07-02-2024, 08:47 PM
(This post was last modified: 07-05-2024, 11:25 AM by wetwilleh. Edited 1 time in total.)
I’ve spent a lot of time researching ISFL Fantasy Football over the past couple seasons, but it was mostly focused on player scores and trends. This offseason, I wanted to look at user performance to see if I could crown the ultimate ISFL Fantasy Guru. To try and find out who the GOAT of ISFL Fantasy was, I took data from previous seasons to track various statistics like group wins, average finish, TPE gained, etc.
The Data
First off, I want to note a few things about the data I collected:
Before we get into the performance metrics, I wanted to share some fun facts about the amount of users that have enjoyed fantasy dot football over the past few years.
From Season 31- 48…
There are a few things I’m looking for when determining the greatest fantasy user of all time. So we’re going to filter our sample with various criteria until we narrow it down enough to make a decision.
First, there has to be a decent amount of longevity. Winning your group 3 out of 3 seasons is impressive, but to be the greatest of all time you need sustained excellence. I immediately eliminated anyone who did not participate in at least 8 seasons. This may sound somewhat arbitrary (and it is), but to me it felt like a long enough amount of time to determine if someone’s performance was just lucky or not. Without filtering for any performance metrics, we are already down to just 123 users.
Next, we’re going to start filtering out those who haven’t put together consistent results. Performance wise, the most important thing is winning your group. In my opinion, if you haven’t won your group at least 40% of the time, you cannot be considered the GOAT. By adding this requirement to the group in the previous step, we’ve now slimmed down the data set to just 10 users.
![[Image: fhhduqT.png]](https://i.imgur.com/fhhduqT.png)
At this point, we are going to eliminate any user who has ever finished in the bottom two of their group. Bad luck happens, but to be the greatest you can’t have that big of a blemish on your résumé. Removing users that have finished 5th or 6th in their group gives us a remaining sample of just four users: @LtHudz, @.simo, @Jumbo, and @Frostbite
![[Image: ajvfTPy.png]](https://i.imgur.com/ajvfTPy.png)
At this point, I think we are going to be splitting hairs, so I’ve brought up all the data I tracked to compare the remaining users. Of the users with 8 seasons, the Average TPE and Worst Group Finish metrics give me reason to say that Hudz has a clear (albeit slight) advantage over the other two. Which brings us to our final two contenders: @LtHudz and @Frostbite
![[Image: izBfLVi.png]](https://i.imgur.com/izBfLVi.png)
This is where things get somewhat tricky. Hudz has the same efficiency advantage over Frostbite in nearly every category, but Frostbite has far more longevity and has kept up the efficiency over 17 seasons - more than double what Hudz has. You could easily make a very compelling argument for either of them, but if I’m forced to make a decision I’m going to lean Hudz due to him finishing in the top 10 in 50% of his seasons and never finishing worse than 2nd in his group. That kind of performance is truly elite and he stands alone among his peers that met the 8 season minimum.
Congratulations to @LtHudz, my ISFL Fantasy GOAT!
The Up and Comers
So we’ve named a GOAT, but there are always new prospects coming to challenge the top dog.
The following users have played between 3 and 7 total seasons, were active last season, and have a group winning percentage of over 40%.
![[Image: VLj9Gs2.png]](https://i.imgur.com/VLj9Gs2.png)
Looking at the data, oknom’s performance immediately jumps out. @oknom has won his group in all three of his seasons and has finished in the top 10 overall twice. @swoosh fell just short of the 8 season minimum required to be in the GOAT conversation, but could also find himself there soon. While swoosh has yet to finish in the top 10 overall, a group win percentage of over 70% is by far the best of any user with at least 7 seasons.
When I go back to revisit this data again in a few seasons time, I expect to see some of these names with a serious argument for best ever.
Additional Leaderboards
Since I compiled the data, I thought I might as well share the top 10 at each performance metric with you all.
Top 10 TPE Earned
![[Image: 2mTZ7a8.png]](https://i.imgur.com/2mTZ7a8.png)
Average TPE Earned (min 5 seasons)
![[Image: KIpXuq3.png]](https://i.imgur.com/KIpXuq3.png)
Average Group Finish (min 5 seasons)
![[Image: bRXqnZQ.png]](https://i.imgur.com/bRXqnZQ.png)
Group Wins
![[Image: 2k7opze.png]](https://i.imgur.com/2k7opze.png)
Group Win % (min 5 seasons)
![[Image: WkAlmCM.png]](https://i.imgur.com/WkAlmCM.png)
Top 10 Overall Finishes
![[Image: nkUF2sO.png]](https://i.imgur.com/nkUF2sO.png)
As you would expect, there are a lot of familiar faces that appear on these lists. As you would expect, our four GOAT finalists LtHudz, .simo, Jumbo, and Frostbite tied for the most appearances on these lists, appearing in the top 10 for five out of the six metrics.
Closing Remarks
I hope to make this a semi-regular thing, as we have a ton of very promising users that could shift the conversation in just a few seasons' time. I’d also like to add the data from seasons 24-30, but the way the sheet is formatted makes it quite a bit more tedious. Maybe next time!
I also want to mention that I believe I have accurate data for every user that has participated since season 31, so if you want to see data for your personal performance just let me know and I can send it to you.
Until next time, the Doctor is out.
The Data
First off, I want to note a few things about the data I collected:
- The data in my sample comes from seasons 31-39 and 41-48. Seasons 24-30 used a different sheet that was not as conducive to collecting data and season 40’s sheet was seemingly deleted forever. Apologies if any of these seasons were good ones for you!
