If you need a refresher on team rating, it’s a metric that averages era-adjusted offensive and defensive scores, such that a team rating of exactly 100 indicates that a squad was perfectly average—whether by being perfectly average on both ends or by being as bad on one as it was good on the other.

We’re further adjusting the team rating earned during any given game by accounting for the strength of the opponent. Playing against a squad that finished the relevant season with a 105 team rating would yield a 1.05 multiplier, while working against an outfit that finished the year with a 95 team rating would lead to a 0.95 multiplier.

Essentially, if the San Antonio Spurs earn a team rating of 110 during two different games, one against an opponent with a 105 team rating on the year and another versus someone with a 95 team rating, their respective inputs for the contest in question would be 115.5 and 104.5. This way, it’s possible to have a below-average score in a narrow win against a weak foe, and it’s similarly feasible to earn an above-average score during a close loss to a superior opponent.