• Name the features of the distribution of a data set using statistical language
• Describe the connection between the distribution of a data set and its mean and median

Misleading Claims

Recall the scenario: A college basketball player is skilled enough to make an NBA roster and is thinking about dropping out of college this year.

Let’s explore the distribution of professional basketball salaries in order to better understand the scenario and develop a convincing argument.

First, we’ll explore the data set and boxplot of NBA salaries^[1] for Texas players in the 2017 – 2018 season.

The actual median salary among Texas NBA players was $[latex]1,577,320[/latex] while the mean salary was $[latex]5,262,279[/latex].

You’ve seen that the mean, under certain conditions, can be a misleading indicator of a “typical” observation value, such as the salary of a professional basketball player.

Now, let’s try to apply this understanding to some other types of data collections.

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