Worth the replay?
Wednesday, May 6's games ranked by how good they turned out to be: late drama, comebacks, lead swaps and overtime. No scores, no winners, so you can decide what to watch without spoilers.
Best games of the season →- #176ersatKnicksNBA· ESPNDown to the wireC+48/100
▸ Why this grade
Late tension30/30Swings15/25Comeback2/20Decided late10/15Back-and-forth8/10Drama 65 × pre-game weight 0.75 (pre-game Watchability 50, estimated) = 48
- #2TimberwolvesatSpursNBA· ESPNOne-sidedD3/100
▸ Why this grade
Late tension0/30Swings4/25Comeback0/20Decided late0/15Back-and-forth0/10Drama 4 × pre-game weight 0.75 (pre-game Watchability 50, estimated) = 3
Ranked from each game's win probability as it was played (ESPN's for football and basketball; ours, from the goals, for hockey): how in doubt it was near the end, how far the winner came back from, how late it was decided, how big its momentum swings were and how often a team erased a deficit, with a bonus for overtime. That drama is then weighted by how good a matchup it was going in (its pre-game Watchability score), so a thriller between top teams ranks above an equally wild game between minor ones.