Assists is such a good indicator not only of how many times you pass to someone and they make a shot but also:

1) how much the ball is moving, making the defense stretch and work

2) how well youre shooting -- impossible to get an assist without a made bucket

2 of the D1 programs I worked at targeted 13 assists. We did the research and your winning percentage jumps astronomically when you go from 10-12 assists to 13+ assists.