- If you changed your name, your statistics were probably not tracked fully. I thought about manually fixing them, but it seemed like too much effort for the potential payoff. Sorry to any potential name changing legends.
Before we get into the performance metrics, I wanted to share some fun facts about the amount of users that have enjoyed fantasy dot football over the past few years.
From Season 31- 48…
- There have been at least 520 users that have participated in ISFL fantasy football.
- Of those 520 users, 214 have won their group and 375 have won TPE.
- 18 users have participated in every single fantasy season in my data set.
- In that same time period, no user has ever finished 1st overall more than once.
- Though it wasn’t included in my data set, S25 and S27 tied for most users participating, with 216 users. For reference, S48 had 168 participants.
There are a few things I’m looking for when determining the greatest fantasy user of all time. So we’re going to filter our sample with various criteria until we narrow it down enough to make a decision.
First, there has to be a decent amount of longevity. Winning your group 3 out of 3 seasons is impressive, but to be the greatest of all time you need sustained excellence. I immediately eliminated anyone who did not participate in at least 8 seasons. This may sound somewhat arbitrary (and it is), but to me it felt like a long enough amount of time to determine if someone’s performance was just lucky or not. Without filtering for any performance metrics, we are already down to just 123 users.
Next, we’re going to start filtering out those who haven’t put together consistent results. Performance wise, the most important thing is winning your group. In my opinion, if you haven’t won your group at least 40% of the time, you cannot be considered the GOAT. By adding this requirement to the group in the previous step, we’ve now slimmed down the data set to just 10 users.
At this point, we are going to eliminate any user who has ever finished in the bottom two of their group. Bad luck happens, but to be the greatest you can’t have that big of a blemish on your résumé. Removing users that have finished 5th or 6th in their group gives us a remaining sample of just four users: @LtHudz, @.simo, @Jumbo, and @Frostbite
At this point, I think we are going to be splitting hairs, so I’ve brought up all the data I tracked to compare the remaining users. Of the users with 8 seasons, the Average TPE and Worst Group Finish metrics give me reason to say that Hudz has a clear (albeit slight) advantage over the other two. Which brings us to our final two contenders: @LtHudz and @Frostbite
This is where things get somewhat tricky. Hudz has the same efficiency advantage over Frostbite in nearly every category, but Frostbite has far more longevity and has kept up the efficiency over 17 seasons - more than double what Hudz has. You could easily make a very compelling argument for either of them, but if I’m forced to make a decision I’m going to lean Hudz due to him finishing in the top 10 in 50% of his seasons and never finishing worse than 2nd in his group. That kind of performance is truly elite and he stands alone among his peers that met the 8 season minimum.
Congratulations to @LtHudz, my ISFL Fantasy GOAT!
The Up and Comers
So we’ve named a GOAT, but there are always new prospects coming to challenge the top dog.
The following users have played between 3 and 7 total seasons, were active last season, and have a group winning percentage of over 40%.
Looking at the data, oknom’s performance immediately jumps out. @oknom has won his group in all three of his seasons and has finished in the top 10 overall twice. @swoosh fell just short of the 8 season minimum required to be in the GOAT conversation, but could also find himself there soon. While swoosh has yet to finish in the top 10 overall, a group win percentage of over 70% is by far the best of any user with at least 7 seasons.
When I go back to revisit this data again in a few seasons time, I expect to see some of these names with a serious argument for best ever.
Additional Leaderboards
Since I compiled the data, I thought I might as well share the top 10 at each performance metric with you all.
Top 10 TPE Earned
Average TPE Earned (min 5 seasons)
Average Group Finish (min 5 seasons)
Group Wins
Group Win % (min 5 seasons)
Top 10 Overall Finishes
As you would expect, there are a lot of familiar faces that appear on these lists. As you would expect, our four GOAT finalists LtHudz, .simo, Jumbo, and Frostbite tied for the most appearances on these lists, appearing in the top 10 for five out of the six metrics.
Closing Remarks
I hope to make this a semi-regular thing, as we have a ton of very promising users that could shift the conversation in just a few seasons' time. I’d also like to add the data from seasons 24-30, but the way the sheet is formatted makes it quite a bit more tedious. Maybe next time!
I also want to mention that I believe I have accurate data for every user that has participated since season 31, so if you want to see data for your personal performance just let me know and I can send it to you.
Until next time, the Doctor is out.
![[Image: 011p.png]](https://i.postimg.cc/y6S3gKm8/011p.png)
![[Image: CROney3.gif]](https://sig.grumpybumpers.com/host/CROney3.gif)
![[Image: feigenbaum5.gif]](https://sig.grumpybumpers.com/host/feigenbaum5.gif)
![[Image: Bq3jRFE.png]](https://i.imgur.com/Bq3jRFE.png)
![[Image: 002p.png]](https://i.postimg.cc/nzK75H2c/002p.png)
![[Image: FrostKnight.png?width=1248&height=676]](https://media.discordapp.net/attachments/722897180280619130/876259042392154132/FrostKnight.png?width=1248&height=676)
![[Image: 9nvMhRb]](https://imgur.com/a/9nvMhRb)
![[Image: 019p.png]](https://i.postimg.cc/V6cwKKzk/019p.png)
![[Image: dreamSloth.gif]](https://sig.grumpybumpers.com/host/dreamSloth.gif)
![[Image: LJWtFpF.png]](https://i.imgur.com/LJWtFpF.png)
