Wednesday, December 07, 2005

Since you asked

Because Shane did have the stones to state what rule changes he would make to the NBA the other day, I will do the same that way he'll stop whining like a some Viking fan.

  • Changing the quarter length from 12 minutes to 10 minutes. This speeds up the games and makes possessions that much more important to get a better shot. Could also encourage teams to utilize a running game more, which is typically more exciting to watch.
  • In response to the shortened time of the game, foul limits would then be reduced to 5. This would also encourage teams to build deeper teams as 9 man rotations would be more common as coaches have to be more aware of foul issues. Players also would be forced to play more soundly on defense.
  • Timeouts for the game would be changed to 1 full timeout and 3 20 second timeouts per half. Current rules have 4 full timeouts and 3 20 second timeouts over the course of the game, I believe, and coaches tend to save most of them for the final 2 minutes. There are plenty of TV timeouts during the game for teams to take advanage of.
  • Change the 3 point line from 23' 9" to 22' 1", which is still farther out than the international line. Time to bring the 3 point shot back as a strategic element to the game. This would help offset the scoring lost with the shortened quarters.
  • All teams play 4 games/week, with the week around the All-Star game off. This increased schedule shortens the entire length of the season by about a month and a half and again, requires teams to be deeper as players would need some additional rest.
  • Playoffs in the first 2 rounds are best of 5. It's playoff time and teams need to bring it right from the start. If you can't, you didn't deserve to be there. Also, only 6 teams from each conference are in the playoffs, with the top 2 teams getting the first round bye. This rewards good play in the regular season, thereby making those games more meaningful.
  • Phil Jackson would be banned from the NBA, I hate that smug bastard.
  • All other rules remain the same.

There you go. I will not go into the economics of the league or anything like that. I am in full agreement with Shane on the camera angles, I hate when they switch the views. It's like some damn moron is proving he can be the next great director.

I go and say the Bucks will beat the Lakers yesterday and then they go and put forth one of their worst efforts of the season in a 108-91 loss, at home. The Lakers converted 18 turnovers into 27 points and outrebounded the Bucks as well. Lamar Odom decides that last night was a good time to show up this season with 24 pts, 9 rebs and 8 assists. Smush Parker adds in 20 points and more importantly 7 steals, and of course Kobe dropped 33.

I stated that Bogut and Gadz would get more playing time with Smith and Simmons being out and they did do well while out there. Bogut had 8 pts and 8 rebs in 21 minutes and Gadz had 12 pts and 8 rebs in 19 minutes. Bogut frankly needs to do better as a starter as he's kinda disappeared in the last 3 games and has not been breaking double digit points. Yes, he's a rookie, but he's the #1 overall pick and should be putting up better numbers. Simmons was able to play some last night and the Bucks definately need his defensive effort as it was sorely missing last night.

Given my complete ineptitude in predicting games lately, I'm going to hold off on any predictions for tonight's game against the 76ers.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Finally we have some substance to the usually pointless drivel of Cheesehead Craig! No more attacks on the ideas of others, but "the stones" to actually come out with your own ideas! Very nice.

I don't think 12 minutes to 10 minutes would make the game faster. It would make it shorter, but not faster. Besides, I think the speed of the game is already a problem. Extending the shot clock to 35 seconds would have a bigger impact on the quality of the game which is one of the reasons why people don't watch now in the first place.

Limit to 5 fouls ... sure. Why not? I don't think it will have that much of an impact.

Ohh ... I like the timeout rule. That would make the game a little less exruitiating at the end of the 2nd half.

And I love moving up the three point line. That would make things much more exciting and punish people for playing in a zone too much.

Can't say I agree with your 4 games per week, though. This isn't baseball where players are sitting for half the game. Basketball is too demanding and you would see a lot more injuries with this rule change. More injuries would mean less superstars on the court and less people watching and attending the games. Bad idea.

Love the playoff rule, although I would go even more crazy and say the first two rounds are best of 3. It wouldn't be the same excitement as single elmination, but it would definitely create a buzz.

Phil Jackson can stay as far as I'm concerned. What do I care?

A good first effort, CC. Although my rule changes would have a far greater impact. Of all of them I like the idea of moving the three point line. That should be done ASAP.

Cheesehead Craig said...

Decreasing the game 8 minutes would decrease the overall real time it takes to complete a game, which is what I meant by quicker.

You are still hung up on the 35 second shot clock huh? Well, I shall disprove your theory once and for all.

NBA games average 1 shot every 18 seconds, take away the 4 seconds it takes for a player to bring the ball up court and you have 14 seconds of offense used.

College games average 1 shot every 21 seconds, take away 4 seconds for bringing the ball up court and that makes 17 seconds of offense used on average.

Thus, your theory that a 35 second shot clock would be used more and that it would create more passing and better offense is officially shot down as it is proven that college players don't take full advantage of extra time on the shot clock, so there is no basis to believe that the shoot first NBA will either. Better luck next time Shane. Do you do any research on things before you start yapping?

Fewer fouls mean coaches have to use different strategies with players, just like in college. A player getting his 4th foul in college is a guaranteed ticket to sit until 4-5 minutes left in the game. Don't watch much college hoops do you? Imagine how the Wolves would be if KG had to sit for most of the 3rd and 4th quarters.

NBA teams play about 7 games every 2 weeks on average right now. So adding another game should not be such a big deal. The teams do play 8 games every two weeks now during some of the season. More injuries? How so? The games are 8 fewer minutes a night, thus decreasing their chance of getting hurt as they are not on the court as much. So your theory is less exposure each game increases a players chance of getting hurt. Sometimes I question if you even know what a basketball looks like with the babbling that comes from you.

So take your condescending "nice first effort" and shove it. My rule changes would have a far greater impact on not only the fans enjoyment of the game, but on the quality of the league overall than what you proposed. If you would take more than 35 seconds to think about it, you would see that I am right, yet again.