shooting actively hurts offensive flow.
A 30-point scorer on 32 shot attempts with 6 turnovers looks impressive in a newspaper headline, but Game Score exposes their net sub-10 performance that actually sabotaged team offensive efficiency.
A defensive forward with 10 Points, 14 Rebounds (6 offensive), 8 Assists, 3 Steals, and 2 Blocks on 5/6 shooting earns an All-Star caliber 23.5 GmSc, accurately quantifying their massive game impact.
Attacking the paint and shooting 14/16 free throws adds massive value because drawn fouls create high-percentage points without adding live-ball missed shot penalties (-0.7 FGA).
How modern perimeter spacing and analytics-driven shot charts maximize Game Score:
In the grueling half-court environment of the NBA Playoffs, producing a \(40+\text{ Game Score}\) is exceedingly rare:
Game Score provides a direct statistical proxy for fantasy basketball dominance:
Because Game Score heavily weights counting stats while penalizing turnovers (\(-1.0\)) and missed shots (\(-0.7\)), it shares a \(r \approx 0.94\) correlation with DFS point totals, serving as an elite evaluator for fantasy consistency and ceiling.
In points-based fantasy leagues, high-usage guards who score 20 points but commit 5 turnovers and shoot \(6/22\) destroy your weekly matchup. Game Score instantly exposes inefficient volume shooters.
Team game pace dramatically influences raw box score opportunities across NBA history:
How on-court roles naturally shape Game Score statistical distributions:
High assist rewards (\(+0.7\)) and steal upside, but face significant turnover penalties (\(-1.0\)) from heavy ball-handling duties against perimeter pressure.
Balanced across scoring, 3-pointers, defensive rebounds, and secondary playmaking. Elite two-way wings generate top-tier \(30+\text{ GmSc}\) outputs.
Benefit from high field goal efficiency (\(60\%+\text{ FG}\) in paint), offensive rebounds (\(+0.7\)), and shot blocks (\(+0.7\)) with low turnover rates.
Comprehensive answers to common questions about John Hollinger's Game Score (GmSc), True Shooting %, and basketball efficiency metrics.
