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Effective field goal percentage

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In basketball, effective field goal percentage (abbreviated eFG%) is a statistic that adjusts field goal percentage to account for the fact that three-point field goals count for three points, while all other field goals only count for two points.[1] Its goal is to show what field goal percentage a two-point shooter would have to shoot at to match the output of a player who also shoots three-pointers.[2]

It is calculated by:

where:

  • FG = field goals made
  • 3P = 3-point field goals made
  • FGA = field goal attempts

[3] A common criticism of this formula is that shooters with very high percentage success rates, which favor 3 point shots, would arrive at an eFG\% above 100%.[4]


It can also be calculated by:

where:

  • PPG = points per game
  • FT = the free throws made
  • FGA = field goal attempts

The advantage of this second formula is that it highlights the aforementioned logic behind the statistic, where it is pretended that a player only shot two-point shots (hence the division of non-free-throw points by 2).


An additional formula that seems to be more in use by the statistics actually displayed on websites (but less cited by said websites) is:

where:

  • 2FG = 2-point field goals made
  • 3FG = 3-point field goals made
  • FGA = field goal attempts

[5]

All three equations yield the same result.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Basketball Reference Glossary". Basketball-reference.com. Retrieved April 16, 2015.
  2. ^ "Effective Field Goal Percentage". The Coaching Toolbox. Retrieved August 27, 2018.
  3. ^ "Basketball Reference Glossary". Basketball-reference.com. Retrieved April 16, 2015.
  4. ^ "Captain Calculator". Captain Calculator. Retrieved September 20, 2023.
  5. ^ "Effective Field Goal Percentage". The Coaching Toolbox. Retrieved August 27, 2018.