Assessing creativity in basketball performance using game theory

• By embracing mathematical and ecological perspectives, we contribute to a deeper understanding of creativity as a dynamic process. • Game theory can be an alternative and ecologically valid assessment tool for creativity. • This approach holds promise for enhancing performance and training strategies in various sports disciplines. Creativity is a fundamental element in sports performance, impacting player strategies and outcomes. In this study, we introduce a novel approach to measure players' creativity in basketball using game theory. We observed 50 basketball players aged 18–30, meticulously recording their offensive and defensive strategies during gameplay. Our methodology encompassed two stages: capturing the creative solutions employed by each player to score and assessing the probability of deploying these solutions. Additionally, expert evaluators employed observational methodology (OM) to evaluate player creativity independently, allowing for a comparative analysis between the game theory and OM methods. Our findings reveal a significant correlation between creativity scores obtained through the game theory evaluation method and those derived from the observational method ( p < 0.05). This correlation underscores the potential of game theory as an alternative and ecologically valid assessment tool for creativity in the context of basketball performance.